// BBC UK NEWS — CRONACA
We face paying £9,000 tax because our second home is in a war zone
Kateryna and Mattias have had to postpone their plans to buy a new home
A Ukrainian woman who fled to Scotland after Russia invaded her homeland has been told she could face a £9,000 property tax charge because she still owns a flat in Kyiv.
Kateryna Stepanovych, 38, discovered the potential charge when she tried to buy a house in North Ayrshire with her Scottish partner Mattias Lindgren.
The couple were told the Additional Dwelling Supplement (ADS) charge would apply because she already owned a property overseas.
Kateryna bought the small flat in 2018, before Russia's invasion. She fled the war zone in 2023, leaving the property behind.
Kateryna says the 10-storey building in Kyiv where she has an apartment was hit by shrapnel in an attack in 2023
The conflict has seen shrapnel strike the front of her 10-storey apartment building, damaging its exterior and a neighbouring property. Her own flat remained undamaged.
"The fact that the property is still there is a miracle," Mattias said.
The couple, who currently live in Stromness in Orkney, only became aware of the £9,000 charge when they put down an offer on the property they were planning to buy and Mattias looked through the paperwork from their solicitor.
Unable to afford the additional cost, they had to withdraw their offer.