MOSCOW (MRC) -- Ukraine's parliament backed on Sunday the final reading of laws that will simplify tax legislation and impose additional 5% duties on polymer imports, according to a text of the bill imposed by the Government to the Verkhovna Rada and published on the website of the Parliament. 

 

Cabinet registered the bill "On the balance of payments of Ukraine" (N156) and "On amendments to the Customs Code of Ukraine" (N1563)  in the Verkhovna Rada on 23, December. The import of food products (product groups 1-24, according UKTVED) will be imposed by an additional duty of 10%, the rest goods (group 25-97) - at the rate of 5%. Polymers and products made of them belong to the group 39. 

 

In addition, the rate of 10% government introduces for the goods imported into the territory by Ukraine nationals. The duties will be introduced during 12 months, "regardless of the country of origin of the goods and trade agreements concluded by Ukraine." The government will release vital goods from the duties collection: natural gas, steam coal, the fuel for nuclear power plants, oil and petroleum products, gold and precious metals, humanitarian aid.  

 

The government says the more than USD1 billion that the higher import duties will generate is essential for next year's draft budget, which is already forecast to show a deficit of 3.7% of GDP.

 

As MRC reported earlier on 10 December, the Ukrainian parliament submitted a bill to increase the import duty on suspension polyvinyl chloride (SPVC) to 6.5% from 1, January 2015.