Armenia has proposed expanding the use of social expense allocations under its personal income declaration system, allowing citizens to direct part of the available funds to nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), legal entities engaged in media activities and political parties.
Deputy Finance Minister Hamlet Sahakyan presented the initiative during a working discussion organized by the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Financial-Credit and Budgetary Affairs, Radar.am reports.
The discussion focused on a government-drafted bill titled “On Amendments and an Addition to the Tax Code of the Republic of Armenia.”
Under the proposed mechanism, citizens would be able to view a list of eligible organizations on the electronic page of their income tax declaration and select those to which they wish to allocate funds.
Sahakyan explained that the proposed regulations would allow taxpayers to allocate 1,000 Armenian drams to each selected NGO, media outlet or political party.
The total amount allocated would be capped at 3,000 drams, allowing citizens to distribute funds among eligible organizations of their choice within that limit.
“By selecting the relevant field, the State Revenue Committee will transfer the money to the chosen organization,” the deputy minister explained.
Participants in the working discussion generally welcomed the initiative but put forward suggestions concerning both the range of eligible beneficiaries and the amounts that could be transferred.
In particular, they proposed including nongovernmental foundations among the organizations eligible to receive allocations.
Participants also suggested reviewing the financial limits set out in the draft legislation, including both the amount allocated to individual organizations and the overall maximum.
Sahakyan expressed readiness to continue discussions with interested stakeholders, noting that the bill could be revised to incorporate acceptable proposals and comments.
The meeting was attended by members of the National Assembly, representatives of the executive branch, NGOs, media outlets and foundations.
