Why Passengers on Yerevan-Istanbul Flights are Exempt from State Fees: Clarification

The Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure of Armenia has issued a clarification regarding an article stating that the Civil Aviation Committee of Armenia has exempted passengers flying from Yerevan to Istanbul from state fee payments.

According to point “z” of the first part of Article 29 of the Law on State Fees, dated December 27, 1997, "individuals departing by air transport who, during the periods specified for this exemption, travel to airports with an IATA code that have not been serviced in the last 12 months prior to the departure of the first flight on this route, through airlines conducting commercial air transport to these same airports, if these airlines operate flights to those airports during the IATA summer and winter periods, are exempt from the state fee." This exemption period is granted for 36 months (with a possibility of extension for an additional 24 months), starting from the first flight of the first airline that meets the conditions for granting this exemption.

The relevant periods for the application of the exemptions stipulated in this point, including extensions, the frequency requirements for carriers, and unserviced routes, as well as other necessary information, are published in accordance with the regulations established by the Government of the Republic of Armenia.

This regulation means that passengers from airlines that are departing to those airports where flights have not been conducted from Yerevan for the last 12 months are exempt from the state fee, which amounts to 10,000 AMD. The aforementioned exemptions apply to all passengers who meet the requirements of the law mentioned above.

The exemption provided by the law is aimed at developing passenger flow to Armenia and serves as an impetus for expanding the geography of passenger traffic.

As for Tatevik Revazyan, she is on maternity leave from November 15, 2021, to April 3, 2022, according to the order of the Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure. During this period, the responsibilities of the Chairman of the Civil Aviation Committee have been entrusted to Deputy Chairman Mhiram Khachatryan,” the clarification states.