Main points
- May 20 is the deadline for individual entrepreneurs of various groups to pay the single tax and military levy to avoid fines.
- Tax audits are becoming more automated, allowing even minor discrepancies in individual entrepreneur declarations to be detected.
What every self-employed person should do on May 20 / Depositphotos
An important tax deadline for Ukrainian individual entrepreneurs ends on May 20. By the end of the day, individual entrepreneurs of all groups must fulfill their obligations to pay the single tax and military levy.
Taxes for sole proprietors: deadlines
May 20 is the deadline for paying taxes to avoid a fine, tax consultant Mykhailo Smokovich reminded.
What individual entrepreneurs of the 1st group must pay:
- single tax for May – 332.80 hryvnia;
- Military fee for May – 864.70 hryvnia.
Obligations for individual entrepreneurs of the 2nd group:
- single tax for May – 1,729.40 hryvnias;
- Military fee for May – 864.70 hryvnia.
At the same time, for entrepreneurs of groups 1 and 2 who are registered in the territories of hostilities, payment of these payments is voluntary.
What should individual entrepreneurs of the 3rd group do:
- pay 5% of the single tax for the 1st quarter;
- pay 1% of military duty for the 1st quarter.
Why is it important not to miss the deadline? Tax obligations for individual entrepreneurs have clear calendar deadlines, and their violation may result in penalties or fines. That is why experts advise to monitor payment dates and not postpone payments to the last day.
What are the penalties for late tax payment?
The law provides for various penalties for tax evasion, from financial sanctions to criminal liability. And it all depends on how serious the violation is, the State Tax Service writes.
According to Article 124 of the Tax Code of Ukraine, fines amount to 5% of the tax debt if the delay is up to 30 calendar days, and 10% of the debt if the delay exceeds 30 days.
Moreover, according to Article 109 of the Tax Code of Ukraine, in order to apply this fine, it is not necessary to prove the payer's guilt. That is, liability arises automatically for the very fact of delay.
If the tax office proves that the non-payment was intentional, higher fines apply:
- 25% of the amount of unpaid tax – for the first violation.
- 50% of the amount of unpaid tax – for a repeated violation within 3 years.
If, before being held liable, the individual entrepreneur manages to pay the necessary taxes, fees, accrued financial sanctions, and penalties, then criminal liability can be avoided.
– adds lawyer Iryna Melnykovych.
What else awaits the self-employed in May?
After individual entrepreneurs and citizens submit reports and declarations, the tax service begins the next stage of work – desk inspections. As a rule, this process is activated from May and can last until the end of summer, writes the editorial team of expert Bohdan Yankiv.
The essence is simple: automatic algorithms, and sometimes manually, inspectors compare the indicators of the submitted declarations with each other and with other data available to the State Tax Service. Where there are discrepancies, a letter with questions is sent there,
– reported the YANKIV editorial office.
The tax office compares:
- data from individual entrepreneur declarations;
- information from settlement transaction registrars (STR/PRTR);
- employer reports (form 4DF);
- banking and payment transactions through financial services;
- other digital traces of economic activity.
Where the system sees discrepancies, a request or letter to the taxpayer is automatically generated.
The most common errors found by the tax authorities
Experts identify typical situations that most often cause requests from the State Tax Service:
- when income through cash registers (PRO/PRRO) is greater than declared in the reporting;
- when the amounts in the 4DF form exceed the data in the individual entrepreneur declaration;
- when receipts through payment services (for example, NovaPay) are not reflected in the reporting or are not fiscalized;
- when wages of employees appear disproportionately low;
- technical errors in filling out declarations or missing fields.
Separately, tax authorities pay attention to atypical financial models that do not correspond to the declared type of activity.
Why have desk inspections become more stringent? Experts note that in recent years, control by the State Tax Service has gradually become automated. This means that a significant part of the inspections is carried out by algorithms that detect even minor inconsistencies.
What else do individual entrepreneurs in Ukraine need to know?
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Different groups of sole proprietorships have specific restrictions – regarding employees, annual income, type of clients, etc. They also differ in the single tax rate on the simplified system; and Group III is considered the most universal.
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For activities without registration as an individual entrepreneur, a fine of 340 hryvnia is provided, and for economic activities without registration – from 17 to 34 thousand hryvnia with confiscation. In case of repeated violation, the fine is from 34 to 85 thousand hryvnia with confiscation, and improper record-keeping can lead to a fine of 51 to 136 hryvnia.