In Ukraine, 599 cases of forging VIN codes were registered in nine months

Only 5 criminal proceedings regarding forgery, destruction or replacement of VIN codes and other identification numbers of cars were sent to court in Ukraine in nine months of 2026. This is about 1% of the 599 offenses registered during this period, Opendatabot reports with reference to the data of the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine.

In total, from 2020 to September 2026, 11,417 criminal offenses under Art. 290 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. Of them, 7,152, or about 63%, remained on the register. In almost seven years, only 69 proceedings were sent to the court - about 1% of the number of registered offenses.

According to Opendatabot, in previous years, about 40% of such cases were closed for various reasons, in particular, due to the absence of an event or the composition of a criminal offense. In 2026, every fifth open proceeding was closed, and the number of active cases is 473.

At the same time, the number of registered offenses is increasing compared to last year. In the nine months of 2026, 599 such cases were registered against 387 in the same period of 2025, which is 22% more.

The largest number of offenses related to the forgery, destruction or replacement of car identification numbers were registered in Kyiv — 169 cases, or 28% of the total number. 114 cases (19%) were recorded in Dnipropetrovsk Region, 45 (8%) in Odesa Region. Thus, three regions account for more than half of all offenses registered in nine months.

For destruction, forgery or replacement of vehicle identification numbers, Art. 290 of the Criminal Code provides for a fine from UAH 2,550 to UAH 4,250, correctional work for a term of up to two years, probation supervision or restriction of freedom for a term of up to three years.

Source: Opendatabot.