Ukraine approves sweeping tax breaks to help businesses stay afloat

LVIV: Ukraine’s parliament approved measures on Tuesday to help Ukrainian businesses stay afloat during the war with Russia, including slashing taxes to a single 2 percent rate, Prime Minister Denys Shmygal said.

The new bill was backed by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who has called for the government to ramp up support for small and medium-sized businesses in particular.

The new incentives include a new single 2 percent tax rate for all businesses with turnover of less than 10 billion hryvnia ($338 million) compared with a previous value-added tax of 20 percent and 18 percent tax on profit, Shmygal said in a statement.

“I am confident the decisions will strengthen our economic front,” he said in a statement.

In a later video address, Shmygal also outlined other war-time stimulus measures including a loan program for farmers worth 25 billion hryvnias ($846 million).