IMF doesn't accept that Ukraine complies with structural benchmark abolishing simplified taxation due to inspections issue

MOSCOW. Aug 22 (Interfax) - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has not accepted that Ukraine has fulfilled its structural benchmark abolishing the 2% single tax (ST) and reinstating document checks, first deputy head of the specific parliamentary committee Yaroslav Zheleznyak said.

"I received information from three sources - we have a problem with the memorandum with the IMF. In brief, they do not give credit for implementing the structural benchmark, because at the last moment there was a change in the wording of the text of the law, which no one agreed with the IMF. As regards the restriction on inspections," Ukrainian media quoted the deputy as saying on social media on Tuesday.

The approach was initially proposed to focus on large and risky taxpayers when resuming inspections, and not to check everyone without exception, as 30 years before, head of the parliamentary Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy Daniil Getmantsev said in turn.

"And this position was proposed to the second reading in the bill, when we proposed checking only those taxpayers who have a turnover of 40 million UAH, who have a tax burden less than the industry average in 2021 or have wages less than the industry average for the same year," he said.

At the proposal of deputy head of the Office of the President Rostislav Shurma, another scheme was chosen, according to which the inspections were postponed until the end of martial law, Getmantsev said.

The prime minister and the finance minister were warned about the risks of such a proposal while taking into account the fulfillment of this IMF clause, Zheleznyak said.

"At the end, I asked the question in front of everyone present, 'Who guarantees that the new text will be credited by the IMF?" To which I received an answer from Shurma: 'We will conduct all the necessary negotiations.' They also promised to present a new concept for a unified supervisory body in three weeks (which, of course, no one did). All of the factions witnessed this. Well, as you can see, we conducted and prepared this...," the first deputy head of the Rada Committee said, commenting on the situation.

"At the suggestion of Shurma, another scheme was chosen, under which we postponed checks until the end of martial law. Whether this will be accepted by the IMF, I am not sure about it, but Rostislav gave assurances at the meeting attended by representatives of all of the factions that this issue will be resolved by him in talks with the IMF," Getmantsev said in an interview.

The issue of inspections could become a problem for interaction with the IMF in the future, as well, and the inspections could become a risk for businesses, Zheleznyak said. In addition, the deputy admits the adoption of the bill at the last moment with the hand-scribbled text.

As reported, on June 30, the Verkhovna Rada passed a bill, one of the important structural benchmarks of the program with the IMF, on the abolition of the 2% single tax from August 1 and the reinstatement of document inspections and monitoring of PPO.