How to Get Armenian Citizenship (2024)

Introduction

According to the Ministry of Economy, more than 154 000 tourists have visited Armenia, in January 2024. An increase of 48,4 % compared to 2022 according to the National Statistics committee of Armenia. During the academic year 2022/23, 2072 Indian, 1237 Russian, 808 Georgian and 300 Iranian students studied in Armenia. Many of them ask for an Armenian citizenship by naturalization or by birth to benefit from the many advantages provided through Armenian nationality. The Armenian Law requires only three years of permanent residencewhich facilitate the application for foreigners compared to other countries like France which required at least 5 years or Germany with 8 years. Index statistic of 2023 ranks Armenian passport 59thamong the most powerful in the world ahead of India and Morocco. However, because of the increasing requests for Armenian passport and the lack of resources the processing is very long. In fact, some new rules have been applied, limiting a person to register more than 2 times within 30 days, and by removing the requirement for a round stamp in passports, "exit visa » since 1st February of 2024.

Key takeaways

The residency requirement for obtaining RA citizenship is only 3 years.

Procedure and deadlines

What documents are required for obtaining an Armenian citizenship?

The following documents are required for acquirement of Armenian citizenship:

1. An application: it specifically envisages contains the following matters

• Name, surname and patronymic name,

• Year, month, day and place of birth,

• Modes for acquiring an Armenian citizenship,

• The civil status of the person at the given time,

• Relation to military service,

• Certain information about close relatives,

• Place of residence,

• Contacts.

2. If an applicant would like to acquire Armenian citizenship on the basis of residency then he/she should personally fill out the application as proof of the knowledge of Armenian.

3. А passport and its copy (for a stateless person-their certificate and its copy or travel document and the document confirming the residence status in the RA and their copies),

4. 6 color photos of size 35 x 45 mm,

5. Birth certificates and their copies,

6. Marriage certificates and their copies (If the acquisition of Armenian citizenship should be realized on the basis of marriage as well as in cases when an applicant married and took the surname of a spouse),

7. The spouse’s passport and its copy or a certificate on the spouse’s citizenship (If the acquisition of Armenian citizenship should be realized on the basis of marriage as well as in cases when an applicant married and took the surname of a spouse),

8. The birth certificate of the applicant’s child and its copy, or the certificate of Armenian citizenship and its copy, or the passport of the RA citizen and its copy. (In cases, when the acquisition of Armenian citizenship should be realized on the basis of having a son who is an Armenian citizen),

9. Any of the documents confirming an Armenian nationality (In cases, when the acquisition of Armenian citizenship should be realized on the basis of ethnicity),

10. Residence certificate of a stateless person and its copy or a travel document and a document confirming the RA residence status and their copies (In cases, when the acquisition of Armenian citizenship should be realized on the basis of residency),

11. Receipt of a state duty’s payment.

Key takeaways

RA citizenship is acquired on the basis of nationality, marriage or residence, and the list of documents required in each case differs.

Procedure for submission

Aiming to ensure the diversity of members of society, the Armenian legislation is flexible and prescribes an application procedure for Armenian citizenship regardless of the applicant’s location. In particular, an application may be submitted

• in Armenia, the Passport and Visa Department of the RA Police under the RA Government (hereinafter referred to as the Department),

• at an RA Embassy or an RA consular mission in a foreign state.

In addition, the applicant should submit the application for Armenian citizenship personally, regardless of the location for submitting it.

Within 3 days, the Department sends information on the state of the RA citizenship application process to the applicant’s Email address and (or) mobile phone numbers by an SMS message, if the applicant has voluntarily filled in their Email address and (or) mobile phone number in the questionnaire.

The applicant can also be informed about the application process via the Department’s official website by entering the issued personal code. The personal code is issued to the applicant’s Email address or mobile phone numbers at the same time they get SMS information after submitting their application to the Department.

Applications for citizenship are considered in six months.

