Foreign investment registration is not easy or convenient

KYIV. May 12 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The procedure for registering foreign investment, stipulated in Ukrainian law, is not easy and convenient, and Ukraine should introduce additional incentives to attract foreign investors, lawyer Tetiana Lezhukh has said.

"Our officials should think how to make the foreign investment registration process more quickly, clearer and more transparent and provide additional guarantees for those foreign investors who decided to invest in our economy," she said, commenting on the experience of registering a limited liability company with 100% Israeli capital, the founders of which were companies-residents of Israel and Panama.

Lezhukh said that the founders considered the protection of investment, taking into account the provisions of the Economic Code which foresees investment registration. The provisions of the law on the governance of foreign investment, the resolution on the approval of the procedure of state registration (re-registration) of foreign investment and its revocation, and the procedure for the state registration of foreign investment were used.

"We've made the conclusion that in general the state registration of foreign investment will pass in two stages: at the fiscal service and in Kyiv City Administration," she said.

Lezhukh said that the company submitted a full package of documents to the State Fiscal Service and planned to receive the registered notification in 15 days and started the second stage of the registration.

She said that the client received a phone call from the State Fiscal Service on the 14th day of the above-mentioned term and said that if the additional package of documents is not submitted during the next working day, the service will reject the registration of the investment.

"The list of documents included the copy of the regulations endorsed by a notary, the extract from the state register of companies, orders on the appointment of director, accountant, copies of their passports, IDs, a copy of the passport of the authorized person, a certificate on the opening of a banking account and certificate on the sending of money to the company's balance sheet. When I asked what legal act regulates the list of the additionally asked documents, the inspector said that due to the unclear formulation of the list of documents that confirm the fact of making investment, the fiscal service could demand a package of additional documents at their discretion if they have any doubts or if the investor is a company registered in any of the offshore zones," she said.

"I would recommend colleagues to come to your inspector at once and personally specify the list of the documents required for the registration," she said.

Lezhukh added that a similar package of documents was submitted to the Kyiv City Administration and the second stage lasted for seven days after the submission of the documents.