Ukrposhta CEO hopes for realistic solutions on taxing parcels
The draft law on taxation of parcels worth up to EUR 150 needs to be revised to include realistic solutions that will allow market participants to prepare for possible changes in advance, Ihor Smilyansky, CEO of Ukrposhta, has said.
"The first such discussion with the Ministry of Finance has already taken place, I was present at it. I hope that some realistic options will still be found so that we can prepare accordingly," he said said in a comment to Interfax-Ukraine.
According to Smilyansky, this draft law currently does not protect the domestic market.
"If we need to buy drones, artillery, airplanes, then I still believe that we need to say that we need to fill the budget, and this is a tax on the use or purchase of goods. If the borders are closed from smuggling, this tax may be appropriate," Smilyansky noted.
He noted that, according to Ukrposhta, about 90% of international parcels are worth less than $10.
Smilyansky recalled that from April 18, 2024, all international postal items will be fully digitized, and information about them will be transmitted electronically to customs authorities at the stage of purchase.
"The contents of the parcels are not a secret to anyone," he emphasized.
Separately, the CEO of Ukrposhta noted that if the law adopts an approach where the tax will be paid to the state by a foreign seller, the main international online platforms, in particular Temu and AliExpress, will work according to this model, while the work of small foreign stores with Ukrainian buyers will depend on the sellers’ willingness to invest in adapting their systems.
"Will we be able to implement this with small stores, for example, from Britain or Italy? The question is for them to decide how much they want to invest their resources," he explained.
As reported, Ukraine’s previous agreements with the International Monetary Fund on the allocation of new financing provide for the adoption of a law on the extension of taxation of parcels to shipments cheaper than EUR 150. Two approaches are being considered: either a fixed amount for each parcel, or payment of tax by the Ukrainian buyer to the foreign seller with the subsequent payment of this amount by the seller to the Ukrainian budget.