Importing Goods for Resale: Rules, Taxes, and Accounting

Shopping in foreign online stores for resale in Ukraine

You can buy goods in foreign online stores and sell them in Ukraine. For most goods, a separate "import permit" is not required. But reselling will be legal only if the goods are imported for business purposes, the documents for the sole proprietorship or company are correctly executed, customs formalities are completed, the appropriate customs duties are paid, and after importation, the rules for sale in Ukraine are followed: consumer information, cash registers (RRO/PRRO), warranties, returns, labeling, safety, and, if necessary, special licenses or registrations. (Legislation of Ukraine)

The main mistake in this topic is confusing personal purchases by citizens with commercial imports for resale. For business, not only price and delivery are important, but also the legal origin of the goods: who is the recipient, what are the invoices and transport documents, whether the goods fall under technical regulations, whether labeling in Ukrainian is required, whether their sale is allowed in Ukraine at all. This determines whether you can legally register the goods, pass inspections, and safely sell them through an online store, marketplace, or offline point. (Legislation of Ukraine)

Can a sole proprietor or company buy goods abroad for resale?

Yes, they can. Ukrainian legislation does not prohibit a sole proprietor or legal entity from buying goods from a non-resident, including through an online store, marketplace, or manufacturer's website, and then selling them in Ukraine. At the same time, special rules apply to certain goods: import licensing, technical regulations, sanitary, veterinary, phytosanitary, excise, and other restrictions. Import licensing in Ukraine is regulated by Article 16 of the Law on Foreign Economic Activity and annual government lists of goods covered by it. (Legislation of Ukraine)

For customs rules, a sole proprietor is not equated to an ordinary consumer: in customs legislation, a sole proprietor is included in the concept of an "enterprise," so it is the rules for business entities that matter for them, and not the benefits applied to citizens for personal use. (Legislation of Ukraine)

Which purchasing format is safer

For resale, it is better to immediately buy goods for a sole proprietorship or company. Your business entity must be the recipient in the order, invoice, transport documents, and, if necessary, certificates. If the item is ordered "for an employee" or for a private individual, this creates problems with confirming the origin of the goods, accounting, customs clearance, and subsequent sale. (Legislation of Ukraine)

The most convenient scheme for a small test import is an international postal or express shipment with a full set of documents from the seller. For larger or regular deliveries, it is safer to work immediately as with a full-fledged foreign economic operation: invoice, packing list, shipping documents, customs broker, UKT ZED code, check of the country of origin and requirements for putting the goods into circulation. (Legislation of Ukraine)

Payment to a non-resident: what is really important

Payment to a non-resident is possible by bank transfer, corporate card, or other permitted payment instrument, but there is no universal rule "up to a certain amount can be paid without documents" for business. The bank or payment provider evaluates the transaction according to currency rules, financial monitoring, internal procedures, and the transaction's risk profile, and therefore may require an invoice, contract, order confirmation, counterparty data, purpose of payment, and other documents. (National Bank of Ukraine)

Often in this topic, two different things are confused: the 400,000 UAH threshold from financial monitoring legislation and the old practical approaches of banks to small foreign economic operations. The amount of 400,000 UAH is indeed used in the law as a threshold for certain financial transactions, but this does not mean an automatic right to pay for any import without supporting documents or without the bank analyzing the essence of the transaction. (National Bank of Ukraine)

What documents are needed from the seller

The minimum you should have even before payment:

For online stores and marketplaces, there may not be a separate paper contract, but customs, banking, and accounting still need documents clarifying the parties, subject matter, value, currency, delivery terms, and the fact of payment. Therefore, a simple screenshot of a shopping cart or product page is not enough for business purchases. (Legislation of Ukraine)

Customs clearance and the 150 euros threshold

For enterprises, there is a separate rule regarding international postal and express shipments: non-excisable goods with a total invoice value of up to 150 euros are exempt from taxation by customs payments under Article 234 of the Customs Code. If the value exceeds 150 euros, the shipment is processed with declaration and payment of appropriate duties. (Legislation of Ukraine)

The rules for citizens under Article 374 of the Customs Code should not be applied to commercial imports for resale. If you systematically import goods for business, you should focus on the rules for enterprises and on documents confirming the commercial nature of the transaction. (Legislation of Ukraine)

What customs payments should be calculated

If the shipment does not fall under the exemption, the main import costs are:

(Legislation of Ukraine)

In practice, this means that the same purchase price on the supplier's website does not show your real cost in Ukraine. It is supplemented by customs payments, payment system commissions, delivery, brokerage services, certification or conformity assessment, translation of labeling, and internal logistics. Only after this should you evaluate whether there is any margin for resale at all. (Legislation of Ukraine)

If the product comes from a country with which a preferential regime is in effect, sometimes you can reduce or eliminate the duty, but only if the origin of the product is properly confirmed. For this, documents on origin are used, in particular, the EUR.1 certificate or other documents provided for by the rules. (Legislation of Ukraine)

Taxes after importation

Import payments at customs do not replace internal taxes of the seller in Ukraine. After import, you sell the goods according to your tax regime: a sole proprietor on a single tax, a sole proprietor on a general system, or a legal entity. That is, you need to separately calculate customs costs for import and separately — taxes from subsequent sales in Ukraine. (Legislation of Ukraine)

Separately, it is important that the payment to a non-resident for the goods themselves usually does not fall under the income tax of a non-resident, if it is precisely about revenue or other compensation for the value of goods transferred to a resident. That is why classic import of goods should not be automatically confused with the "repatriation tax" for payment to a non-resident.