Considering the daily increase in the number of applications, the applicants may use the online system for getting in line for submitting their applications for RA citizenship. From now on, the service will be provided only via getting in line online. To get in line, the applicant has to enter the www.e-request.am online platform and book an appointment for visiting the Department.

It is noteworthy that each applicant must fill in only their personal data for getting in line. Applicants who got their appointments using other persons’ data will not be served.

Key takeaways

The necessary documents for obtaining RA citizenship are submitted to the citizenship department of the Passport and Visa Department of the RA Police, for which a visit must be booked through the www.e-request.am platform.

Specifics related to compulsory military service

When obtaining Armenian citizenship, it is always necessary to address:

Whether a foreigner is obliged to undergo mandatory military service in Armenia, or not.

Thus, those foreigners who acquire Armenian citizenship will be exempted from mandatory military service if they have served in the armed forces of another state for at least 12 months before acquiring Armenian citizenship. The above-mentioned conditions also apply when a foreigner underwent alternative military service for no less than 18 months instead of mandatory military service (except for the states defined by the RA Government). It needs to be underlined that unlike a number of countries with mandatory military service in place, Armenia has relatively shorter terms (RA: 24 months, Turkmenistan: 30 months, Belarus, Egypt, Vietnam: 36 months, Israel: 48 months). Armenia also has a lower age limit for persons falling under mandatory military registration (RA: up to 27 years old, Norway: up to 35s, Syria: up to 42, Brazil, Greece: up to 45, Austria: up to 50). In other words, men do not undergo mandatory military service if they acquired RA citizenship after turning 27.

As a general requirement, it should be noted that only persons falling under these categories are called for mandatory military registration and conscription:

• male RA citizens who are 16-27-year-old,

• the officers of the reserve army of the first group under the age of 35, who were recognized as fit for military service in peaceful conditions.

Male citizens under the age of 50 are required to register at the military commissariat.

The mentioned rules apply to RA dual citizens in the same manner.

Key takeaways

Those foreigners who acquire Armenian citizenship will be exempted from mandatory military service if they have served at least 12 months in the armed forces of another state or have completed 18 months of alternative military service before acquiring Armenian citizenship.

Registration address

Every Armenian citizen shall have a registration address. If an address in another state is specified in the citizenship application, it will remain as the official registration address. In order to register the residence address in Armenia, it is required to submit a document confirming the fact of residence in the RA: a certificate of ownership, a residential lease agreement or the owner’s consent. If none of these documents are available, it is necessary to apply to the regional police department in order to perform an actual check and confirm the fact of the foreigner’s real residence at the relevant address (the process of checking and confirming the place of residence may take up to two weeks).

Key takeaways

The verification and residency verification process to provide a registration address can take up to two weeks.

Fees and Expenses

Specific mandatory state duty fees for obtaining citizenship of Armenia are envisaged, in addition to the fees required for translations and notarizations.

Key takeaways

3000-25000 AMD may be charged for issuing an RA passport.

Tax issues when acquiring Armenian citizenship, tax registration

In contrast to a number of other developed states, acquiring Armenian citizenship does not entail any tax obligations, as the tax system of Armenia is not based on the principle of citizenship. There are two types of taxes in Armenia: state (VAT, profit tax, income tax, etc.) and local (real estate tax, vehicle property tax, etc.).The fact that Armenia, unlike many other developing and developed states, has many tax benefits and conducts a relatively mild tax policy is noteworthy. For example,

• The principle of double taxation is ruled out in Armenia, implying that the amounts of taxes of Armenia resident organizations and citizens of Armenia are reduced by the amount of corresponding taxes that were collected from these organizations and persons in foreign states under those states’ regulations.

• Compared to many European countries, Armenia has a flexible tax regime.

Key takeaways

Unlike a number of other developed countries, acquiring Armenian citizenship does not entail any tax obligations.

