To stop abuses such as tax evasion in importing critical agricultural products, Ukraine will require food export businesses to register, the government announced in a resolution released on Wednesday.
Although Ukraine is one of the top producers and exporters of food in the world, authorities believe that up to one-third of the items purchased for export are paid for with cash rather than with the required taxes.
The unlawful withholding or postponement of foreign exchange gains on accounts outside of Ukraine is another issue. The new process states that the only businesses that can export are those listed in the State Agrarian Register, pay value-added tax, have no outstanding tax obligations, and have not had any delays in returning foreign exchange profits.
“The purpose of the pilot project is to create conditions for preventing abuses and violations of the law during the export of goods,” according to the government. It stated that the initiative will also “ensure the protection of the rights of agricultural entities that carry out economic activities without violating the law.”
In August, the southern Ukrainian district of Odesa, which has ports on the Black Sea and Danube River, created an export control system for grain. Ukraine has previously attempted to tighten restrictions on grain exports since it desperately needs the money to fight against Russia.
According to the system, boats could only be loaded following an initial examination of the grain’s lawful place of origin. According to official figures, Ukraine’s grain exports in October decreased by nearly half compared to the same month last year, from 4.22 million metric tons to 2.15 million.
In the July–June 2023–2024 season, Ukraine exported 8.9 million tons of grain overall, compared to 12.9 million during the corresponding period in 2022–2023.
The major causes of decreased exports, according to traders’ and farmers’ organizations, are Russian attacks on Ukrainian ports on the Danube River and blocked Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea. Historically, Ukraine has used its Black Sea ports to convey most of its exports.
