Every third Ukrainian receives parcels from abroad, 82% do not support VAT on shipments – Rating Group survey
An overwhelming majority of Ukrainians – 82% – oppose the introduction of a 20% value-added tax on all international parcels, according to a survey conducted by Rating Group between February 6-9.
Nearly one third of respondents (29%) said they had received international parcels over the past year. In the majority of cases (68%), the value of parcels received did not exceed EUR 50, the most common bracket among both higher- and lower-income respondents alike.
Approximately half of Ukrainians actively use domestic parcel delivery services, sending or receiving parcels at least once every few months, with more than one third of that group doing so several times per month.
Among those who had received goods from abroad, nearly one third (29%) had ordered items relevant to coping with the consequences of the energy crisis. The most popular categories of internationally sourced goods were clothing and footwear (45%), followed by power banks, batteries, and charging devices (26%).
A majority of Ukrainians (64%) consider international postal parcels important during wartime, with one quarter describing them as critically important. An overwhelming majority (79%) believe that rising parcel costs could negatively affect volunteer activity and the defence effort, while an even larger share (85%) express concern about the potential negative impact of parcel delays on those same areas.
The survey was conducted using the CATI method among 1,000 respondents aged 18 and above across all Ukrainian regions under government control where mobile connectivity was available at the time of polling. Results were weighted using current data from the State Statistics Service of Ukraine. The sample is representative by age, gender, and settlement type, with a margin of error not exceeding 3.1% at a confidence level of 0.95.
As previously reported, Verkhovna Rada Finance, Tax and Customs Policy Committee chair Danylo Hetmantsev, in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine, expressed support for lowering the threshold at which international parcels become subject to taxation from the current EUR 150 level, while acknowledging that the Rada currently lacks the votes to pass such a measure and calling on interested businesses to take a more active stance. The proposed threshold reduction would bring Ukraine in line with the EU standard of EUR 45.
The European Business Association (EBA) has voiced support for abolishing the VAT exemption on imported goods valued at up to EUR 150.
In January, Verkhovna Rada Budget Committee chair Roksolana Pidlasa reported that Ukraine was seeking to defer implementation of requirements to abolish parcel tax exemptions and introduce VAT for individual entrepreneurs until after approval of a new IMF financing programme by the Fund’s executive board. "The most problematic provisions for a Rada vote remain the requirements to abolish parcel tax exemptions and to apply VAT to individual entrepreneurs. We have made the case for easing these requirements, which is possible prior to programme approval, citing in particular that the absence of electricity, heating, and constant shelling are not conducive to doing business," Pidlasa wrote on Facebook following a meeting with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva.
