The Verkhovna Radaʼs Committee supported the law to combat bribery of foreign officials

The Committee on Tax Policy of the Verkhovna Rada has generally approved document No. 10319 on amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine. This should strengthen the fight against corruption in international business transactions.

MP from the "Voice" party Yaroslav Zheleznyak reports this.

The decision was taken unanimously. The draft law provides for tax measures that will make it impossible to bribe foreign officials.

In particular, in one of the articles of the Tax Code, there will be a separate clause on giving a bribe to an employee from another country. The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) will be required to identify and investigate such violations. Fines may be imposed for giving or promising an improper benefit.

As the chairman of the committee Danylo Hetmantsev explained, the following norms were finalized for the second reading:

• establishment of tax consequences for Ukrainian employees taking into account expenses incurred for the purpose of bribery;
• prohibition to include in the composition of expenses for taxation purposes those expenses related to receiving a bribe;
• other additions for the implementation of the OECD Council Recommendations on tax measures to combat bribery of foreign officials in international business transactions

Document No. 10319 was submitted to the committee for consideration in December 2023, and was adopted as a basis in April 2024. The law enters into force on the day following its publication.

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