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IV. MEASURES DIRECTLY AFFECTING EXPORTS 
(1) CUSTOMS PROCEDURES AND CHARGES  
1. The State Revenue Committee (SRC) is responsib le for customs procedures with respect to 
exports as well as for imports (Chapter III(1)).  Ac cording to Article 128 of the Customs Code, all 
goods exported from Armenia are subject to customs de clarations.  Goods must be declared at the 
regional customs office closest to the exporter's location, with the exception of goods exported via 
Yerevan International Airport, which must be declared at the airport customs office. 
2. In principle, the procedure is simple:  a declar ation form is submitted to the customs official, 
who is responsible for verifying its comple teness as well as the validity of the supporting 
documentation.   
3. Armexpertiza, an organization founded by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of 
Armenia, is responsible for issuing four differe nt certificates of origin for Armenian exports 
depending on their destinations:  (i)  for all d estinations;  (ii) for CIS countries governed by CIS 
Resolution of November 2000 (Chapter III(3));  (iii) for CIS countries not governed by the Regulation;  and (iv) for countries that pr ovide GSP preferences to Armenian exports.
1  Exporters 
have complained that certification of origin is a costly and complicated procedure, as even small 
quantities of exports are subject to sample analyses.2     
4. According to the World Bank's Doing Business Project 2009, it took on average 30 days to 
complete export customs procedures in 2008 for a standardized cargo.3  However, Doing Business 
2010 has shown an improvement:  the average time has been reduced to 17 days, the number of 
documents reduced from 6 to 5, and the average co st for a standard container reduced from US$1,746 
to US$1,731. 
5. There are no registration requirements for exporters.  
6. The Customs Code establishes that exports are s ubject to payment of customs service fees in 
the same way as imports (Chapter III(5)). 
7. Armenia does not maintain minimum prices for exports.    
(2) EXPORT TAXES  
8. The Customs Code provides for an export tax (i .e. customs duties), however the applied rate 
for all goods was zero throughout the review period.  
(3) EXPORT PROHIBITIONS , RESTRICTIONS , AND LICENSING  
9. Armenia prohibits exports of all kinds of weapons and ammunition, explosives, army 
equipment and components, narcotics and psycho tropic substances, and pornographic material.  
Armenia does not apply trade embargoes othe r than those imposed by UN Security Council 
Resolutions. 
                                                      
1 Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Republic of Armenia online information.  Viewed at:  
http://www.armexpertiza.am/eng/?s=3. 
2 U.S. Commercial Service (2007). 
3 World Bank and IFC (2009). Armenia WT/TPR/S/228/Rev.1 
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10. Armenia applies licensing requirements on expor ts of pharmaceutical products to ensure 
public health and safety, of rare animal and plants , and of objects considered part of the national 
heritage.  Export permission proce dures for pharmaceutical products are the same as those for imports 
and are regulated by the same legislation.  To obtain an export permit, a company must obtain a 
pharmaceutical licence (needed for all activities relate d to pharmaceutical products).  Both the export 
permit and the licence for pharmaceutical products  are issued by the Ministry of Health 
(Chapter III(6)).  Exports of rare animals and plants included in Armenia's Red Book  require 
permission from the Ministry of Nature and the Environment.4  Exports of objects considered of 
interest to the national heritage must be authorized by the Ministry of Culture.5   
(4) DUTY AND TAX CONCESSIONS  
11. Under Armenian legislation, indirect taxes (i .e. VAT and excise tax) are zero rated on all 
exports.  In addition, the Customs Code provides for exemptions from tariff duties for imports that 
enter under one of the following import regimes for products to be re-exporte d:  temporary imports 
for processing;  temporary import;  import into free trade zones;  and re-export.6  Imports under these 
regimes have one year to be exported or tariff dutie s are levied.  However, although provided for in 
the Customs Code, as at mid 2009, no free trade z ones or other special economic zones have been 
established in Armenia.   
12. During the review period, some exporters comp lained of delays in obtaining VAT refunds 
from the Government.7  The authorities have undertaken improvements by:  (i) meeting the statutory 
90-day processing deadline for all VAT refund claims filed in 2009;  (ii) clearing the stock of late 
refund claims;  (iii) implementing risk manageme nt approaches (i.e. taxpayers with good compliance 
histories get fast-track refunds, while risky cases face pre-refund audits);   (iv) implementing a 
forecasting system to guarantee that funds will be  available;  and (v) submitting legislation to 
Parliament to strengthen penalties for false refund claims.8  Furthermore, at the end of 2009 a draft 
law was before the National Assembly that would make  tax refunds, in general, automatic after three 
months.  The authorities expect the new law to be in force in 2011 and to be  applied to tax refunds 
incurred during 2010.   
(5) EXPORT FINANCE , INSURANCE , AND PROMOTION  
13. There is no government institution in Armeni a providing export finance, insurance, or 
guarantees.  Moreover, there are no government lending schemes or official credit lines distributed via private financial institutions designed to support exporters.     
14. Trade finance is provided by large private ba nks, which in some cases work in association 
with international financial institutions such  as the European Bank for Reconstruction and 
Development (EBRD), the International Finance Co rporation (IFC), and the International Bank for 
Reconstruction and Development (IBRD).  For ex ample, Armeconombank (an Armenian privately 
owned bank) and the EBRD have been carrying out  a trade facilitation progr amme under which letters 
of credit are issued when a credit line is already available to the exporter.
9  
                                                      
4 In accordance with CITES Resolutions and EC regulations.  
5 WTO document WT/ACC/ARM/23, 26 November 2002. 
6 Articles 22 to 55 of the Customs Code of Armenia. 
7 AMCHAM online information.  Viewed at:  http://www.amcham.am/.   
8 IMF (2009d). 
9 Armeconombank online information.  Viewed at:  http://www.aeb.am/default.aspx?lang= 
eng&menu_id=5&sub_id=1&multi_id=1&page_id=37. WT/TPR/S/228/Rev.1 Trade Policy Review 
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15. The authorities state that Armenia does not provide subsidies contingent on export 
performance nor does it have any export processing zones.   
16. The Armenian Development Agency (ADA), esta blished in 1998, is the government agency 
responsible for export promotion.  The ADA helps Armenian exporters to find markets for their 
products, performs market studies, and seeks out part ners for joint ventures aimed at increasing the 
volume of exports.  It also organizes internati onal conferences, business forums, trade fairs, and 
exhibitions.  ADA's budget totalled some US$809, 000 in 2009, of which 45% was funded by the 
Government's fiscal budget and 55% from the "For eign Investment and Export Facilitation Project" 
financed by the World Bank and the International Development Association.10  
                                                      
10 Information provided by the Armenian authorities.