The fake $1.8 million: BEB raids OnlyFans models who registered and paid taxes
19 December 09:47
Officers of the Bureau of Economic Security came to the homes of Ukrainian OnlyFans models, accusing them of tax evasion on a particularly large scale. As it turned out, they came to those models who had registered with the tax office and had already paid taxes on their income. This was reported by Lesya Mykhailenko, a lawyer at the company “Have the Right”, Komersant ukrainskyi reports.
In early fall, the State Tax Service (STS), together with MP Danylo Hetmantsev, said they had received information about the income of OnlyFans models from a British company. After that, models all over Ukraine began receiving official notices from the tax office, calling on them to declare their income and pay taxes.
According to Lesia Mykhailenko, most models have fulfilled these requirements:
“The models turned to consultants who advised them to declare their income from previous periods, register as a private entrepreneur in the 3rd group and pay taxes. 70-80% of them did so: they filed declarations, paid taxes, applied for registration as a sole proprietor, and were sure that the issue was resolved,”
– the lawyer writes.
However, the situation turned out to be quite different. The Bureau of Economic Security decided to “nightmare” the bloggers from OnlyFans. And they came to those who had registered and paid taxes.
“Last week, the BES started to come with searches to those who have paid and declared their income. That is, according to this ruling , https://reyestr.court.gov.ua/Review/121965766, the BES took a list from the State Tax Service and is now working on a list of models from OnlyFans who have nothing to do with the case of July 2024,”
– mykhailenko said.
Follow us on Telegram: the main news in brief
She claims that the cases are fabricated:
“The search warrants are based on fabricated investigation materials, which indicate unrealistic amounts of undeclared income, as well as an alleged relationship with a previous case.”
As it turned out, the BEB didn’t use much creativity – each model was told that she had earned $1.8 million, of which she had not paid taxes.
The lawyer is particularly concerned about the application of Article 209 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (money laundering).
“At the same time, not a word about the taxes paid. The application of Article 209 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (money laundering) is argued by the fact that the withdrawal of funds through the system provided by OnlyFans is money laundering. Really? And the fact that most foreign platforms do not allow withdrawing funds to Ukrainian banks, including business accounts, is nothing? And I’m not just talking about OnlyFans,”
– emphasizes Mykhailenko.
The lawyer also noted that this practice sets a dangerous precedent and is a serious problem for models that tried to comply with the law.
As reported by , the day before, Danylo Hetmantsev, the Head of the Verkhovna Rada Tax Committee, said that 350 Ukrainian OnlyFans models had declared UAH 305.4 million in income.
