Meeting Held at the Business Association of Georgia on Issues Related to Tariffs Imposed by IPOA on the Import of Certain Products
12 Jun '25
A working meeting was held at the Business Association of Georgia within the framework of the Information Technology Committee with representatives of member companies regarding issues related to tariffs imposed by IPOA (Intellectual Property Owners Association) on the import of certain products.
The discussion touched upon problems related to the administration of these tariffs and potential solutions, which involve creating legislative and institutional mechanisms to ensure universality of administration.
Among the items discussed at the meeting, special mention should be made of separating the VAT component from the established tariffs, as accounting for this tax within the tariff does not align with the norms of the Tax Code of Georgia; accordingly, the tariff needs to be adjusted in proportion to the VAT share.
The experience of Eastern European and developed Western countries was also presented regarding both tariff amounts and their administration.
The meeting proceeded in a discussion format, allowing participants to share their cumulative experience since the tariffs came into force, as well as practical problems and difficulties identified while operating under the new framework.
“Another meeting was held at the Business Association of Georgia regarding intellectual property issues and the tariffs established by IPOA. We received information on the difficulties our member companies face during the payment of these tariffs, as well as how effectively administration is being carried out. We agreed that at this stage, special attention should be devoted precisely to the issue of administration - because if it is not universal, or if these tariffs are not paid by every single market participant without exception, levying tariffs on only a portion of companies cannot be deemed fair and objective,” stated Soso Pkhakadze, President of the Business Association of Georgia.