Serhii Verlanov held online meeting with representatives of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine
State tax service uses new formats of communication with business representatives during the quarantine. Chairman of the STS Serhii Verlanov held online meeting with representatives of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine on the 9th of April 2020.
“Quarantine is ongoing in our country, so all our efforts are primarily to protect our employees and taxpayers. We have taken a number of restrictive measures regarding communication with our clients, however, STS works and, if necessary, we are ready to consult with business using new formats” – noted Chairman of the STS Serhii Verlanov.
Chairman of the Tax service gave answers to current questions about the latest developments in tax legislation during the meeting. These included changes in audit-inspection work, exemption from the land payment and real estate tax envisaged by the Law of Ukraine as of 17.03.2020 № 533-IX, mechanism of application of the VAT privileges for supply of medicines, medical products, medical equipment, etc. to the customs territory of Ukraine.
Also, Chairman of the STS emphasized that current difficult conditions are not a reason to slow down reform of the Tax service. On the contrary, it is time to accelerate it.
“There is nothing to invent here: the main directions for us are the request of Ukrainian business for stability and quality of tax service, as well as agreements with the IMF and the EU. Arrangements which envisage things that we already do: support and protect automatic VAT reimbursement system, combat illegal turnover of excisable goods and introduce service-oriented approach to the taxpayers. And the ones we will introduce in the near future: electronic honest audits that will significantly reduce corruption during the audits and the STS’s transition to the single legal entity that will ensure efficiency and irreversibility of the Tax service’s reform. After all, bringing central-level transformations to regions remains one of our main challenges” – outlined Serhii Verlanov.
During the meeting parties also discussed situation in Ukraine and work of the STS during pandemic.
Ongoing operation of information and telecommunication unit and development of electronic document flow are particularly important in these circumstances. According to Serhii Verlanov, Tax service is actively raising awareness of opportunities for electronic communication with the tax authorities. Namely, video tutorials explaining how to use electronic services are systematically posted on the STS’s web portal, YouTube channel and social networks.
In addition, taking into account a number of changes for businesses envisaged by the new laws aimed at preventing the spread of Covid-19, the STS prepares newsletters explaining legislative developments.
“We make every effort to ensure that the taxpayers do not feel isolated during quarantine. Budget filling information, legislative changes, tax service options – we communicate regularly about all of this” – emphasized Serhii Verlanov.
In turn, the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine thanked the STS for open dialogue. They noted that now member companies of the Chamber are adapting to new realities, so they are grateful for the opportunity to discuss urgent issues and suggestions for further simplification and digitization of processes. According to the Vice President of the American Chamber of Commerce Tatiana Prokopchuk, for today it is important to maintain the uninterrupted functioning of all online services for business administered by the State tax service of Ukraine.
