The State Revenue Committee (SRC) of Armenia's proposal to abolish incentive provisions and impose stricter criminal liability for tax violations will not be adopted in its current form. This was announced on September 11 by Babken Tunyan, Deputy Chairman of the Standing Committee on Economic Affairs of the National Assembly, as reported by ArmInfo.
The SRC had proposed eliminating Part 5 of Article 290 of the Criminal Code, which allows businesses to avoid criminal liability by paying a certain amount. Instead, the proposal called for imprisonment of three years or more for violations involving sums exceeding 10 million drams (about $25,000). SRC Chairman Rustam Badasyan justified the need for these changes by citing the undermining of competitive fairness in the republic. However, the proposal was met with strong opposition from the business community and experts.
According to Tunyan, after discussions with government partners, it was decided not to adopt the draft in its proposed form. "We proposed several alternatives. Since the main rationale was to prevent honest taxpayers from being placed at a disadvantage compared to those who violate the law, the current SRC proposal to increase fines for delayed tax payments partially addresses this issue," Tunyan stated.
The MP also noted that higher fines for specific cases of intentional tax evasion could be discussed in the near future. However, he emphasized the need for a cautious approach, as delayed tax payments are often due to objective circumstances.
