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“In general the discussions on the draft of the Tax Code proceeded in a constructive atmosphere, yet it’s not clear, which version of the draft the Government sent to the National Assembly,” Head of the Republican Union of Employers of Armenia, Gagik Makaryan told Panorama.am . 

“Frankly speaking, I was surprised by the commotion over the Tax Code. Especially, when the companies, that are displeased now, are the ones that actively participated during the discussions and made their proposals, which have been considered. We’ve approved the version introduced to the government. However, certain changes [in the draft] were made in the Government or the National Assembly,” Makaryan said.

According to him, following the discussions of the Tax Code in the National Assembly, it was as if the Members of the Parliament had never read it. “I believe that certain parliamentarians haven’t read those 770 pages. Indeed it’s difficult to perceive all that when you haven’t attended the discussions. You need to be a good specialist to be able to study each article”.

Gagik Makaryan also noted that he wasn’t able to get acquainted to the Tax Code, which was adopted by the National Assembly on first reading. According to him, it will take much time to compare the articles. “It’s the style of our authorities to make last-minute changes in the draft. Yet there’s a problem among the employees too: they notice the changes when it’s already too late”.

It should be noted that business associations operating in Armenia expressed their concerns regarding the Tax Code, developed by the Government of Armenia and adopted by the National Assembly on first reading.

According to them, the adopted Tax Code and the initial draft have serious conceptual differences, and the adopted version may have a negative impact on the country’s economy.