Parliament fails to pass VAT on imported parcels under 150 euros
The Verkhovna Rada was unable to either adopt the draft law on parcel taxation or send it for a second reading. (Photo: Zaliznyi nardep / Telegram)
The Verkhovna Rada failed to pass a bill that would introduce VAT on imported parcels worth up to 150 euros ($175). Taxing such parcels was part of Ukraine’s commitments to the IMF and the European Union.
During a plenary session on May 26, draft law No. 12360 on amendments to the Customs Code regarding the evaluation of customs authorities’ efficiency and performance received only 127 votes, far short of the required 226.
A total of 222 lawmakers voted to send the bill for a repeat second reading.
All 11 amendments to the bill also failed to receive enough votes, including those directly related to the taxation of imported parcels.
Three key amendments received only 205, 207 and 216 votes, lawmaker Yaroslav Zhelezniak wrote on Telegram.
As a result, further consideration of the bill is impossible, and the Cabinet of Ministers must submit a new draft law.
Draft law No. 12360 was adopted in the first reading and as a basis on Dec. 17, 2025. In early May, the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy recommended it for the second reading.
Another bill remains under parliamentary consideration — draft law No. 15112-1, which amends the Tax Code to introduce VAT on e-commerce transactions and is also aimed at taxing foreign parcels worth up to 150 euros ($175). The relevant parliamentary committee has recommended it for adoption in the first reading.
The introduction of VAT on parcels worth up to 150 euros ($175) was an IMF financing program benchmark that Ukraine was supposed to meet by the end of March.
The EU is tying part of its payments to Ukraine under the 90 billion euro ($104.7 billion) Ukraine Support Loan to the adoption of tax changes required by the IMF, Bloomberg previously reported. This concerns the macro-financial part of the loan worth 8.4 billion euros ($9.8 billion), whose terms have already been approved by EU member states.
To receive the funding, Ukraine must adopt legislative changes, including VAT on foreign parcels.
Parcels sent by individuals to individuals, or C2C shipments, worth up to 45 euros ($52) would still remain exempt from taxation, provided the parcel is not received for resale.
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