Online Taxi Rides in Armenia to Be Taxed, Other Taxis to Be Regulated

Online taxi rides in Armenia will be taxed, while unregistered taxis on such platforms will be prohibited. The proposed amendments to the 'Law on Automotive Transport', along with accompanying legislation, were adopted with 56 votes in favor, 6 against, and 17 abstentions.

Taxi companies will need to make changes to their systems to enable the provision of electronic cash register receipts for passengers. This will ensure that taxi service revenues are recorded by the tax service.

Additionally, a state fee will be established for each ride, which will differ between cash and cashless payments. For cash payments, the fee will be set at 2% starting September 1, 2024, 3.5% from January 1, 2025, and 5% from January 1, 2026. For cashless payments, the fees will be 1.5%, 2.5%, and 4% respectively.

These payments will be transferred to the tax service by taxi companies, not by the drivers. Moreover, to operate their business, companies will pay an annual fee of 1 million drams (approximately $2,500).

The vice-chairman of the Parliamentary Economic Affairs Commission and representative of the 'Civil Contract' faction, Babken Tunyan, stated that in the future, the issue of minimum requirements for drivers and their vehicles may be discussed. Currently, these requirements have been left to the discretion of companies, but they may also be defined by law or government decree.