Hetmantsev is trying to hide the failure of the tax service by increasing taxes - former head of Khmelnytsky region tax service

Danylo Hetmantsev, chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Taxation and Customs Policy, has confirmed the failure of the State Tax Service of Ukraine by raising taxes. Now they are trying to compensate for the budget shortfall at the expense of Ukrainians. Iryna Zlenko, the former head of Khmelnytsky Oblast, told UNN in an interview.

"In May 2024, Hetmantsev said that at least UAH 1.5 trillion was in the shadows, of which, according to him, UAH 500-600 billion could be mobilized to the budget. But now the media are spreading the so-called "achievements" of the tax service for 2024 in the form of mobilizing UAH 939 billion to the budget, as reported by (acting Deputy Head of the State Tax Service of Ukraine - ed.) Yevhen Sokur. This means that the second state budget is actually in the shadows," Iryna Zlenko noted.

According to her, the tax increase is a direct recognition of the inability of the tax authorities to effectively fight the shadow economy and ensure transparent budget revenues. "By raising taxes, they have actually declared that they are unable to mobilize the shadow economy into the budget," emphasized Zlenko.

Thus, the financial burden is shifted to ordinary citizens and white businesses.

"It turns out that all the shortcomings and failures of the tax service have been shifted to citizens. Citizens are forced to cover the hole in the budget and pay for the unsatisfactory work of the tax service. The consequences of such an approach are obvious, and this has been repeatedly pointed out by experts and MPs," she emphasized.

She drew special attention to the problem associated with the gambling business. In particular, budget revenues from this industry amounted to UAH 16 billion, while the debt of gambling business operators, according to her, exceeds UAH 100 billion.

"This is just horrible. What did the tax authorities do? Nothing. All these "achievements" and "victories" fall apart at the first approach to them. It all looks like a Christmas tree ornament - it looks beautiful on the outside, but inside it is empty and very fragile," the former official summarized.

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On October 10, the Verkhovna Rada passed a bill to significantly increase taxes . The document envisages a number of changes, including an increase from 1.5% to 5% of the military tax, except for the military. Taxes for individual entrepreneurs under the simplified taxation system will increase retroactively from October 1. The Parliament passed the law despite the fact that the Main Legal Department of the Verkhovna Rada's Office expressed a number of comments to the document and pointed out that some of its provisions violate the Constitution of Ukraine.

The head of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Taxation and Financial Policy, Danylo Hetmantsev, admitted that the law on tax increases violates the Constitution, but he considers criticism of it to be "from the evil one.

According to Opendatabot, 22,500 individual entrepreneurs have ceased their activities since the President signed the law on tax increases. In the first days, the number of closures reached more than 1,000 daily.