ArmInfo. Starting January 1, 2027, Armenia plans to introduce a new mechanism that will allow individuals to donate a portion of their income tax to the gratuitous funding of political parties, public organizations, and media outlets. At its November 11 meeting, the National Assembly Committee on Financial, Credit, and Budgetary Affairs approved the amendments to the Tax Code submitted by the Armenian government.
Presenting the document, Deputy Minister of Finance Hamlet Sahakyan noted that donations will be made not from additional personal funds, but from a portion of the income tax already paid by the individual. Donations can be made after completing and confirming a comprehensive income tax return, indicating the chosen recipient and amount. Armenia currently has an income declaration system in place, under which citizens annually submit income declarations, thereby gaining the opportunity to recoup a portion of the funds spent on healthcare and education through social credits in the form of income taxes.
The stable and continuous activities of public organizations, media outlets, and political parties are of great importance for the development of independent parties and civil society, as well as freedom and impartiality of speech. The problem is that institutional structures for providing financial support from individuals to public organizations, individuals (private entrepreneurs) engaged in media activities, and political parties have not yet been established in the country.
The draft proposes expanding the scope of social expenditures, introduced in parallel with the personal income declaration system. Specifically, it proposes establishing that social expenditures also include funds transferred free of charge by individuals to public organizations, legal entities engaged in media activities, or political parties. It is proposed that the government determine the maximum amounts of social expenditures, the scope of activities of public organizations, legal entities (except entrepreneurs) engaged in media activities, and political parties, the criteria for their submission, the list of information they provide to the tax authority, and the procedure for submitting and publishing this information. For these purposes, lists of these organizations will be created and published by the tax authority. Individuals who submit income tax returns will be required to electronically identify their organizations, indicating the amount of the deduction to that organization, which the state agency will transfer to the recipient. To achieve this goal, an individual must have a residency requirement of at least two years, no overdue tax liabilities, and the availability of financial statements, which are required to be submitted by NGOs, parties, and media outlets.
Previously, RA Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan highlighted the benefits of the proposed bill for parties, public organizations, and media outlets. But for this to happen, it is crucial that citizens become more actively involved in the income declaration process.
RA Minister of Justice Srbuhi Galyan, in turn, noted that the proposed initiative should be based on the idea of integrity, so that public organizations submit their financial reports annually and media outlets avoid falsifications. Currently, the minister continued, the Prime Minister's Office is already working on a draft package of laws on media self-regulation, which will soon be submitted to the RA government for approval. The package envisages, in particular, establishing possible points for media integrity.
