FEATURES TAX REFORM AND MECHANISM OF HIDING TAXES IN UKRAINE

Abstract

In the article has done first attempt to find out the essence, components and implications of the mechanism of hidden taxes and to investigate their impact on the socio-economic situation in the country. The main changes in the tax system of Ukraine that have occurred as a result of tax reforms have been highlighted. The main motive for raising the level of minimum wage in 2017 is not to increase the welfare of the population, but to increase revenues to the budget due to hidden taxes. As a result, the transformation of budget expenditures into taxes is taking place, as the tax base on income increases. The following methods of tax concealment are singled out: combining taxes under common names; expansion of the tax base, list of objects of taxation (property tax); increase in tax rates and increase of tax rates linked to the minimum wage; the introduction of a double taxation mechanism (excise tax on retail sales); transfer of tax payments to non-tax categories; transferring the tax burden from the rich to the middle stratum; the transformation of a single tax, when the increase of the tax forces entrepreneurs to reduce production costs (introduction of the latest technologies, rational use of resources), thereby reducing the damage they could receive as a result of the increase in the price of products by the amount of tax and, consequently, the reduction of sales; repeated tax transfer to the final consumer, when the final payer becomes the final consumer (in most cases this is achieved through indirect taxes).