Development of the Mechanism of Taxation of Agricultural Enterprises in Ukraine

The article examines the process of formation and development of taxation mechanism of agricultural enterprises of Ukraine; conformity of this mechanism to the tax potential of taxpayers is identified; conceptual foundations for the improvement of tax legislation are elaborated, taking into account the stakeholders’ interests. The retrospective analysis of the process of development of the mechanism of tax payment by agricultural enterprises of Ukraine is carried out; three related stages are singled out and the influence of each of them on the level of profitability of enterprises is determined. Using this analysis, it is found that from 1999, special mechanisms of taxation of agricultural producers were introduced in Ukraine. Initially, they were manifested in the form of a fixed agricultural tax (FAT) and a special regime of VAT, and in 2015, almost without changing the essence, they were transformed into the payment of a single tax of the 4th group, which is now used by the vast majority of enterprises in the industry. This situation clearly shows the imperfection of the modern mechanism of taxation of agrarians, because any tax preferences should be changed and revised at least every 5 years, otherwise they will lead to a curvature of the economic conjuncture. On the basis of an macro-economic analysis, disadvantages of the current taxation regime are identified, which are manifested in the absence of differentiation of taxpayers in terms of income. As a result of the study, the conception of the tax mechanism of agrarians is elaborated, based on the defined principles, purpose, tasks and involving the application of a differentiated approach to taxation of taxpayers. Also, for each category (large, medium-sized and small enterprises), the respective mechanism of collecting taxes is determined.