Updated Competition for the Accounting Chamber: Who Will Select New Members, How, and When

At the end of 2024, a new law on the Accounting Chamber was adopted, launching the reform of this body. One of the most significant innovations was the revised procedure for the competitive selection of the Chamber’s members. 

Previously, members of the Chamber were elected through a purely formal competition that lacked proper verification of candidates’ professional qualifications and did not assess their compliance with integrity standards. In 2023, interviews with potential candidates were broadcast publicly, allowing the public to witness the depth of the problem firsthand. Candidates mostly had limited knowledge about the Accounting Chamber’s powers or international audit standards. They often overestimated their proficiency in foreign languages and occasionally displayed overt allegiance to the MPs who were part of the commission.

Since then, a new transparent and effective competitive procedure has been in development for nearly a year. We explain what it entails and how new members will now be selected and appointed to the Accounting Chamber.

General framework

The new law reduced the number of members in the Accounting Chamber to 11, leaving 6 positions currently vacant.

The updated procedure for selecting and appointing members of the Accounting Chamber consists of three key components:

1. Formation of an Advisory Group of Experts (AGE)
2. Competitive selection of candidates
3. Appointment of candidates for positions

It was launched automatically on the date the new law came into force — December 19, 2024. The entire process is expected to take approximately 11 months, but delays at certain stages could extend the timeline. 

In the future, competitions will be announced six months before the end of a member’s term in the Accounting Chamber, or the day after their early dismissal or termination of powers.

A special advisory group of six experts will select candidates for the Accounting Chamber. During the eight-year transition period, the panel must include three international experts. They will be selected based on proposals from international and foreign organizations that have supported Ukraine over the past five years in the areas of financial oversight (audit), anti-corruption efforts, or reform of the Accounting Chamber.

Next, we will take a closer look at each component and its individual stages.

Formation of an Advisory Group of Experts

Nomination of candidates for international experts to the Advisory Group 

The day after the competition was launched, on December 20, 2024, the Government requested partner countries and international organizations to submit candidates to the Advisory Group of Experts. These included the embassies of the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom; the EU Delegation; the World Bank; the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development; the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe; and the International Development Law Organization in Ukraine.

The law does not set a deadline for international and foreign organizations to submit candidates to the Advisory Group of Experts. The government is awaiting proposals and then has one week to approve the candidates and submit their information to the Parliamentary Budget Committee.

According to the Chair of the Parliamentary Budget Committee, the government received proposals from international organizations for three experts to the AGE at the end of April.

Submission of expert candidates from parliamentary groups and factions 

The remaining three AGE experts are selected based on nominations from parliamentary factions and groups. Each faction or group could propose no more than two candidates and was required to submit their nominations to the Parliamentary Budget Committee within 15 days from the start of the competition.

Formation of an Advisory Group of Experts

Within a week after receiving information from the government, the Parliamentary Budget Committee submits to the parliament for consideration candidates for the AGE determined by the Cabinet of Ministers and proposed by parliamentary factions and groups. The Verkhovna Rada will first vote on one candidate from the parliamentary factions and groups, assigning them a ranking based on the number of votes received. Based on that ranking, a nomination list is formed, including the three highest-ranked candidates from parliament and the three nominated by international experts. This list is then submitted for a vote. If it fails to receive the required number of votes, the AGE selection procedure will restart. 

Competitive selection of candidates

Publication of the competition announcement and submission of applications

Within one week of the AGE’s formation, the official website of the Verkhovna Rada will publish the competition announcement, including its terms and conditions.

An eligible candidate for the Accounting Chamber must be a Ukrainian citizen at least 30 years of age, fluent in the state language and one of the official languages of the Council of Europe (English or French), hold at least a Master’s degree, have a minimum of seven years of professional experience, including in public oversight (audit), economics, finance, or law, and possess an impeccable business reputation. 

Individuals over the age of 65, those with an unexpunged or unpardoned criminal record, or those who have been held liable for corruption-related offenses are not eligible.

Potential candidates will have 30 days from the announcement of the competition to submit their documents to the Parliamentary Budget Committee. The Committee will then forward all submitted documents to the AGE. All information about the candidates who have submitted their applications will be published on the Verkhovna Rada’s official website.

Selection of candidates

The candidate selection procedure will include several stages:

First, the Advisory Group of Experts will approve its rules of procedure, the process for conducting the preliminary selection of candidates, and the criteria and methods for evaluating them. All these documents must also be made public.

After reviewing the submitted documents, the AGE will conduct the preliminary selection of candidates. This will be followed by testing and interviews to assess general skills and determine whether candidates meet the criteria for integrity, professional competence, and other legal requirements.

Candidates who pass the tests and interviews will be subject to a special background check in accordance with the Law on Corruption Prevention. 

Finally, the AGE experts will hold an open vote on the candidates. At least two candidates must be nominated for each position in order for the vote to take place. 

The list of recommended candidates will then be submitted to the Parliamentary Budget Committee.

The AGE will have nine months to complete the entire selection procedure. After the eight-year transitional period ends, the timeframe for the procedure will be reduced to four months.

Appointment of candidates for positions

Submission of candidates for parliamentary consideration

Within 10 days of receiving the list of candidates from the AGE, the Budget Committee must submit a decision on the competition, along with the finalized list of candidates, to parliament, following a preliminary discussion. 

Voting

Members of the Accounting Chamber will be appointed by the Verkhovna Rada through a two-step voting process: 

1. First, each candidate is voted on individually to determine their rating.
2. Then, the parliament votes on a list of candidates who received the highest number of votes in the ranking round, in accordance with the number of vacant positions. If the list fails to receive the required number of votes, the vote may be repeated, but no more than twice. 

For over a year, the Accounting Chamber has been operating with a limited composition, as 6 out of 11 positions remain vacant. At the same time, the workload for current members has increased significantly, as their powers have expanded to include oversight of local budgets, extra-budgetary funds, state and municipal enterprises, and international financial assistance. This raises concerns about the body’s ability to perform its functions effectively.

Over the past four months, there has been no significant progress in filling the vacancies in the Accounting Chamber. In particular, delays in receiving nominations from international and foreign organizations have hindered the formation of the Advisory Group of Experts, which is responsible for selecting candidates for appointment to the Chamber. 

However, recent developments offer hope that the Advisory Group of Experts will be formed by the end of this month, allowing the candidate selection process to finally begin. Achieving this, however, requires clear and well-coordinated action from both parliament and the government to accelerate the adoption of the necessary decisions.