In early 2025, scammers in Ukraine have become more active, sending emails supposedly from the state services system Diia. In these emails, fraudsters offer to receive annual tax refunds, but in reality, they steal card details and empty the victims’ bank accounts.
Source: OBOZREVATEL
This warning came from the State Tax Service (STS) and the Center for Countering Disinformation (CCD) at the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine. “Scammers are sending fake emails to Ukrainians, supposedly from the Diia portal, offering to receive an annual tax refund,” the message states.
It was noted that in such emails, recipients are offered to visit a website that visually resembles the Diia portal. If the victim follows the link, they will then be asked to enter personal information:
- mobile phone number;
- full name;
- bank card details (card number, expiration date, and CVV code).
“Under no circumstances should you follow links in such emails or enter your personal data. They may be used to authorize your bank account and further withdraw funds,” warned the authorities. Additionally, the data can be used not only to “clean out” the card but also to effectively “steal” it by linking the bank account to a new device.
Tax Refund: How It Works in Reality
In Ukraine, the deadline to use the right to receive a tax refund for the previous year ends every year on December 31 (e.g., in 2024 for 2023, and so on). This “refund” (essentially a return of a certain amount from the budget) is provided if the taxpayer spent money on certain categories of expenses.
To use the tax refund, a tax return for the previous year must be submitted. This can be done through the taxpayer’s personal account (an electronic signature or BankID is required). The tax return should be created along with the Appendix F3 (which calculates the tax refund amount).
For example, if a taxpayer paid 20,000 UAH for their university education in 2023, they could be eligible for a tax refund in 2024 and receive the Personal Income Tax (PIT) paid on that amount. This means the state may return 18% of 20,000 UAH, or 3,600 UAH, to the taxpayer.
The same applies to expenses for the education of the taxpayer’s children—both in higher educational institutions and, for example, in private kindergartens. The state can return part of the taxes paid in the previous year in the form of a tax refund.
The list of expenses eligible for a tax refund is outlined in the Tax Code (Clause 3, Article 166). Some of these expenses have specific application features. In general, this list includes:
- mortgage payments;
- part of donations or charitable contributions to non-profit organizations, but not exceeding 4% of the taxpayer’s total annual income;
- educational expenses for the taxpayer and their first-degree family members (parents, spouse, children, including adopted children). For example, expenses for education in preschool, school, extracurricular institutions, vocational-technical and higher education institutions;
- expenses for certain medical services;
- expenses for life insurance or non-state pension funds;
- expenses for assisted reproductive technologies and adoption (including state duty);
- expenses for installing gas equipment on a car;
- expenses for housing rent for internally displaced persons;
- expenses for purchasing shares of residents of Diia.City.
The refund is provided only for the previous tax period. That is, by the end of 2025, one can receive reimbursement from the state for expenses made in 2024. If a person does not use their right to the tax refund for 2024, it will expire in 2026.е право “згорить”. Тоді людина зможе подаватись лише на податкову знижку за витратами, здійсненими вже 2024 року.