Accounting and confirmation of origin of goods

For tax and management accounting, you need to keep the entire chain of documents: order, invoice, payment, carrier documents, customs declaration, documents on origin, certificates or declarations of conformity, if they are required. Without this, it is difficult to confirm the legal origin of the goods, form the cost price, and safely pass inspections. (Legislation of Ukraine)

For companies and sole proprietors who entrust purchasing to an employee, it is also important to internally issue the use of a corporate card, the reporting of the accountable person, and primary documents. The more expensive or risky the goods, the more important it is that the documents are without gaps and without processing "to an individual for convenience". (Legislation of Ukraine)

RRO/PRRO when selling imported goods in Ukraine

When you are already selling goods in Ukraine through an online store, website, social networks, marketplace, or delivery, the rules of the Law on Cash Registers begin to apply. The law applies to business entities that carry out settlement operations in cash and/or non-cash form, and a fiscal check can be paper or electronic. (Legislation of Ukraine)

For e-commerce, the key rule is this: if the buyer pays by card via Internet acquiring, a payment service, a payment QR, or another settlement instrument, the sale must be properly fiscalized and a settlement document must be issued. The tax office separately explains the procedure for reflecting payments through payment services in a fiscal receipt. (dp.tax.gov.ua)

For cash on delivery via postal operators, the model may differ depending on who exactly accepts the money, when it is considered received by the seller, and what the role of the payment service is. Therefore, the scheme "NovaPay/cash on delivery/marketplace/internet acquiring" needs to be configured not by a general rule, but for a specific process, so that the receipt is formed at the right moment and with the correct form of payment. (od.tax.gov.ua)

What an online store must necessarily have

A Ukrainian online store must provide the buyer with clear information about the seller and the terms of sale. For distance contracts, the consumer is provided, prior to the conclusion of the contract, in particular, with the name of the seller, his location, the procedure for accepting claims, the main characteristics of the goods, the price including delivery, payment terms, warranty obligations, delivery terms, the period for accepting the offer, and the procedure for terminating the contract. (Legislation of Ukraine)

Therefore, at least the following should be placed on the website or in the seller's card:

Returns, warranties, and responsibility to the buyer

After the sale of an imported product, it is the Ukrainian seller who is responsible to the consumer for product information, its proper quality, warranty obligations, and the return procedure. The fact that you bought an item on AliExpress, eBay, or another foreign platform does not relieve you of your obligations to the Ukrainian consumer. (Legislation of Ukraine)

As a general rule, the consumer has the right to exchange a non-food product of proper quality within 14 days if the product has not been used and its trade dress and settlement document have been preserved, except for goods from the government list that are not subject to exchange or return. Special requirements for prior seller information also apply to distance contracts. (Legislation of Ukraine)

Labeling, language, safety, and placing goods on the market

The goods you sell in Ukraine must be accompanied by necessary, accessible, and reliable information for the consumer in the state language. For food products, this is a separately strictly regulated area, and for non-food products, the requirements of product safety legislation, market surveillance, and technical regulations must also be taken into account. (Legislation of Ukraine)

For many categories of non-food products, it is not enough just to bring in the goods and stick on a price tag. If the product is subject to technical regulations, a declaration of conformity, technical documentation, proper labeling, and documents that you are obliged to show regulatory authorities may be required before placing it on the market. This applies especially to electronics, equipment, toys, personal protective equipment, radio equipment, and other goods with increased safety requirements. (Legislation of Ukraine)

When special premises, staff, or registrations are needed

For an ordinary sale of non-food goods, import alone does not require a special warehouse or a separate "store permit." But for regulated categories, the rules sharply become more complicated. For example, for food products, the rules of market operators, state registration of facilities, traceability, sanitation, and, depending on the activity, procedures based on HACCP principles apply. (Legislation of Ukraine)

For other categories — excisable goods, medical devices, medicines, hazardous substances, certain types of equipment, goods of animal or plant origin — separate licenses, special warehouses, temperature regimes, responsible personnel, veterinary, phytosanitary, or other licensing procedures may apply. Before purchasing such goods, you do not check the general "possibility of import," but the specialized law specifically for a specific product category. (Legislation of Ukraine)

Delivery and logistics

A postal operator or express carrier can simplify delivery, but does not replace your responsibilities as an importer and seller. It does not "legalize" the goods for you. If there is no correct recipient, value, product description, country of origin, or permits in the documents, a logistics company will not remove this risk. (Legislation of Ukraine)

For expensive or risky goods, it is advisable, even before payment, to agree with the seller exactly what documents he will include in the shipment and in what form he will provide them electronically. This is often more important than the price of the goods, because without proper documents, you can lose both time and goods, and the opportunity to normally sell them. (Legislation of Ukraine)

What penalties and risks to consider

The main risks for an entrepreneur in this topic are the following:

The safest model for small business looks like this: buy goods immediately for a sole proprietor or company, get an invoice and order confirmation, check the UKT ZED code and import requirements in advance, do not rely on "personal" customs benefits of citizens, fiscalize sales in Ukraine, and have full consumer information on the website. This model best protects a business from disputes with customs, tax authorities, banks, and buyers. (Legislation of Ukraine)

What to check before the first purchase

How to register and sell goods bought abroad in the Torgsoft program

1. Registering goods and working with foreign currency

Since you are buying goods in foreign online stores, accounting begins with recording the arrival of goods from a foreign supplier:

2. Forming the real cost (duties, taxes, delivery)

For legal business, it is important to take into account all additional import costs so that they are included in the cost of the goods and do not become your loss:

3. Barcoding, localization, and product labeling

According to the legislation of Ukraine, the product must contain information for the consumer in the Ukrainian language.

4. Preparation for legal (fiscal) sale

Resale of commercial imports requires strict compliance with tax rules:

5. Sale of goods: offline and online trade

When the product has been registered, evaluated, and labeled, you can sell it:

Official sources

Програма обліку товару для інтернет-магазинів, крамниць, торгових точок, складів та виробництва