Disclosure of banking secrecy without a court decision is just another tightening of the screws and turning out of pockets, says MP

In the civilized world, disclosure of tax banking secrecy without a court decision is impossible, so this is another tightening of the screws and turning out the pockets of Ukrainians. This opinion was expressed by MP Mykhailo Tsymbalyuk in an exclusive commentary to UNN.

I fully support Ukrainians who oppose the idea that tax authorities should have access to bank secrecy without a court order. Indeed, this does not exist in civilized countries. This (access to banking secrecy - ed.) should be as it is now - only by court order

According to him, banking secrecy is currently a kind of protection of citizens' money from the tax authorities.

"If we reveal banking secrecy, everyone will be taxed," Tsymbalyuk added.

The MP believes that there is currently a sufficient regulatory framework to disclose banking secrecy, in particular, through a court decision that is made after justification by law enforcement agencies. He added that during the martial law, it has even become easier for law enforcement to obtain such court decisions.

"So this (the idea of disclosing banking secrecy without a court decision - ed.) is another, as they say, tightening of the screws and picking of pockets. And where are the guarantees that those who will disclose bank secrecy will not abuse it?" - Mr. Tsymbalyuk said.

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According to the Center for Social and Economic Research CASE Ukraine, more than 60% of Ukrainians oppose the abolition of the ban on disclosing bank secrecy to tax authorities about the availability and movement of funds in the accounts of the debtor (taxpayer) without a court decision. Viktor Bobyrenko, head of the expert group of the Bureau of Policy Analysis, in a comment to UNN noted that the opening of banking secrecy to the tax authorities would lead to a decrease in the number of money transfers, including donations.

Recall

The idea to open the tax bank was suggested by the chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Taxation and Customs Policy, MP Danylo Hetmantsev. Dmytro Oleksiyenko , a member of the board of ICC Ukraine, a member of the Board of the Association of Taxpayers of Ukraine, said in a comment to UNN that this is Hetmantsev's dream.

Oleksiyenko also added that Hetmantsev has been systematically destroying the mechanism of banking secrecy in Ukraine since 2019. For this purpose, he has included the idea of opening the tax authorities' access to Ukrainians' card accounts in the National Revenue Strategy.

Oleksiyenko emphasized that banking secrecy currently protects citizens' money on card accounts from the tax authorities, and that disclosure of banking secrecy would allow taxing everyone and everything. 

Experts have repeatedly pointed out that Hetmantsev is a gray cardinal of the tax service and manages it in a manual mode through his people in the State Tax Service of Ukraine, in particular, according to media reports, through his former assistant Yevhen Sokur, who is currently acting as deputy head of the State Tax Service of Ukraine. Therefore, by his actions, including the disclosure of bank secrecy, Hetmantsev plays along with the tax authorities and tries to do everything to make them feel like "masters of life."

Later, the National Bank of Ukraine proposed for public discussion amendments to the Rules for the Storage, Protection, Use and Disclosure of Bank Secrecy, approved by the NBU Board Resolution  of July 14, 2006.

According to the regulator, the changes are related to the need to bring the rules for storing, protecting, using and disclosing banking secrecy in line with the Law of Ukraine "On Banks and Banking Activities" and to improve the procedure for disclosing information constituting banking secrecy to the National Bank of Ukraine.