Procedure for Acquiring Citizenship

Since June 25, 2022, the amendments and additions to the law "On Citizenship of the Republic of Armenia" have come into force, which have improved the quality of services provided for acquiring RA citizenship, the administration and solution of the problems arising in the legal practice have been simplified. The new changes are aimed at resolving the following issues:

- The deadline for consideration of applications of persons applying for RA citizenship has been set to 90 working days instead of 6 months.

- Persons who have received RA citizenship have the right to acquire a passport of a citizen of the Republic of Armenia for the first time both in the Republic of Armenia and in the embassies and consular offices of the Republic of Armenia operating in foreign countries.

- A person who has a child who is a citizen of the Republic of Armenia has the right, without the requirement of permanent residence in the Republic of Armenia for the last three years, to acquire RA citizenship in accordance with the procedure established by law (according to the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia and the current procedure for verifying knowledge of the Armenian language).

The official trilingual website of the Passport and Visa Department of the RA Police has been launched since June 2022. See https://avv.police.am/.

General requirements

According to Article 13 of the Law “On the citizenship of the Republic of Armenia”, any legally competent person, who is 18 years of age, is not an RA citizen, resides in a foreign country or lawfully resides in the Republic of Armenia, may apply for acquiring RA citizenship, if he/she

1. has been lawfully residing on the territory of the Republic of Armenia for the preceding 3 years,
2. is able to explain himself/herself in the Armenian language,
3. is familiar with the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia.

A person who is not a citizen of the Republic of Armenia can be granted a citizenship of the Republic of Armenia without the above-mentioned 1st and 2nd conditions if he/she:

1. is married to a citizen of the Republic of Armenia and the marriage has been officially registered for past two years preceding the date of submission of the application, and he/she has resided in the Republic of Armenia for at least 365 days during this two-year period  or has a child who holds a citizenship of the Republic of Armenia or
2. has parents, or at least one parent that has held citizenship of the Republic of Armenia in the past or was born on the territory of the Republic of Armenia and had applied for citizenship of the Republic of Armenia within 3 years of attaining the age of 18 or
3. has renounced citizenship of the Republic of Armenia of his/her own accord after 1 January 1995
4. ethnic Armenians

See: Decisions of the Government of the Republic of Armenia and the RA Law on Citizenship
 

 THE LAW OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA ON CITIZENSHIP

On amendments to decision N 1390 as of June 23, 2022

Decision N 411 as of March 25, 2010

Decision N 1390 as of November 23, 2007

Decision N 1154 as of October 4, 2007

Decision N 1110 as of September 20, 2007

Passports, ID Documents

After the President of the Republic signs your citizenship decree you can apply for an Armenian passport in OVIR or at the territorial departments of the RA Police. Currently, you have the option of applying for a regular passport or a biometric passport.

If you were issued a regular passport you can later apply for and get a biometric passport and thus have two valid passports.

You may also get an identification document (ID card), which is issued in the form of a plastic card. This document also shows your social security number (public services number). 

Recognition of Armenian Citizenship

The following persons are recognized as the citizens of the Republic of Armenia:

• Citizens of the former Arm. SSR permanently residing on the territory of the Republic of Armenia, who until the 13 July 1995 has not acquired the citizenship of the another state or has rejected that citizenship;
• Stateless persons or former citizens of other USSR republics who are not foreign citizens permanently residing in the RA;
• The former citizens of the Armenian SSR, who live outside the Republic of Armenia and have not acquire the citizenship of another country.

Temporary or Permanent Residency

Eligibility Requirements for Temporary Residence Card

Temporary residence cards are issued for a period of up to one year with a possibility of extension every year. 

Temporary residency cards are granted to people who: 

• study in Armenia
• have a work permit in Armenia
• is a wife/husband, parent or child of a foreign citizen who is a holds a Temporary Resident Card 
• is a wife/husband, parent, child or relative (brother, sister, grandparent, grandchildren) of an Armenian citizen or of a foreign citizen holding a Special Passport of Armenia
• conducts business activities in Armenia
• is an Armenian national
• in other cases prescribed by law

The applicant must apply for the extension at least 30 days before the expiration of the Temporary Resident Card.

Eligibility Requirements for Permanent Residence Card

Permanent residence cards are issued for a period of 5 years with a possibility of extension every 5 years.

Permanent Resident Cards are issued to a foreign citizen who:

• is wife/husband or relative (brother, sister, grandparent, grandchildren) of an Armenian citizen or of a foreign citizen holding a Special Passport of Armenia, has adequate means of accommodation or property in Armenia and also has legally lived in Armenia for 3 years before applying for a Permanent Resident Card
• conducts business activities in Armenia
• is an Armenian national

To extend the Permanent Resident Card, the applicant must apply at least 30 days before the expiration of the card.

 Required Documents  

1. application
2. 3 color photos - 35 x 45 mm
3. passport, copy of the passport, the notarized Armenian translation of the passport
4. documents supporting the conditions of applying for the residence permit in Armenia – baptism certificate OR immediate family member’s (parent, spouse, children) Armenian passport copy
5. medical certificate
6. receipt of payment of the fee

OVIR coordinates the issue of granting a temporary or permanent residence permit with the National Security Service by sending in written or electronic forms of copies of your passport and application form.

Where to apply?

The Passport and Visa Department of the RA Police

Address: 17/10 Building, 4th District, Davtashen, Yerevan 0054

Working hours: Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu 09։00-17։00, break 14։00-15։00

Fri 10։00-17։00, break 14։00-15։00

The decision on granting temporary or permanent residence status and extending a residence permit is made by the Passport and Visa Department of the RA Police (OVIR) within 30 days after receiving the required documents.

Special Residency (Special Passport)

Before Armenia legalized dual citizenship by Constitution in 2005 and by amendments in the Citizenship Law in 2007 special passports were very common among ethnic Armenians who did not want to renounce their current citizenship. But even now many foreign nationals prefer to apply for special residency instead of becoming full-fledged citizens.

The special residence permit (passport) has a validity of ten years and can be extended indefinitely for 10-year increments. It looks different from temporary/permanent residence permits as it is issued in the form a passport, not a card. It allows its holder to travel freely to and from Armenia without a visa, to live, work, study, do business and engage in any other lawful activity in Armenia without work permits or other papers. One notable advantage of the special passport is that its holder can own agricultural and other land directly in his/her own name, without the need to establish a legal entity.

​In practice special passports are issued to foreign nationals of Armenian origin, i.e. ethnic Armenians. In exceptional cases special passports can be issued to non-Armenians who are engaged in economic or cultural activities in Armenia. Children under 16 can also get special passports.

The time required to obtain a special passport is around 60 days. In order to receive a special residence status, you can submit the application and required documents to the Passport and Visa Department of RA Police (OVIR), and to the Embassy or Consular office in foreign countries.

The list of documents submitted with the application for obtaining a special residence permit in the Republic of Armenia is established by the Government of the Republic of Armenia (in Armenian, see Annex 1)

Fees & Expenses

In addition to the official government fees detailed below you are likely to incur legal fees, translation and notarization fees, and other expenses that may be specific to your case.

CONTACT INFORMATION

For more information please feel free to contact our Repatriation Department.

Division Head: Hovhannes Aleksanyan

Phone: (+37410) 51-55-32

Email: diaspora@gov.am

Contacts

For more information please contact the Repatriation division of our Office. 

Head of division  Mr. Hovhannes Aleksanyan

Tel.՝ (+37410) 51-55-32

E mail՝ repatriation@gov.am, diaspora@gov.am