Armenia expands social credit refund program

PanARMENIAN.Net - The government has decided to expand the scope of social credit refunds for taxpayers filing income declarations.

Finance Minister Vahe Hovhannisyan announced that the state will reimburse up to 100,000 drams annually for tuition fees at music, arts, dance schools, extracurricular institutions, and sports academies, as well as dental services.

According to the minister, the tax refund scheme will also apply retroactively for 2024.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan noted that, until now, citizens were eligible for social credit refunds for tuition at kindergartens, schools, universities, and health insurance premiums.

"Now, if people incur expenses in government-specified areas and submit a tax declaration, they can get back up to 100,000 drams from these expenses," he said.

Pashinyan emphasized that only working citizens who pay income tax qualify for the program.

Earlier, during a Public Television interview, Pashinyan stated that based on the new income declaration requirement, up to 70 billion drams (nearly $200 million) could be refunded to citizens through social credits.