Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal recently held a government meeting on measures to increase the export of Ukrainian goods abroad. Issues in which the IT industry is interested were also discussed there. Therefore, the IT Ukraine association expressed a number of proposals to the government, reports AIN.UA.

Shmyhal confirmed the Parliament’s plans to allow the extension of the reservation of workers who have already been booked by enterprises, institutions and organizations for 2 months.

The Association of IT Ukraine, whose director on political and legal issues Yefrem Laschuk was at the meeting, in turn sent proposals to the Ministry of Economy regarding measures that will contribute to the increase in the export of goods and services by Ukrainian IT companies .

In particular, the association proposed to allow conscripts who are founders, managers or employees of IT companies, as well as IT specialists (individual entrepreneurs), to temporarily go abroad during martial law for more than 14 days for the needs of conducting business within eVidriadzhennia (Business Trip) program. It was also proposed to introduce as soon as possible a mechanism for the reservation of conscripts working in IT companies or providing services to such companies as individual entrepreneurs.

It is worth noting that such customers are not only business, but also state and communal enterprises, institutions and organizations.

The association believes that the cancellation of the current norm will lead to an increase in the tax burden on IT companies. These are companies that are focused on the Ukrainian market. It will also lead to a 20% increase in the cost of developing software and software products, which will reduce the competitiveness of companies with development centers in Ukraine. According to the IT Ukraine association, the consequence of canceling the norm may be a reduction in high-paying jobs in the industry, as well as a decrease in company spending on social and charitable projects.

In addition, IT Ukraine offers to book conscripts who are hired as employees or engaged under a contract as individual entrepreneurs or as gig specialists in accordance with the Law of Ukraine “On Stimulation of Development digital economy in Ukraine”.

The association proposes to define companies as critical for the functioning of the economy according to the following criteria:

The size of the average monthly remuneration for involved employees is not less than UAH 20,000;
The total number of employees of the company is not less than 10 people;
No tax debt, the total amount of which is more than 10 minimum wages.

Men who work in state or local government bodies, enterprises and institutions that carry out mobilization tasks or orders are now subject to reservation; in defense companies, performing work or providing defense services for the Ukrainian army or working at enterprises that are critically important for the functioning of the economy. The list of the latter is determined by the Cabinet of Ministers.