Thursday, June 23 2022 13:25

ArmInfo.The Armenian government has revised its budget revenue forecast for this year, increasing the budgeted revenues by about $100mln. The authorities have announced  their intention to implement capital investment programmes for the  early 2023. 

Armenia's Minister of Finance Tigran Khachatryan stated that the tax  revenues will exceed the target for the first half of 2022. As of  June 22, tax revenues (tax revenues and state duties) totaled AMD  911bln - 30% as much as last year. With the AMD 38bln paid as taxes  on ore concentrate (dressed ore) (the tax was not in effect in the  first half of 2021) deducted, the tax revenues are expected to  increase by about 25%. 

Among the factors explaining the increase are more efficient tax  administration, increased income tax payments this year based on the  2021 financial results, as well as taxes on ore concentrate (dressed  ore).  The government-forecast amount was AMD 50mln, with AMD 38bln  collected. The inflation played its role as well - 9% inflation this  May against last May, whereas the budgeted inflation was 4% (+/-  1.5%).  As a result, larger amounts of a number of taxes,  particularly VAT, were paid. So the government plans to increase the  budgeted revenues by AMD 40bln. 

The extra budget revenues allow the government to allocate more funds  to education, healthcare and physical infrastructure programmes that  are to be launched in the early 2023. 

Armenia's Premier Nikol Pashinyan reported that the budget tax  revenues (tax revenues and state duties) exceeded the target by AMD  147bln - a 14.5% increase as compared with 2020, exceeding the  revised figure by 1%. As a result, the tax revenue/GDP ratio  increased by 0.3%, reaching the historical maximum of 22.7% of the  GDP. As of December 31, 2021, budget tax revenues totaled AMD 1,  586.9bln against the budgeted AMD 1,440,136,839,500 and revised  AMD1,583.6bln. 

As of this April it was clear the tax revenues would exceed the  target by AMD 30bln. However, the government did not revise the  forecast then, but decided to wait until the end of the first half of  the year. 

According to the 2022 draft budget, Armenia's budget revenues are to  total AMD 1,947.8bln (24.7% of the GDP) or AMD 289bln (17.5%) more  than last year. On-budget expenditures are to total AMD 2,184bln or  27.7% of the GDP - AMD 184bln more than the budgeted expenditures for  this year and AMD 334bln more than last year). The budget deficit is  estimated at AMD 236.2bln - AMD 6,736.3mln less than last year.  95%  of the budget revenues will be ensured due to taxes and duties. The  tax revenues are to total AMD 1,844bln against the actually recorded  AMD 1,586.9bln or 22.7% of the GDP last year (0.3 percentage point  more than in 2020).