Discord over amendment to income tax law sparks among Armenian ministers
11.03.2016,
12:36
At its regular Thursday session, Armenian government discussed the amendments to the income tax law proposed by MP Mikael Melkumyan, which sparked a dispute between Armenian ministers.
YEREVAN, March 11. /ARKA/. At its regular Thursday session, Armenian government discussed the amendments to the income tax law proposed by MP Mikael Melkumyan, which sparked a dispute between Armenian ministers.
Gagik Khachatryan, finance minister, said the amendments imply income tax exemption for those individual entrepreneurs doing their businesses in free economic zones.
In his opinion, the proposed amendments are out of tune with the government-run tax policy, which is aimed at expansion of tax basis and reduction of tax preferences.
He said that free economic zones are created by attracting direct foreign investments and introducing new technologies to build up industrial output and spur economic growth.
«In this terms, provision of additional incentives to private entrepreneurs' activities in free economic zones' territory will not contribute to attraction of direct foreign investments,» Khachatryan said.
The minister stressed that discussion of a new draft tax code is under way now. It implies various preferences, he said, and therefore the ministry is proposing to refrain from the preferences proposed by the lawmaker.
Artsvik Minasyan, economy minister, on his side, said that his ministry's stance on the matter is polar opposite, especially given that there is nothing new in the proposal.
In his words, similar legislative changes were implied by the income law yet in 1997, but such a kind of preferences was not included in the law because of technical problems.
He stressed that the amendments would have absolutely no effect on the budget, since there are no individual entrepreneurs in the economic zones.
David Harutyunyan, the minister- head of the government’s administration, sharing Minasyan’s opinion that the amendments will have absolutely no impacts on the government budget, still said that his stance is not coming from the government’s view on development of free economic zones in Armenia.
Noting that the free economic zones had been created not for filling them with private entrepreneurs, he stressed the necessity of attraction of large businesses for spurring development of the country's economy.
«We give income tax preferences to legal entities to bar individual entrepreneurs from entering free economic zones, and I am happy that there are no such entrepreneurs here – otherwise, we would discredit the free economic zone idea,» he said. «Here I completely agree with Gagik Khachatryan's position.»
There are a few free economic zones in Armenia’s territory. Alliance IT zone and Meridian jewelry zone are among them. ---0---
Gagik Khachatryan, finance minister, said the amendments imply income tax exemption for those individual entrepreneurs doing their businesses in free economic zones.
In his opinion, the proposed amendments are out of tune with the government-run tax policy, which is aimed at expansion of tax basis and reduction of tax preferences.
He said that free economic zones are created by attracting direct foreign investments and introducing new technologies to build up industrial output and spur economic growth.
«In this terms, provision of additional incentives to private entrepreneurs' activities in free economic zones' territory will not contribute to attraction of direct foreign investments,» Khachatryan said.
The minister stressed that discussion of a new draft tax code is under way now. It implies various preferences, he said, and therefore the ministry is proposing to refrain from the preferences proposed by the lawmaker.
Artsvik Minasyan, economy minister, on his side, said that his ministry's stance on the matter is polar opposite, especially given that there is nothing new in the proposal.
In his words, similar legislative changes were implied by the income law yet in 1997, but such a kind of preferences was not included in the law because of technical problems.
He stressed that the amendments would have absolutely no effect on the budget, since there are no individual entrepreneurs in the economic zones.
David Harutyunyan, the minister- head of the government’s administration, sharing Minasyan’s opinion that the amendments will have absolutely no impacts on the government budget, still said that his stance is not coming from the government’s view on development of free economic zones in Armenia.
Noting that the free economic zones had been created not for filling them with private entrepreneurs, he stressed the necessity of attraction of large businesses for spurring development of the country's economy.
«We give income tax preferences to legal entities to bar individual entrepreneurs from entering free economic zones, and I am happy that there are no such entrepreneurs here – otherwise, we would discredit the free economic zone idea,» he said. «Here I completely agree with Gagik Khachatryan's position.»
There are a few free economic zones in Armenia’s territory. Alliance IT zone and Meridian jewelry zone are among them. ---0---
