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The culture of non-cash payments develops in our country, and the state implements necessary legislative, infrastructural and educational actions to make non-cash transactions smooth, simple and fast.

The deputies of the Civil Contract Faction Gevorg Papoyan and Tsovinar Vardanyan propose to expand the range of non-cash payments in the field of gambling business with the amendments to the Law on Gambling Games, Internet Gambling Games and Casinos in order to increase financial transparency and ensure effective control over the activities of the given sphere.

When the law enters into force, it will be forbidden to credit and withdraw money to the accounts of totalizators, organizers of gambling games and other similar entities in cash, and after 6 months, it is planned to do it exclusively through bank accounts. Such a requirement related to the provision of winnings is also set.

The key rapporteur, the Chair of the Standing Committee on Financial-Credit and Budgetary Affairs Gevorg Papoyan informed that the Government presented editorial and technical proposals after the first reading, which were adopted.

At the suggestion of the executive body, the law enters into force on the tenth day following the day of its official publication, except for Article 3, which enters into force six months after its official publication.

Gevorg Papoyan also noted that the proposed amendments are based on the pre-election programmes of the Civil Contract Faction and the Government programme.

“The interest of our society is paramount for us, and the legislative package is aimed at the protection of it,” the Committee Chair said and added that in Armenia playing should become difficult, not attractive.

He informed that they also conduct studies of international experience related to the sphere to find other possible solutions. “The fight against gambling will be continuous,” Gevorg Papoyan stressed.

The RA Minister of Finance Armen Hayrapetyan noted that the Government submitted a positive position on the package of drafts. The executive body did not propose a substantive amendment.

As a result of debate, the legislative package was endorsed.

The Committee members also debated and endorsed the draft decision of the Standing Committees on Financial-Credit and Budgetary Affairs and on Territorial Administration, Local Self-Government, Agriculture and Environment Protection to convene a joint sitting.

The subject of debate is the current conclusion of the RA Audit Chamber on the audit of loan and grant programs in the RA Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure to improve the seismic safety of schools.

The package of drafts and the draft decision of the Committee were debated at the extraordinary sitting of the NA Standing Committee on Financial-Credit and Budgetary Affairs on May 6.