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The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine cannot accept a taxation system which reduces taxes for the rich while increasing the tax burden on people with low income, Ukrainian Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko told reporters after a joint meeting with the Parliamentary Committees and the Prime Minister on Wednesday.
Ms Jaresko stressed that the government would not accept a tax reform, which "provides incentives for certain types of business, business groups."
The minister noted that the government was planning to submit December 2 draft amendments to the Tax Code and the draft budget for 2016, which would eliminate any "subjectivity in our system and would ease the tax burden and its administration for everyone."
Natalie Jaresko emphasized that the government's policy also aimed at "reaching an agreement with the IMF on the next tranche."
Read alsoIMF waits until Ukraine adopts 2016 budgetAccording to the minister, "the next loan guarantee from the United States, other funds from the European Union - it all relies a balanced budget with the appropriate and fair tax reform being adopted by the Verkhovna Rada."
The government hopes for constructive cooperation with the Verkhovna Rada, Jaresko noted.
"We are willing to meet [November] 30 after a government meeting with representatives of the coalition factions and discuss all issues in order to enable the government to prepare a final draft of the tax reform on [December] 2."
Read also"Overhaul": tax reform may beat corruption, Jaresko saysAs UNIAN reported earlier, Natalie Jaresko announced that the Finance Ministry was planning to submit for consideration of the Verkhovna Rada a number of draft bills on structural reforms, as well as the new Tax Code and the draft state budget for 2016, in the coming weeks.
As reported earlier, the Cabinet began drafting the tax reform and the new Tax Code of Ukraine in April of 2015. The tax reform is one of the key reforms defined by the country's major creditor - the International Monetary Fund.
Read alsoBiden tells Ukraine terms for U.S. $1 bln loan guaranteeCurrently, there are two tax reform drafts, the one developed by the government and the other prepared by the parliament. Both documents provide tax cuts. However, the document proposed by the government envisages a gradual reduction in tax rates and the increase of budget deficit to UAH 60 billion. The draft budget developed by the parliament is more liberal, providing a sharp decline in tax rates, which, according to analysts' estimates, can lead to a deficit of at least UAH 200-207 billion.
The World Bank, the second largest creditor of Ukraine, expects that the country will continue along the path of the macroeconomic stabilization, and recommends that the Ukrainian authorities demonstrate a common sense in the issue of the tax reform, avoiding radical and drastic tax cuts.