ON THE ISSUE OF CRIMINAL LIABILITY FOR VIOLATIONS OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY LEGISLATION OF UKRAINE (Art . 2121 OF THE CRIMINAL CODE OF UKRAINE): PROBLEM ASPECTS

Abstract

The construction of social rights is based on the assumption that a person, paying social contributions, has the right to claim social benefits from the state in case of occurrence of the insurance event based on law. This right is also subject to protection by the state, in some cases – to the criminal protection of state mechanisms of social security. It is emphasized that owing to social insurance, material provision and support of disabled citizens (in case of illness, total, partial or temporary loss of working capacity, loss of breadwinner, unemployment due to circumstances beyond their control, as well as in old age and in other cases provided for by law) takes place at the expense of money funds formed by able-bodied members of society, therefore social insurance is actually connected with every person, starting from his birth and until the end of his life. It is proven that relations in the field of economic activity cannot be recognized as a direct object of evasion of the payment of a single contribution to mandatory state social insurance and the fact of the existence of Art. 2121 in Chapter VII of the Special Part of the Criminal Code of Ukraine “Crimes in the Sphere of Economic Activity” needs a legislative revision. It is proposed to create a separate section VII-A “Crimes in the Sphere of Public Finances” in the Special Part of the National Criminal Code and place there Art. 2121 among others. A preventive motivation should be established to Part 4 of the Art. 2121 which will not only stimulate the detection of crimes but also contribute to their prevention. It is noted that the non-material consequences of avoiding the payment of the relevant insurance contributions are socially dangerous (being closely related to material consequences, but having independent social significance) and consist in causing damage to the interests of the state, violation of proper social security etc. The study of the issue of competition of norms during qualification, as well as the analysis of this type of competition of criminal law norms as a competition of general and special norms make it possible to assert that Art. 2121 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine is special in relation to Art. 212 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.