"Zhoghovurd" daily writes:
"In Armenia, the system of product identification - stamping with QR codes, although it is presented as a tool for combating the shadow, increasing market transparency and a requirement for activity in the EAEU market, but it has become an additional burden or "hidden tax" for businessmen. a company is getting rich as a result of providing QR codes. Businessmen are protesting. Shifting the financial burden on businesses. Recall that in February 2025, the government approved an expanded list of products subject to compulsory stamping with QR codes - 74 names, including dairy products, meat products, medicines, fuel and other consumer goods. Thus, the system becomes widespread and affects almost all sectors. Let us inform you that before these stamps were financed by the state. In 2024, for example, the state paid more than 5.1 billion drams for 1.357 billion stamps.
In the new system, this cost is completely transferred to the economic operators, but at a higher price. "Zhoghovurd" daily learned from official sources that in 2025, the Armenian business field has already bought around 1.3 billion QR codes, paying 2.5 drams for each one.
The total payment amounted to more than 3.25 billion drams, which will be significantly larger this year, as the list of products has increased. Businessmen's calculations show that even for low-value products, the QR code can increase the cost by 5-7%. This is especially sensitive for small and medium-sized businesses, where profit margins are already limited. In short, the state encourages monopoly and forces businessmen to pay money to one company.
Monopoly structure And who is the "national operator", for which the state has set the rules and prices, but the service is provided by the private sector? Years ago, "Zhoghovurd" and other media wrote that only one consortium participated in the competition, and it was recognized as the winner.
Let's leave aside the fact that on the 4th day of the 44-day war, on September 30, 2020, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan found time and approved the composition of the commission to select the national operator. Let's focus on the actors: the SRC president and deputies. The competition was held on November 12, 3 days after the signing of the famous cease-fire document on November 9, when Pashinyan was ruling the country from a bunker. The consortium "Prospective Technologies Development Center-Armenia" was created especially for that competition. The other two are Russian companies: "Center Razvitiya Perspectivnikh Tekhnologii" and "IMark". But in the same year, in 2024, "V" CJSC was established, then "Prospective Technologies Development Center-Armenia" was renamed to "I-Mark" LLC.
Let's remind that the founder and sole owner of "V" CJSC is Mikael Pashayan, who held various positions in the RA SRC, and after the revolution of 2018, he was the deputy chairman of the SRC. While working in the SRC, he was awarded the "For Cooperation and Interaction" medal by the SRC President, and in 2022, he received a commemorative medal from Nikol Pashinyan for his contribution to the development of the customs system. Already on November 16, 2020, when he was elected national operator, Mikael Pashayan simply came out of the shadows and assumed the role of the owner of the company that won the competition he organized. "Zhoghovurd" newspaper from the RA Prosecutor's Office. informed that on April 1, 2025, criminal proceedings were initiated in accordance with Article 308, Part 2 of the Criminal Code adopted on 18.04.2003 and Article 284, Part 3, Clause 3 of the current Criminal Code.
An investigation is underway. "Zhoghovurd" daily has sent inquiries to the prosecutor's office, we will publish the answers as soon as we receive them. Businessmen complain. legal and systemic problems While the state presents this as a tool to fight against the shadow, businessmen are alarming about the new burden on their shoulders. they posted stamps, but now they have to pay additional expenses, not to the state, but to the private sector. "Today we have a production of cold coffees. There are 5-6 types, their average price is 117 drams. When I add 6-7 drams to the QR code on 117 drams, it automatically increases the value by 6-7 percent.
"I haven't changed the value yet today, but my profit has been reduced," the businessman explained. "Yerevan Beer" company also submitted a lawsuit to the court with the request to invalidate clause 6, sub-clause 5 and clause 14 of the appendix "Features of the implementation of the monitoring information system for the circulation of goods subject to control marks" the codes must be provided not by a government body or a government organization, but by a commercial organization, and the business entity must pay for them at a significantly higher price than before.
"It is obvious that the regulations defined by the RA government's decision contradict the legal regulations of stamping with stamps, which means that the specified provisions of the regulation contradict Article 396.1 of the Code," the lawsuit states. It is also argued that there is inaction by the RA SRC, which ensures the application of the regulation that contradicts the RA Tax Code, which violates the company's rights and is the basis for challenging that regulation, the RA Administrative Procedure Code. In accordance with Article 192, Part 1, Clause 1. In addition, it is noted that providing the necessary codes for stamping is an attempt to transfer administrative-legal relations to the civil-legal field, which is fundamentally unacceptable. Since the principles of the autonomy of the will of businessmen, property independence, freedom of contract and the inadmissibility of arbitrary interference in private affairs are clearly violated. The case is currently in court and must be examined in writing. procedure, but it will be effective to examine it in an oral procedure, so that all these issues, which are also of public importance, can be clarified publicly. The court should clarify • do the regulations not contradict the Tax Code • are administrative and legal relations not transferred to the civil law field • why are businessmen forced to sign a contract with a private company, violating the principles of economic autonomy?
However, its implementation in Armenia shows structural problems: uneven distribution of the financial burden, lack of competition and controversial legal solutions. In this context, the QR stamping system turns into not only a control mechanism, but also a tool for income redistribution from business to monopoly operator.
Last year, a number of businessmen paid 3 billion 253 million drams to the "I-Mark" company, or actually Pashayan, and this year this number will increase even more. The question arises: why should the company of the former SRC vice president have such a large turnover, if those funds could be directed to the state budget."
Details in today's issue of "Zhoghovurd" daily.
