People's Deputy Danylo Hetmantsev spoke about the tax evasion scheme in the restaurant business, which, according to him, has become virtually widespread in Ukraine.
According to the politician, almost all restaurants now operate through individual entrepreneurs. While there are about 3,200 legal entities in this sector, there are over 68,000 individual entrepreneurs. Such an imbalance, Hetmantsev emphasizes, is evidence of systemic tax evasion even in large and expensive establishments.
" Large chains of very, very fashionable restaurants are also being broken up into sole proprietorships. When you run advertising campaigns, invest in expensive premises, build the image of a respectable business, and at the same time split into two checks — is this serious? " said the People's Deputy.
According to him, in the restaurant business, the markup reaches 200–300%, but owners often do not pay even 20% VAT. As a result, the state loses about 7 billion hryvnias every year.
Hetmantsev also emphasized that such a practice creates an unequal competitive environment: those who honestly pay taxes and pay "white" salaries find themselves in a worse position than those who evade their obligations.
The issue of taxation of the restaurant business, according to him, requires a systemic solution in order to level the playing field for all market participants and fill the state budget.
