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1. Payments of the non-repayable financial support and of the loans to Ukraine under this Article shall be made in accordance with the budget appropriations and subject to the available funding. Payments shall be made in instalments. An instalment may be disbursed in one or more tranches.

2. Every quarter, Ukraine shall submit a duly justified request for payment of the non-repayable financial support and of the loan support with a view to the Commission paying that non-repayable financial support and loan support on the basis of the assessment described in paragraph 3.

3. The Commission shall assess without undue delay whether Ukraine has met the precondition set out in Article 5(1) and has achieved satisfactory fulfilment of the qualitative and quantitative steps set out in the Council implementing decision referred to in Article 19(1). The satisfactory fulfilment of qualitative and quantitative steps shall presuppose that measures related to the steps for which Ukraine had achieved satisfactory fulfilment have not been reversed by Ukraine. The Commission may be assisted by experts in carrying out its assessment.

4. Where the Commission makes a positive assessment of the satisfactory fulfilment of qualitative and quantitative steps, it shall submit to the Council without undue delay a proposal for a Council implementing decision establishing the satisfactory fulfilment of the conditions for payments referred to in paragraph 3. The Council shall act, as a rule, within three weeks of receiving that proposal. The Council, acting by qualified majority, may amend the Commission’s proposal and adopt the amended proposal by means of an implementing decision. On the basis of the Council implementing decision, the Commission shall adopt a decision authorising the disbursement of the part of the non-repayable financial support and of the loan corresponding to such steps.

5. Where the Commission makes a negative assessment of the fulfilment of qualitative and quantitative steps as per the indicative timetable, it shall inform the Council and the Parliament without undue delay and the payment of the non-repayable financial support and of the loan corresponding to such steps shall be withheld. The payment withheld shall be disbursed, in accordance with paragraph 4, only when Ukraine has duly justified, as part of a subsequent payment request, that it has taken the necessary measures to ensure satisfactory fulfilment of the qualitative and quantitative steps. The Commission shall develop a methodology for handling the partial fulfilment of steps as guidance.

6. Where the Commission considers that Ukraine has not taken the necessary measures within a period of 12 months from the initial negative assessment referred to in paragraph 5, the Commission shall notify Ukraine thereof. Ukraine may present its observations within two months from the communication of the Commission’s notification. Where the Commission concludes that Ukraine has not taken the necessary measures, it shall submit a proposal for a Council implementing decision reducing the amount of the non-repayable financial support and of the loan proportionately to the part corresponding to the relevant qualitative and quantitative steps. The Council shall act, as a rule, within one month of receiving the Commission’s proposal. The Council, acting by qualified majority, may amend the Commission’s proposal and adopt the amended proposal by means of an implementing decision.

7. In the event of identified cases of, or serious concerns in relation to, irregularities, fraud, corruption and conflicts of interest affecting the financial interests of the Union that have not been corrected by Ukraine, or a serious breach of an obligation resulting from agreements referred to in Articles 9, 10 and 22 of this Regulation, including on the basis of the reports of the Audit Board referred to in Article 36 of this Regulation or information provided by OLAF, the Commission may reduce the amount of the non-repayable financial support and recover any amount due to the Union budget, including by offsetting in line with Article 102 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046, or reduce the amount of the loan to be disbursed to Ukraine as referred to in paragraph 4 of this Article, or ask for early repayment of the loan.

8. By way of derogation from Article 116(2) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046, the payment deadline as referred to in Article 116(1), point (a), of that Regulation shall start running from the date of the communication of the decision authorising the disbursement to Ukraine pursuant to paragraph 4 of this Article.

9. Article 116(5) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046 shall not apply to payments made pursuant to this Article and to Article 24 of this Regulation.