State Fiscal Service achieves payment of UAH 3 bln of VAT for customs clearance of gas imports from Russia by Naftogaz

KYIV. Sept 10 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The State Fiscal Service (SFS) has achieved payment of UAH 3 billion of value added tax (VAT) by NJSC Naftogaz during customs clearance of gas imports from Russia, the authority reported on Friday.

"Based on the results of a complex of investigative and procedural actions, confirmation of the amount of losses caused to the state by an appropriate forensic and economic examination… representatives of the above-mentioned state-owned company agreed with the arguments of the investigators and the evidence collected and paid VAT in the amount of over UAH 3 billion to the state budget," the SFS said on Facebook.

"Documentation of the procedure for customs clearance of gas and payment of funds continues," the State Fiscal Service said.

As indicated by the authority, the issue of notifying Naftogaz officials of suspicion of tax evasion on an especially large scale (Part 3 of Article 212 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine) and determining their custody status is currently being resolved.

The sanction of this article provides for a fine from 15,000 thousand to 20,000 tax-free minimum incomes of citizens with the deprivation of the right to hold certain positions and engage in certain activities for up to three years with confiscation of property, the SFS added.

As reported, in June 2021, the SFS conducted searches at NJSC Naftogaz Ukrainy as part of a pretrial investigation in criminal proceedings on the fact of a possible evasion of company officials from paying VAT in the amount of UAH 2.7 billion. It was about the procedure of customs clearance of gas purchased from Gazprom (Russia), which has not been completed since October 2015, as a result, UAH 2.7 billion of VAT did not come to the state budget.