On April 5, a law came into effect that zeroed out customs duties, taxes, and excise taxes on cars imported from abroad. This immediately sparked a wave of media publications claiming that “elite foreign cars” like Maybach and numerous premium crossovers were being brought into the country on car carriers. Allegedly, taking advantage of the new rules, unscrupulous participants of the gray market are trying to profit from others' misfortune. This became the reason for demands to cancel the preferential customs clearance.
The Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Tax, and Customs Policy, headed by Danylo Hetmantsev, promptly prepared draft law No. 7311, which cancels such benefits. “War for some, a new enrichment scheme for others,” — this is how the situation was commented on in the Federation of the Automotive Industry of Ukraine. There, they believe that the flow of BMW X5 and Cadillac Escalade has blocked checkpoints, causing humanitarian cargo deliveries to suffer. Later, complaints about difficulties with fuel and even weapons supplies were added. But is everything really that simple?
“As of today, 29,195 cars have been imported. Of these, more than half — 16,793 — are vehicles worth up to UAH 100,000,” cites figures Alona Shkrum from the customs policy committee. — “We are talking about cars for $1.5–3 thousand: inexpensive, old ones, which are massively used for the needs of the army, territorial defense, or replace a lost family car.”
In Europe, for such money — about $2–3 thousand — you can buy only a 20-year-old family hatchback like Opel Astra. But definitely not a BMW X5, no matter how worn out it is.
Source: Thepage
