YEREVAN. - Accession to the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) has created  problems with regard to reciprocal payments of VAT, Raffi Mkhchyan, Director General of Association of Armenian Exporters, coffee exporter (Raffael Contini Trading Company JV LTD, Rio Grande brand) told Armenian News – NEWS.am.  

If the tax authorities returned the VAT in case of every export before, now an order analogous to internal turnout is in operation; to get back the VAT, it is necessary to show that the good have actually been purchased in another republic.

Currently, in order to get back the VAT from the Armenian Tax Service, it is necessary to obtain from the Russian importer a document on receiving the goods. It is only with this document that the Armenian company can get back its VAT.

“But we have poor knowledge of our partners in the EAEU; the entire Russian market is comparatively new to us. We don’t know whether we will be sent the document after the sale. In case it’s not sent, our tax authorities won’t return us the VAT and will require fines for the delay,” Mkhchyan said. 

According to him, the issue can’t remain unresolved, but the businessmen are waiting for an immediate answer. “Because if this issue isn’t resolved, there will actually be no transactions,” he said.  

Recently the Union of Manufacturers and Businessmen of Armenia hosted a meeting with Robert Harutyunyan, one of the Armenian ministers to the EAEU. During the meeting the question on the VAT was raised. “The Minister promised us to raise that issue in Moscow and discuss ways of its solution.”