The yield of soybeans in the underground parking lot: how tax officials discover “gray” grain export schemes

The State Tax Service explained how the “export support regime” of agricultural products works and what schemes “gray” exporters come up with to circumvent it, writes UNN.

Details

As noted in the DPS, in recent years there has been a problem of export of agricultural products and products of their processing of unknown origin, that is, the origin of which has not been traced through supply chains. As a result, the budget did not receive income in the form of tax payments, as well as the return of foreign exchange earnings.

From December 2024, as reported, the “export support regime” was introduced, which changed the rules for exporting agricultural products and their processing products – now it can be carried out exclusively by entities registered as VAT payers, and all supply chains are checked before the products are exported from the territory of Ukraine . This made it possible to effectively prevent the implementation of scheme operations.

“However, there are subjects who are still trying to register tax invoices for operations on the “export” of agricultural products and products of their processing, disregarding the rules of operation of this system,” the DPS said.

Bright “cases” of attempts to register tax invoiced goods without origin

Company “A” decided to “test” the operation of the system, trying to register export invoices for 46 tons of soybeans at the expense of the tax limit formed as a result of the purchase of parking spaces in Kyiv and parking maintenance services. The registration of invoices has been stopped. But thanks to such a bold attempt, it is now known that the average “yield” of soybeans in the underground parking lot is 1.7 tons per square meter.

Company “B” imported fruits, vegetables, fish and meat, but also tried to export soybeans. The system stopped such an attempt.

Company “B” tried to register export invoices without even having bank accounts, land, goods or fixed assets, and without paying taxes. The system automatically blocked the export tax invoice for a batch of sunflower oil in the amount of 5.7 million hryvnias.

Company “G” submitted an invoice with the product nomenclature “Soya”, but the product code corresponding to wheat. The tax invoice for the batch of 24,500 kg was stopped. Monitoring established that the company did not purchase either soybeans or wheat. The subject also lacked information on the origin of goods, lack of payment of taxes, fixed assets, land.

The DPS named typical attempts to bypass the export security regime:

• registration at the expense of the created limit in the VAT CEA for food import operations;
• registration at the expense of the formed limit in the VAT SEA for operations on the acquisition of fixed assets on the domestic market, which have nothing to do with operations with agricultural goods;
• replacement of the nomenclature that does not correspond to the code of UCT ZED in the tax invoice;
• absence of any origin and even open bank accounts;
• registration of 1 ton of products in the absence of its purchase, production and history of operations with agricultural products;
• 12 SGD, being at risk since 2020-2023, also tested this system.

“All these the attempts were stopped the current regime of export support,” the DPS stressed.

The department recalled the basic rules of the “export security regime”:

1) export of such products may be carried out only by entities registered as VAT payers;

2) customs clearance of the export transaction begins after the registration of the tax invoice in the ЕРПН, the monitoring of which continues for three operational days;

3) analysis of the origin of such products, declaration and payment of taxes by supply chains is carried out before the actual export of such products outside the customs territory of Ukraine;

4) the zero rate of VAT for such operations has the right to be applied only by those subjects, in which the return of foreign exchange earnings for the previous 12 months is at least 80%. The rest of the subjects will have such a right only after the return of foreign exchange proceeds from these operations;

5) for entities that have a positive history of export transactions with the origin of products, have been registered as VAT payers for at least a year and submit reports on time, have land, declared employees with appropriate wages, have no tax debts, are not in the process of liquidation, signs of unconditional registration of tax invoices were introduced.

“As of today, the work of this regime more than 1,000 subjects have already used itwho registered more than 11,000 tax invoices,” the message reads.

TOP 5 products:

• corn – 1,718 PN/RK in the amount of 5 504.9 thousand tons for a total volume of UAH 45,935.5 million;
• sunflower oil – 3,822 PN/RK in the amount of 804,500 tonen for the total amount of UAH 37,734.9 million;
• wheat – 982 PN/RK in the amount of 2,185.3 thousand tonen for the total amount of UAH 19,128.3 million;
• soybeans – 1,045 PN/RK in the amount of 596.5 thousand tonen for a total volume of UAH 9,739.3 million;
• rapeseed – 230 PN/RK in the amount of 245.1 thousand tonen for a total volume of UAH 5,440.5 million.

“It should be noted that as of today, 712 PN/RCs in 218 SGDs with a total volume of 98.8 billion hryvnias are in the status of “the registration of PN/RC has been canceled in accordance with sub-item 97.2 of clause 97 of subsection 2 of chapter XX “Transitional provisions” of the PKU”. Of those sent for registration in the period from 02-06.12.2024 – 419 PN/RK in 150 SGD for a total volume of 96.6 billion hryvnias”– indicated in the DPSU.

DPS reportedly monitors such transactions on an ongoing basis not only for the exporting entity, but also for its supply chains. “Only honest declaration, payment of taxes and return of foreign exchange earnings are a guarantee of registration of a tax invoice for the purpose of further export of such goods outside the customs territory of Ukraine,” the department emphasized.

For reference

During 2022-2024, DPS has reportedly established more than 1,500 operations. entities that carry out customs clearance of goods in the “export” mode and which, at the time of analysis, according to the IS DPS, have no information on the origin of exported goods, no tax payment, no fixed assets and land, bank accounts, etc.

Regarding the indicated entities, relevant information was sent to the State Customs Service and the State Customs Service to take measures within their competence.

The rules of operation of the export security regime mentioned in the notification are regulated by Art. 19 notes 2 of the Law of Ukraine “On Foreign Economic Activity” and Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated 10/29/2024 No. 1261 “On the Introduction of the Export Support Regime”.