CUSTOMS ASPECTS OF TAXATION OF CROSS-BORDER ELECTRONIC COMMERCE: CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS FOR UKRAINE

Abstract

The article examines current trends in the development of e-commerce and their impact on customs and tax regulation in the context of the digitalization of international trade. The economic and legal essence of e-commerce, the main models of its functioning, and international legal mechanisms of regulation are analyzed. Particular attention is paid to the problems of VAT administration, customs valuation control, and customs clearance of low-value cross-border consignments. The study provides a comparative analysis of the e-commerce markets of Ukraine, Poland, Romania, Hungary, and Slovakia based on statistical data from 2017–2030. The results confirm a stable growth of digital trade in all analyzed countries and demonstrate a direct relationship between the expansion of e-commerce and the increase in international postal and express shipments. It has been established that the rapid growth of cross-border B2C trade significantly complicates traditional customs control mechanisms, which were originally designed for large commercial consignments rather than millions of small parcels generated by international marketplaces. Special attention is devoted to the transformation of customs administration under the influence of digital trade. The article substantiates that modern customs authorities are gradually shifting from physical inspection of goods to digital control of electronic data, financial transactions, and information flows. In this context, automated risk management systems, electronic declaration, data exchange between customs authorities and marketplaces, as well as the use of artificial intelligence and Big Data technologies become increasingly important. The research also analyzes the European Union’s experience in implementing the VAT One Stop Shop (OSS) and Import One Stop Shop (IOSS) systems, which simplify VAT collection for cross-border e-commerce and assign part of tax administration functions to digital platforms. It is argued that the implementation of similar mechanisms in Ukraine is strategically important within the framework of European integration and harmonization of customs legislation with EU law. The article concludes that further development of customs and tax administration in Ukraine should be based on the digitalization of customs procedures, expansion of automated data exchange, implementation of risk-oriented control mechanisms, and integration with European digital customs systems. Such measures will contribute to improving the efficiency of customs regulation, reducing tax evasion risks, increasing budget revenues, and strengthening Ukraine’s integration into the European digital economic space.