Application rejection and resubmission procedure

There are cases when the applicant submits an incomplete set of documents. In this case, the Passport and Visa Department provides the applicant with five days to supplement the incomplete set of documents. If the missing documents are not submitted within the envisaged days, the application process will be terminated under law and will not result in any legal implications. A person’s application for RA citizenship may be rejected if a person poses a threat or may pose a threat to:

• state and public security,

• public order,

• public health and morals,

• the rights and freedoms of others,

• honor and good reputation.

The rejection of the application for the Armenian citizenship may lack a justification. The person is given the opportunity to file a complaint to the administrative court.

The applicant is notified about the application rejection in writing within five working days.

In the the application is rejected, a person has the right to reapply for Armenian citizenship one year after the rejection date, under the procedure specified above.

Key takeaways

In the event that the application is rejected, a person has the right to reapply for RA citizenship one year after the date of rejection.

Dual citizenship

The legal status of dual citizens creates a number of advantages for them, such as the rights to reside, work, and own property freely in different countries. Currently, only 64 of the 195 states in the world have dual citizenship in place, and Armenia is one them.

A dual citizen of Armenia is considered to be a person who, in addition to the RA citizenship, also has the citizenship of another state (states).

A RA dual citizen is recognized only as a RA citizen for Armenia, in particular, they have the same rights as every RA citizen does, with the exception that for them there is a ban on holding certain positions.

Key takeaways

Armenia accepts dual citizenship.

Grounds for termination of Armenian citizenship

The law provides specific grounds for the termination of Armenian citizenship. Every person has the right to change their citizenship and acquire citizenship of another country. In this case, they renounce the Armenian citizenship.

The person’s citizenship is terminated in case they obtained citizenship based on false or incorrect documents or false data, if such falsification or error is proven under the law, and if 5 years have not passed since this act. Several international treaties ratified by the Armenia may also provide grounds for terminating Armenian citizenship, for example, if a person acquires the citizenship of a country that does not accept dual citizenship. In this case, they have to renounce their Armenian citizenship.

Moreover, changing citizenship is a person’s right, but the RA defines specific grounds for rejecting a person’s application to denounce citizenship based on legitimate interests. Those grounds are the following:

• The person is under criminal prosecution,

• There is a legally binding and enforceable judgment or verdict against the person,

• The renunciation of an RA citizenship contradicts the interests of the RA’s national security,

• The person has unfulfilled obligations to the state (for example, they have yet completed mandatory military service and are in pre-conscription stage, conscription age is set for the age from 16 to 27),

• The person has unfulfilled obligations to the state (for example, they have yet to complete mandatory military service and are in the pre-conscription stage, the conscription age is set for the age from 16 to 27).

Key takeaways

Changing citizenship is a person's right, but based on legitimate interests, the Republic of Armenia defines specific grounds, in the presence of which a person's application to terminate citizenship may be rejected.

Conclusion/Why do you need a lawyer?

Having humanitarian considerations and emphasizing the protection of human rights and freedoms, Armenia has simplified the conditions and procedures for obtaining Armenian citizenship to the greatest extent, and eliminated possible obstacles. However, almost in all cases certain legal disagreements and inaccuracies arise. In this regard, it is important to have people with legal skills who will effectively protect your legal interests and make sure that you avoid possible complications.

Though the RA envisages a fairly simple and flexible procedure for obtaining citizenship, this whole process will be easier and more successful if there is professional legal expertise by your side.

Given the years of experience of Gritarres Professional Law Firm, our team:

1. Identifies the possible modes for obtaining Armenian citizenship and emphasizes the most effective of them,

2. Prepares the set of necessary documents and the application in compliance with the requirements under the Armenian law,

3. Organizes the translation and notarization of documents in a short time,

4. Represents the rights and interests of the person applying for Armenian citizenship in the entire process of obtaining citizenship,

5. Provides legal consultancy on the procedure of getting Armenian citizenship, and so forth.