Taxing parcels up to EUR 150 makes sense only if it blocks gray imports via private entrepreneurs

Igor Smelyansky, the general director of JSC Ukrposhta, who is in conflict with the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) due to its reluctance to allow Ukrposhta to have its own bank, is skeptical of the NBU's proposal to tax parcels up to EUR 150 in order to reduce imports of non-critical goods and relieve pressure on the country's balance of payments during wartime.

"We are very lucky to have a regulator that understands not only banks but also parcels. As someone who worked in customs, I can say these measures won't affect the currency," Smelyansky wrote on Monday in a Telegram channel.

He added that this idea could work if Ukraine produced sufficient quantities of goods that are currently imported and Ukrainian manufacturers lost out to competition only because of the 20% VAT.

The head of Ukrposhta explained his opinion: "If computer mice were produced in Ukraine and were 10% cheaper than Chinese ones, then after the introduction of a 20% duty, everyone would start buying Ukrainian ones."

Smelyansky believes that large retail chains primarily initiated this idea so consumers would buy from them instead of AliExpress, even though large retailers' logistics costs are lower.

"I am ready to support such a VAT, but only on one condition: we must block gray imports through private entrepreneurs. Then I am all for it," said the Ukrposhta CEO, emphasizing that there are no initiatives to ban imports through private entrepreneurs who do not pay VAT.

"Forcing people who buy on AliExpress to pay 20% more when they can buy the same thing at the market without paying this extra 20% will not lead to the desired result. Unless, of course, the goal is to raise prices in the networks by the same 20%," Smelyansky concluded.

He also advised the National Bank to pay more attention to the work of banks in front-line cities than to the issue of parcel taxation, because the last bank branch in Druzhkivka has closed, while the Ukrposhta branch continues to operate.