KYIV — Ukraine has ordered the mobilization of its entire State Tax Service, sending nine hundred thousand inspectors to the front lines of the national budget with nothing but receipt books, laptops and a mandate to collect the missing twenty-seven billion dollars one household at a time.
The inspectors began at dawn, moving street by street through every oblast, knocking on doors before breakfast and refusing to leave until residents produced proof of income, proof of spending and a signed declaration of optimism. Prime Minister Sergey Koretsky said the door-to-door campaign was the only remaining source of revenue and described it as «the most honest form of patriotism ever attempted.»
By noon the queues outside regional tax offices stretched past the city limits. In Odesa, inspectors set up mobile collection points on the beach and collected from sunbathers. In Lviv, they boarded trams and collected fares twice. In Dnipro, they followed wedding processions and collected from the guests, the band and the photographer.
Koretsky confirmed that the draft budget now includes a one percent VAT increase and a new line item titled «optimism surcharge, payable quarterly.» He urged citizens to «stock up on patience» and reminded them that drone orders for early 2027 must be paid for in October and November, which is why the inspectors will keep knocking until the money is found.
European officials have not endorsed the figure. EU Economy Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said there are «open questions» and requested a detailed assessment of how many inspectors can fit on a single street before the receipts become unreadable.