June 20 2003, 15:53 Interfax-Ukraine

Parliament of Ukraine prolonged validity of fixed agricultural tax

The law accepted by the Verchovna Rada on June, 19, prolongs validity of the fixed agricultural tax from January, 1, 2004 till December, 31, 2009.

Besides the changes introduced by parliament in some acts for regulation of activity in agrarian sector it is stipulated that for obtaining by an agricultural enterprise of the right to pay the fixed agricultural tax specific volume of receipts from realization of agricultural products and products of its processing in gross income should make 75 % (against present 50 %).

Terms of payment of fixed agriculture tax are also changed: agricultural enterprises will pay it within 30 calendar days following the last calendar day of base accounting (tax) month.

The validity of 1 % tax for development of gardening, viniculture and hop-growing is also prolonged till December, 31, 2009.

Fixed agriculture tax introduced by the Supreme Rada since January, 1, 1999, unites 11 kinds of tax payments. Now landowners except for the fixed tax pay only excise duties.

In 2002 the sum of paid fixed agriculture has exceeded its volume introduced in 1999, and the level of payment has increased from 37 % up to 88 %. As a whole the last year the agriculture industry has paid in the budget 5.8 billion hryvnias.

According to governmental data the volume of a support of agriculture at the expense of fixed agriculture tax and a special mode of payment of the VAT exceeds 3.5 billion hryvnias annually.