Main points
- The Verkhovna Rada supported in the first reading a bill on a tax on income from digital platforms, known as the “OLX tax”.
- The draft law provides for taxation of income from online services, but still requires further revision before final adoption.
The Verkhovna Rada voted for the “OLX tax” / 24 Channel
Ukraine will introduce a tax on income from digital platforms. On Wednesday, April 8, the Verkhovna Rada supported the so-called “OLX tax” bill in the first reading.
What tax will be introduced in Ukraine?
The decision on a tax for digital platforms was supported by 234 deputies, Suspilne reports.
This is Bill No. 15111, which is part of Ukraine's obligations to the International Monetary Fund.
It provides that income that Ukrainians receive through various online platforms will be taxed. For example, this may include funds received from activities on well-known services:
- Glovo;
- Uklon;
- Bolt;
- OLX etc.
Hence the name “OLX tax” stuck to it.
The bill provides for taxation of income from digital platforms at a rate of 5%.
Note! The Council almost foiled the vote on the “OLX tax” law. For example, the day before yesterday, one vote was not enough to include it on the agenda. However, today the law was voted on, although only on the second attempt, since during the first vote only 224 votes out of the 226 necessary were collected.
What changes were made to the bill?
However, the law on the “OLX tax” will still undergo changes before its final adoption. According to MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak, it still needs to be finalized before the second reading.
Although the bill was already “softened” for users of digital platforms before the first reading. The following amendments were made to it:
- Bill 15111 will not apply to used goods;
- self-employed people will be able to pay taxes like ordinary individuals;
- the requirement to open special accounts was removed;
- refused to disclose banking secrecy.
It was also decided to replace the complex system of declaring income from digital platforms with a simpler mechanism. The State Tax Service will send tax notifications.
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What do the platforms themselves say about the new tax?
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The OLX platform called for the bill to be revised, drawing attention to a number of controversial provisions. In particular, the idea of granting digital platforms the status of tax agents, which would make them responsible for withholding and remitting taxes on behalf of users, is causing concern.
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Separately, the company emphasized the risks associated with requiring mandatory full identification of all sellers. According to the platform's representatives, this may be an excessive step and create additional obstacles for people who use the service to sell goods.
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At the same time, other market participants, including Uklon, Bolt, and Glovo, generally welcomed the initiative. The companies believe that the new rules can make the market more transparent and understandable for both business and the state.
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In particular, Uklon noted that the adoption of such a bill will contribute to the formation of a transparent taxation system, simplify administration, and allow companies to operate in a clearly defined legal framework.