Vache Gabrielyan does not see any elements of blackmail in the  statements of large retail chains of the republic

ArmInfo.Former Deputy Prime Minister of Armenia, former Minister of International Economic Integration and Reforms Vache Gabrielyan does not see any elements of  blackmail in the statements of large retail chains of the republic that the authorities' desire to return network supermarkets to the legitimate tax field can lead to higher prices and unemployment. "There are objective bases for raising prices, but to what extent  they will affect pricing, it is impossible to say today," Gabrielyan said in an interview with ArmInfo.

According to the expert, he cannot talk about what exactly were the  agreements between economic entities and the State Revenue Committee,  and how they were observed. Nevertheless, as he pointed out, the  previous government was faced with the task of providing the  villagers with the opportunity to sell their products to large  trading networks, and, at the same time, to document the turnover.  "The former Armenian governments in the economy with numerous small  business entities consistently sought to bring the model tax  legislation in line with the structure of the economy, but since this  is not done immediately, the most important task that the authorities  tried to solve was to document the trade turnover, because it is the  basis of transparency, and it was within this logic that the  government acted, "he said.

At this stage, as Gabrielyan noted, the most important task is still  to ensure full documentation of the trade turnover of large retail  chains. However, for this, from the point of logic of the continuity  of the VAT chain, it is necessary to visualize the incomes of the  agricultural sector as well. The last to date continues to be outside  the field of VAT regulation. In this context, very often legal  entities VAT payers in the process of agricultural procurement are  faced with the problem of the lack of a mechanism for calculating VAT  and in order to avoid higher prices than non-paying taxpayers of this  type of tax, or avoid trade with small agricultural producers or  distort trade.

According to the expert, today it is difficult to assess how  significant the price increase may be, since VAT is not the only  factor affecting prices. However, the most important is the objective  task from the point of view of the legislation, based on the lack of  application of VAT on agricultural producers. Already after the trade  in agricultural products in supermarkets will be fully transferred to  the VAT field, an assessment of the ability of sellers and buyers to  "carry this load" can be given. "The main task is to find the optimal  solution to the problem, so as not to cause damage to the  agricultural producer and the end user," he said.  Vache Gabrielyan  stated that, of course, it is necessary to be guided by the current  legislation. At the same time, he shares the opinion of the  leadership of the State Revenue Committee of Armenia that it is  necessary to thoroughly analyze the data and make a final decision on  the situation as a result of public discussions. It's not a secret  for anyone that it is noted that in the whole world, hidden turnover  often lurks where there are self-employed citizens and small farms.  And this is not the "prerogative" of Armenia - even in countries with  the best administration, the lowest level of tax specifics is present  in the agricultural sector and among self-employed persons. "Thus, if  there is a desire to ensure full tax transparency, and to reveal all  the hidden revenues, it is necessary to move the agricultural sector  intelligently into the tax field," the expert concluded.

To recall, the heads of 11 retail networks recently sent a letter to  the Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, expressing concern  about the possible risks associated with the further functioning of  points of trade in the light of the GDP inspections and the  requirement to work within the framework of the law.  Having welcomed  the government's policy aimed at bringing this segment of large-scale  trade to the legal field, they noted that the operation of the  networks was thereby threatened. At the same time, they announced the  need for an urgent review of tax legislation. Nevertheless,  independent experts saw in this a note of blackmail and sabotage from  large supermarkets.