Parcel prices will rise: co-owner of Nova Poshta sounds the alarm over VAT introduction

New rules for taxing international parcels may change not only their final price for customers. Businesses also fear additional burdens on customs and the postal-logistics system.

What will change after the introduction of VAT on parcels

Soon, Ukraine will apply VAT to international parcels up to 150 euros. The innovation could affect several areas at once—from the cost of purchases to the work of customs, believes co-founder of Nova Poshta Volodymyr Poperezhnyuk.

The government managed to push through this harmful tax for the economy. I sympathize with everyone, because taxing parcels will affect practically everyone,

– Poperezhnyuk noted.

According to his forecast, after the tax is introduced Ukrainians may face two main consequences:

the cost of international parcels may increase;

their delivery times may lengthen.

Poperezhnyuk believes this will lead to additional costs for consumers. He also notes that imported goods often do not have full equivalents in the assortment on the Ukrainian market.

Affected will be Ukrainian retail and customs

In the opinion of the Nova Poshta co-owner, the consequences of the new rules may go beyond the postal market.

If Ukrainians spend more money on receiving international orders, they will have less for other purchases. This, in his words, could create additional problems for Ukrainian retail.

The businessman also links stronger tax control with the risk of increased illegal import of goods.

A collapse at customs will form due to tens- or even hundreds-fold increases in load, thus logistics will suffer. And not only for postal operators; this will affect all carriers, which in turn will impact smuggling growth,

– says Poperezhnyuk.

In his view, if official processing of small international purchases becomes more difficult and expensive, some operations may move into the shadows. Poperezhnyuk believes this will inevitably lead to an increase in the volume of smuggling.

Recall that the new rules will directly affect purchases on foreign marketplaces such as Temu and AliExpress. It is the operators of such platforms that will be responsible for calculating and paying the tax.

Because of this, goods from international online platforms may become more expensive by the amount of VAT if this tax was not previously included in the price.