He previously held senior positions in the Consolidated Office for the Sale of Insolvent Banks' Assets of the Deposit Guarantee Fund. Until February 2016, he was an Advisor to Ukraine's First Deputy Minister of Finance. 

Before joining the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine, Mr. Mykhailov held senior positions in various private and public sector organizations and the civil service. In particular, from 2009 to the first half of 2010, he was Deputy Head of the Service of the Minister of Finance of Ukraine—Head of the Analytical Department of the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine. 

His expertise is building development strategies and risk and process management systems at the macro level.

In 2004, Illya graduated from the Institute of International Relations of the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv with a Master's in International Economic Relations (specialization in international monetary and financial relations).