Armenia`s Ministry of Economy to reimburse customs duties to local  businesses 

ArmInfo. In order to stimulate exports, the Ministry of Economy of Armenia proposes to reimburse the  amounts of customs duties established upon import of goods, stipulated by the legislation of the importing country. The project was posted today on the unified portal of legal acts edraft.am.

As stated in the explanation to the document, taking into account the  difficulties associated with the export of goods from the Republic of  Armenia (due to weather problems and a decrease in transport  potential) and, as a result, a sharp increase in the cost of  transporting goods and an increase in the transport time, the  Ministry of Economy proposes a project that will allow an RA resident  organization or an individual entrepreneur registered in the RA to  export goods produced in Armenia to EU countries, and then receive  compensation in the amount of the customs duty paid there (if the  importing country does not have a zero customs duty rate for this  product).

The basis for calculating the amount of compensation will be the  export customs value of the goods.

According to the authors of the initiative, from the point of view of  long-term competitiveness, the project will ensure recognition of  Armenian products in international markets, diversification of export  markets, as well as ensuring and developing export promotion. 

The project provides for an increase in the expenditures of the state  budget of the Republic of Armenia, the Ministry of Economy noted,  refraining from giving specific figures.

According to the data of the RA Statistical Committee for  January-September 2024, the volume of exports reached $10.6 billion,  with an acceleration of annual growth from 44.8% to 2.1 times, and  the volume of imports exceeded $13.1 billion, with a less pronounced  acceleration of annual growth from 46.4% to 54.2%. 

This accelerated the annual growth of foreign trade turnover from  45.8% to 73.5%, ensuring a volume of $23.7 billion. And according to  the budget message for 2025, this year exports and imports will grow  by 16.9% and 20.6%, which will be due to the growth of economic  activity and domestic demand, as well as an increase in tourist flow  and re-exports. However, the financial authorities predict a decrease  in the impact of exogenous factors caused by the Russian-Ukrainian  conflict, in particular, due to a reduction in re-export volumes in  2025, exports will decrease by 36.6%, and imports by 33.7%.