Not Paying Taxes Is Equated to Corruption: Nikol Pashinyan Meets with Business Representatives

Nikol Pashinyan met with representatives of organizations operating in the public catering sector, stating that they would discuss issues that have recently attracted media attention, specifically regarding tax regulations in the public catering industry.

He specifically mentioned that cash register receipts are still not being provided, and when one requests a cash register receipt and the process of connecting the cash register machine takes ten minutes, it becomes clear that the shop worker has no idea how it works. Pashinyan noted that, unfortunately, there are layers in our society who interpret this message as they did in the past. Now, when they are not providing ‘taxes’ in various places, they see it as a great opportunity to dismiss the second part of the law.

This is a very negative phenomenon. Pashinyan stated that he considers it a form of corruption. If the same person were appointed as minister or prime minister, they would rob the entire country in five minutes. A corrupt official is not different from someone who is thinking about how to avoid paying taxes.

Nikol Pashinyan proposed to continue discussions between the private sector and the government, specifying a concrete timeframe. The acting Prime Minister emphasized that the aim of the discussions will be to reach mutually acceptable and beneficial solutions for the sector's tax regulations, based on clear calculations and justifications.