The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted a draft law prohibiting the sale of cigarettes and alcohol in duty free.
At the second reading, deputies supported draft law No. 9315 with 276 votes. People’s deputy Yaroslav Zheleznyak announced this in his Telegram channel.
“This is +5-7 billion per year before the Budget!” – he noted.
The purpose of this project is to destroy the VAT and excise tax evasion scheme under the guise of carrying out transactions for the sale of tobacco products in duty-free shops.
The People’s Deputy also noted that the document was not supported by mostly all people from the “European Solidarity” and “Batkivshchyna” factions.
In the explanatory note, it is worth paying attention to the following: “According to expert research (Kantar Ukraine), in 2023, the share of illegal circulation in the customs territory of Ukraine of tobacco products intended for sale in duty-free shops (with the inscription Duty Free) or for export without excise stamps and makes up more than 50% of the illegal circulation of tobacco products”.
And it is also added: “In order to stop the existence of a scheme for the illegal sale of cigarettes, allegedly produced for sale in duty-free shops, it became necessary to prohibit, during the martial law, the possibility of placing tobacco products manufactured in Ukraine in the duty-free trade regime and selling them in duty-free shops.”
