He was joking: Representatives of Show Business about paying Taxes and Leaving Armenia ‘Mowing the Reds near the Country Road’
A few days ago, during the Government session, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan referred to the payment of taxes by the representatives of show business. Pashinyan noted that they cannot avoid taxes and not be held accountable. “They say, ‘Well, we went, we gave a concert in Los Angeles, where did you go to Los Angeles from? What route did you take?’ Well then, do not use the roads built at the expense of those who worked in Armenia and paid taxes, mow the reeds of the nearby field of road and go to the airport that way.”
Iravaban.net contacted several representatives of show business to find out their opinion on the tax obligations and statements of the Head of Executive.
Actor, humorist and showman Rafael Yeranosyan told us that he has paid taxes throughout his career and believes that anyone should work and pay taxes in the country where he lives. “I consider it correct that if you live in a given country, you have to pay taxes to your country. It’s normal; it’s like that all over the world. It is not normal that they are trying to scare people about it. I work and create in the Republic of Armenia; I pay taxes from the income I receive, on the stage, on the air.”
We also established contact with actor, comedian Andranik Harutyunyan. He mentioned that he has been in this arena since 2002 and has always paid taxes for all his works. “At this very moment, I am in a presentation, and those taxes have also been paid, any activity on my part is transparent.”
To our question whether the actor agrees to pay taxes for his activities abroad, Harutyunyan answered that there is a control problem in this matter. “It is possible that the works there will be carried out without registration or with cash transactions and the relevant authorities in the RA will not be able to control, but everything must be done legally, and taxes must be paid.”
To our question, how justified is Pashinyan’s statement, “If they don’t want to pay taxes, let them mow the reeds of the fields near road, let them leave in that way”, Andranik replied that he watched the entire video, and in his opinion, that part was a joke. “There is a part where the Prime Minister says that he is speaking grotesquely about mowing the reeds.” I assume that this particular part was joking, but taxes must be paid, of course.”
It should be reminded that the actor recently posted a humorous video on his Instagram page regarding the topic. He urged to treat the video exclusively with humor.
It should be noted that back in January of this year, SRC Chairman Rustam Badasyan announced in a press conference with journalists that representatives of show business in Armenia have started to declare and pay taxes more dutifully.
Iravaban.net also spoke with singer Mihran Tsarukyan. The latter mentioned that taxes should be paid, because the law stipulates so. “I have been paying taxes for my activities abroad for many years. This was not new to me.
Tsarukyan added that he does not know how much and in what order he pays taxes to Armenia, because it is done by the accounting department, in the amount defined by the law.
Actress, presenter Nazeni Hovhannisyan said that they pay taxes for their work, but she doesn’t know what new laws will come into effect.
We also established contact with other show business representatives. They did not want to talk about the topic. Some mentioned that they do not have interviews at all, and some said that they do not want to talk about specific tax obligations.
We also talked with economist Karen Sargsyan about paying taxes for activities carried out abroad. To our question, is it fair to pay taxes here from working activities outside of RA, he answered that like everyone, show business representatives must pay taxes, but with the option of excluding double taxation.
“If they received income outside of Armenia and it was taxed in that country, then there should not be a tax obligation in Armenia. In other words, if they pay taxes in a foreign country as a certain organization or individual, double taxation should be excluded. And if they were not taxed abroad, for example, they went on a concert tour for just a few days and are considered RA residents; tax liability will arise in Armenia. We have agreements with many countries on the exclusion of double taxation.
Emphasizing the importance of paying taxes, he added that we pay taxes so that the state creates certain goods and services for citizens. Both taxpayers and non-taxpayers use these services, so we should be conscientious. Sargsyan also mentioned that if a citizen living on a simple salary can pay taxes, and those who earn several times more shall pay as well.
Mariam Antonyan
