New rules: the Ministry of Finance wants to reduce the limit of duty-free import of parcels from abroad to €150
Serhiy Marchenko noted that almost all Internet trade and electronic commerce are in the "shadow".
The introduction of a tax on parcels worth up to 150 euros will allow to close the shadow scheme of importing goods, Minister of Finance Serhii Marchenko said in interview RBC-Ukraine.
According to him, almost all Internet trade and electronic commerce in Ukraine are in the “shadow”. Almost everything is imported within the limit of 150 euros of tax-free value of goods.
“This problem is much bigger than just the reluctance to pay small taxes when importing. It is enough to look at how online trade works: how businesses are registered, how much tax they pay, how they import goods and whether they pay import VAT”, Marchenko explained.
Most sellers work as subjects of a simplified taxation system and even for turnovers of hundreds of millions of hryvnias pay only a single tax of 5%.
“But in our country, as a rule, even if imported products cost 300 euros, they are declared as 150 euros in order not to pay taxes at all. I am not talking about the fact that entire batches of goods are broken up in this way. This is the loophole that we consider close as needed”– said the minister.
According to statistics for 2023, 51.5 million units of international postal items were brought to Ukraine tax-free. On average, every Ukrainian received two parcels per year.
“At the same time, no one knows how many goods are actually inside each of the 51.5 million parcels. Ask yourself why the price of the same iPhones in Ukraine is sometimes lower than in the countries where they are produced? Because no taxes have been paid on these goods.”Marchenko emphasized.
The minister added that he understands the unpopularity of this initiative, but insists: the ministry’s arguments are sufficiently well-founded to reduce the tax-free limit. According to him, this will make it possible to level the competitive conditions for business and increase revenues to the state budget, which is an important step in the fight against the shadow economy.
“Our efforts are aimed at creating transparent conditions for doing business. Reducing the tax-free limit is an important step in this direction. It will help protect the internal market and ensure fair competition.”Marchenko concluded.
