Funeral costs will soar: The Verkhovna Rada proposed canceling tax benefits for funeral service companies

Members of the “Sluga Naroda” party in the Ukrainian parliament have submitted a bill that could lead to higher prices for burials and funeral services.

The draft law No. 12189, titled “On Amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine Regarding the Specifics of Taxation of Funeral Service Providers,” has been published on the parliament’s website.

The bill proposes the abolition of the preferential tax system for funeral service providers and the introduction of value-added tax (VAT) for them. It would also allow private companies to enter the burial industry, which would enable cemeteries, crematoriums, and columbaria to operate on a commercial basis. This way, the sector is being aimed at becoming competitive and attractive for investment.

However, the proposed changes are highly likely to lead to an increase in burial costs.

Among the authors of the bill is MP Halyna Tretyakova, known for her controversial statements and initiatives that have sparked outrage. For example, in the summer, she introduced a bill to increase the salaries of parliamentary assistants. In 2020, during a webinar at the Kyiv School of Economics, she stated that in families where children are born for social benefits, the children tend to be of “very low quality.”