The European Business Association (EBA) has called to annul the excise label for wine, as it does not help to fight counterfeit products, while creates additional expenses for manufacturers, the press service of the association has reported.
According to the EBA, Ukrainian legislation requires the application of an excise label on all beverages with an ethyl alcohol content of more than 8.5% ABV. At the same time, wines with 1.2-15% ABV are subject to excise tax at a rate of UAH 0.01 per liter, while the value of the label is UAH 0.19 per piece. Alcohol importers also bear the cost of sending labels abroad.
“According to the calculations of the member companies of the association, there are UAH 278.6 of additional expenses per UAH 1 of the paid excise tax. Moreover, the major part of the sum does not go to the budget of Ukraine, but remains abroad,” the EBA said.
According to the EU regulations on labeling and protection of names of origin of alcoholic beverages, which Ukraine will have to adapt, beer from malt, grape wines, vermouth, cider and ethyl alcohol are not considered to be alcoholic beverages. Consequently, their quality control in Ukraine should not take place with the help of excise labels, but according to the general legislation on product safety, the EBA said.
“The products with alcohol content up to 8.5% ABV do not apply the excise labels. However, the safety control of such products is carried out. Therefore, it is reasonable to introduce the same logic for products with 1.2-15% ABV,” the EBA reports.
According to the press service, to abolish the excise labels, it is necessary to make changes to the Tax Code. “The business has already submitted the relevant proposals to the government. We hope that they will be taken into account in the near future,” the EBA said.
The European Business Association (EBA) in September got 15 new members, including Ukrlandfarming, one of the largest agricultural holdings in terms of land bank, the UNIT.City innovative park, Biopharma pharmaceutical plant LLC and ADD (Apteka Dobroho Dnia) pharmacy chain.
According to the EBA, among its new members are also Aakon Grain Ukraine LLC with an elevator of 10,000 tonnes, providing agricultural machinery leasing services, Brovary Aluminum Plant from ALUMETA Group, and Art Nation of movie maker Eduard Akhramovych, working in the sphere of marketing.
Its new members also became Audit Consult Group LLC, the creators of premises for entrepreneurs Business Interiors LLC, a real estate company from Benish Group GmbH, Edwin Steel Corporation LLC and Goodgrainoil, selling grain and oilseeds.
According to the release, in addition, EBA members became Perenio, whose parent company Perenio IoT has its headquarters in the Czech Republic, Rent-a-car Ukraine LLC, an official representative of Europcar in Ukraine, and Skyrora UA, a subsidiary of British-based Skyrora Limited of Volodymyr Levykin.
The EBA told Interfax-Ukraine the total number of the association members reached 979 companies.
The small business spirit index in 2018 was 3.2 points out of the maximum possible five, which corresponds to a neutral level, according to a study conducted by the European Business Association (EBA). According to a report on the EBA’s website, small business representatives are optimistic about the prospects for development this year: out of the 278 interviewed owners and directors of small enterprises in all spheres of activity 76% expect business to improve in the next six months, while 87% forecast profit growth in 2018.
More than half of the companies surveyed plan to increase the number of employees, while 57% to raise wages, 64% to increase the amount of financing their business in 2018, the report says.
At the same time, the materials of the study indicate that 40% of the companies polled were founded in the crisis years of 2015-2017.
“The survey shows the orientation of small businesses to exports. Some 27% of the companies surveyed have already entered foreign markets, and 30.3% plan to do this this year. The companies intend to develop their enterprises and reinvest their earnings in their own business,” the report states.
However, small business development is hampered by difficulties in obtaining loans. According to the survey, 82% of the surveyed heads of companies admitted that they need credit funds, 65% of respondents have difficulties with this, in particular 15.5% of them say that borrowings are “absolutely impossible.” “In general, 68.2% of respondents believe that the economic situation in Ukraine does not contribute to the development of small business, and only 3% of respondents are completely satisfied with the business climate in Ukraine,” the release says.
