Publication date:
Publication from:
The Board of Representatives of the IT Ukraine Association together with the First Vice Prime Minister – Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yulia Svyrydenko held a working meeting with the participation of the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy Danylo Hetmantsev, and the leadership of the Ministries of Digital Transformation, of Finance, of Foreign Affairs, State Tax Service. The main purpose of the meeting was to synchronize the positions of the parties, to discuss the pressing issues and challenges of wartime for the industry, as well as practical steps to solve them.
The Executive Director of the Association, Konstantin Vasyuk, spoke about the state of development and the latest indicators of the IT industry, which remains the only export industry that stably generates foreign currency income for the Ukrainian economy in wartime conditions and maintains positive growth dynamics.
During the meeting, the actual issues of project launch were also discussed, such as travel and reserving of employees. As noted by the First Vice-Prime Minister – Minister of Economy of Ukraine, on the instructions of the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Economy finalized the project of the government decision on business trips abroad. Currently, the document has been sent to the Cabinet of Ministers.
As for reservations, the “On Amendments to the Law of Ukraine “On Mobilization Training and Mobilization” (reg. 7687 dated 08/22/2022) draft Law is expected to be considered by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine in the second reading in the near future. This will make it possible to expand the list of conscripts who can be booked by enterprises of critical industries for the efficient functioning of the economy and meeting the needs of the citizens.
To be reminded that the first edition of the law took into account the proposals of the Association regarding the formation of the procedure and criteria for classifying business entities and non-profit organizations as institutions that are critically important for the functioning of the economy and ensuring the vital functioning of the population in the special period. In particular, conscripts who are hired as employees or engaged under a contract as sole traders or as gig specialists are subject to reservation.
IT, like all other sectors, works today to ensure that Ukraine has the opportunity to work, live, and fight. Ukraine is interested in the development of the IT sphere. And we do everything for this. If we do not succeed in something, it is only because the War is going on. And the questions are not easy to solve today,” – Yuliya Svyrydenko noted.
In a separate track, the participants discussed possible ways to solve the issue of taxation of citizens of Ukraine who are under temporary protection in EU countries. The Ministry of Finance recommends using the tax payment mechanism provided by agreements on the avoidance of double taxation, which are currently signed with 74 countries of the world. In addition, within the framework of the OECD Model Tax Convention, of which Ukraine is a member, states have the right to independently determine whether to consider Ukrainian citizens as taxpayers of the country or only of Ukraine. In particular, some European countries (Ireland, Lithuania, Spain) made individual decisions: to consider our citizens as tax residents of Ukraine until the end of the War. At the same time, Poland allows the possibility of preserving the center of vital interests in Ukraine and considers each case separately. Thus, each country has a differentiated approach to solving this issue, which depends on plenty of factors from the point of view of the country’s legislation and the individual circumstances of the citizen of Ukraine.
The association agreed to hold monthly meetings with the Ministry of Economy to synchronize the efforts of the government and business for the preservation and development of the IT industry in Ukraine.
