Current Challenges of VAT Taxation of Import Operations under Martial Law and European Integration

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of exemption from value added tax (VAT) on import operations under the conditions of martial law and European integration. In particular, the chosen topic is examined through the prism of tax benefits under special legal regimes. The purpose of the article is defined as the study, within the selected theme, of the legislative provisions concerning VAT exemption for the import of goods intended for the production and/or repair of mechanised demining machines.

This objective is achieved by outlining amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine in the context of import taxation. The author analyses the relevant legislation, identifies key changes, and determines the type of tax benefit to which the studied VAT exemption on import operations belongs.

It is concluded that the national tax legislation lacks an alternative mechanism for introducing amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine, in particular regarding tax benefits, which would combine the need to grant such benefits to taxpayers during special legal regimes with adherence to the general procedure for their introduction.

The author notes that an important current issue concerns the balance between the need for tax benefits on import operations and compliance with legislative procedures. VAT benefits for the import of goods intended for the production and/or repair of mechanised demining machines are an example of the implementation of the principle of legal certainty in the context of legislative flexibility, justified by humanitarian considerations.

It has been established that the need for the legislator to respond swiftly to internal and external changes in the state caused by the war and its consequences is indeed a prerequisite for the prompt and effective provision of targeted assistance to taxpayers, as well as for the rapid and efficient resolution of national issues in the context of warfare and post-war recovery (for example, demining of territories). It is emphasised that the speed and frequency of amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine during wartime and/or other social transformations can be justified by such an element of the principle of legal certainty as flexibility.

It is noted that the legal resolution of the relationship between the necessity of VAT benefits on imports – driven by external and internal circumstances – and the potential violation of the principles of tax legislation and the established procedure for amending the Tax Code of Ukraine during wartime remains a matter of scholarly debate.