Armenia’s Cabinet approves November product-marking pilot

Armenia’s Cabinet approved a product-marking pilot on October 29, 2026, setting November 1–30 as the period for testing systems that identify goods and track their movement. The trial will test marking mechanisms, information systems and cooperation between businesses, the State Revenue Committee (SRC) and the national marking operator.

SRC Deputy Chairman Vrezh Mkhitaryan presented the programme at the Cabinet meeting, Armenpress said. He described the pilot as an opportunity to refine the process before wider use.

The trial follows a phased introduction of identification-based marking. Mkhitaryan outlined these earlier stages:

Product coverage and participation

The exact product coverage remains unclear. Armenpress described food products, including confectionery, semi-finished products and frozen goods. But it also quoted Mkhitaryan referring to “five product groups” followed by six categories: medical devices, pharmaceutical products, medical supplies and equipment; footwear; home and interior accessories; cameras, auto parts and tires; pyrotechnics, fire-safety equipment, toys and bicycles; and clothing and accessories made of natural fur.

The published draft decision proposes another list, with headings including pyrotechnics, fire-safety equipment, bicycles, spare parts and toys. That is a proposed list, not confirmation of the adopted coverage.

The draft proposes voluntary business participation and would require the national operator to supply marking codes free of charge. It also warns that some manufacturers or importers may need to upgrade equipment. Whether the adopted decision retains those participation and cost provisions, and whether any compliance penalties apply, remains unclear.

How the marking would work

The draft describes marking each product unit with a unique Data Matrix code—a machine-readable square code. Records linked to that code would trace the item from manufacture or import until sale, use in production, export or destruction.

The draft identifies I-MARK LLC as Armenia’s national marking operator and assigns it joint implementation and evaluation duties with the SRC. It proposes testing connections between businesses’ systems and the operator’s system, as well as each step from ordering a marking code to recording a product’s exit from circulation.

Mkhitaryan said the SRC expected marking to reduce informal economic activity, make business transactions more transparent and generate additional tax revenue. He also anticipated real-time statistics and automated cooperation among regulators in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). These are the SRC’s expected longer-term benefits.

For businesses, he said a standardized label across the EAEU would simplify exports within the union, while reduced informal trade would improve competition. For consumers, he said marking would help restrict counterfeit and substandard goods and allow people to check products through a mobile application.

Phones, appliances and the evaluation deadline

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan asked whether household appliances and mobile phones were included. Mkhitaryan said appliances were not yet included and that the mobile-phone pilot had been completed. Pashinyan described informal trade involving phones and computers as substantial and advocated placing QR codes on products to combat it.

After the November trial, the SRC is to submit its evaluation results to the Prime Minister’s Office within ten days of completion, Mkhitaryan said.