Collapse For Sole Traders: Belarusian Private Entrepreneurs Will Be Banned From Buying Goods Abroad For Cash

Small businesses simply won't be able to meet this condition.

Starting from July 9, private entrepreneurs will be forbidden to buy goods abroad for cash. Entrepreneurs fear that this will paralyze their activities, nn.by writes.

What happened? In the spring of 2019, the National Bank introduced a similar ban. But then the entrepreneurs managed to negotiate and change the situation in their favor. A resolution was adopted and an exception was made for small transactions - if a sole trader was buying goods abroad for an amount not exceeding 100 basic units, then he could pay in cash.

In April 2021, the Council of Ministers and the National Bank adopted a decree № 203/4, which, among other things, abolished this restriction. That is, entrepreneur's purchase of goods abroad for any amount must be carried out by bank transfer. This decision comes into force on 9 July.

Anatol Shumchanka, chairman of the public association Perspektiva, explains: the majority of entrepreneurs pay by cash and will not be able to meet the new conditions. District entrepreneurs who buy goods for sale in small batches will be particularly affected - and they will have to raise prices.

"If there is a company that deals with large shipments, the costs for their volume of goods are small - interest on the transfer, opening an account, and taxes. But if you bring in a small batch, these costs are sometimes equal to the cost of goods and lead to an increase in price of up to 100%. In Russia, no one is going to sell five blouses or five pairs of shoes by wire transfer".

During the coronavirus epidemic, entrepreneurs did not stop working despite the closed borders. They could not travel by themselves, so they concluded contracts with transportation companies, ordered goods, and their foreign partners shipped them. It was allowed to pay in cash.

"With the introduction of the new rules, the shadow sector will be growing tremendously. Our prices have already gone up, now the prices will go up even more. We have sent an appeal to the Council of Ministers and the National Bank with a request to restore the previous rules. I am ready to discuss it within any dialogue platform," - Anatol Shumchanka says.