VIsa to travel to Armenia. Legal grounds for Armenian residency, Entry and Staying, Immigration
The Legal basis for getting Armenian residency status is provided for by the Law of the Republic of Armenia On Foreigners.
The same law establishes the grounds for the entry and staying in the territory of Armenia.
Under the ‘’foreigner’’ shall be understood persons who are not citizens of the Republic of Armenia. So if you do not hold Armenian passport, the law extends to all relations pertaining to your visit and staying in the territory of Armenia. The only exception where the Law is not applicable pertains to the grounds for asylum or when a person is seeking for a status of refugee in the RA.
Entry into the Armenia- Travel, business
Visa requirements
permit or entry visa – an authorisation by the authorised public administration body of the Government of the Republic of Armenia, which entitles a foreigner to enter the Republic of Armenia, transit through the territory of the Republic of Armenia, stay in the Republic of Armenia and exit from the Republic of Armenia, for the purposes, under the conditions, and within the terms indicated therein;
Minor foreigners may enter Armenia accompanied by parents, a parent or any other legal representative or if one arrives to his parents, a parent, other legal representative or an receiving organization.
If a foreigner arrives to Armenia without any valid identity document or visa or if he gets refusal to obtain Armenian visa he cannot enter the territory of the Republic of Armenia and must be returned to his country of origin or to the country he arrived to Armenia from unless the aim of arrival is to apply for asylum or refugee status.
Question. Do you provide an invitation for foreigners
Answer. No. We do not provide invitations
Visa
Who needs a visa to travel to Armenia?
Those States’ citizens for whom a regime for arriving in the Republic of Armenia without an entry visa is established, may stay in the territory of the Republic of Armenia for a maximum term of 180 days in a year, unless another term is prescribed by the international treaties of the Republic of Armenia.
Citizens of foreign countries for whom a visa-free regime is set can stay on the territory of the Republic of Armenia for no more than 180 days during one year if no other term is defined by the international agreements of the Republic of Armenia.
The Government of the Republic of Armenia may, based on reciprocity principle or, where necessary, also unilaterally, establish a regime of visits without an entry visa for citizens of certain States, or may exempt persons of a specific category from the requirement of obtaining an entry visa.
Most common type of Entry Visa
visitor entry visa – for a visit for the purpose of visiting or seeing relatives (friends), family reunification tourism (recreation), treatment, studying at educational institutions of the Republic of Armenia, participating in cultural, sporting, scientific and other events, conferences organised in the Republic of Armenia, implementing technical assistance, humanitarian, charitable, financial support short term projects, taking part in business negotiations, carrying out work activities, launching economic activities (founding a commercial organisation, founding a branch or representative office of a commercial organisation of a foreign State, making investment in the Republic of Armenia, carrying out import and export of goods and services), as well as for the members of personnel of means of transport carrying out international air or land carriage of passengers, for single entry, or multiple entries with a validity period of up to one year
Holders of all types of passports from the following countries are not required to obtain a visa for entry to Armenia for a stay of maximum 180 days per year. countries whose nationals are unilaterally exempted from the requirement of obtaining a visa
List of countries, with which Armenia has a visa-free regime according to bilateral and multilateral agreements. One more country which has been included in this list is Iran. Commencing from June 2016 citizens with ordinary or diplomatic passports of Iran are allowed to stay maximum of 90 days in in the other country without a need to obtain a visa. By this amendment visa was being granted at the border.From July 2016 the same liberalization also concerns to Armenian citizens travelling to Iran.
Visa on arrival
Visitors traveling as tourists (except from these countries) can obtain a visa on arrival at Zvartnots International Airport in Yerevan, Gyumri Airport, Ayrum railway station, Bagratashen, Bavra, Gogavan and Megri land borders for a maximum stay of 120 days at a cost of AMD 15,000. They may also apply for an e-visa in advance
Nationals of Iraq, China and India also cannot obtain a visa on arrival, and can only apply for a visa at Armenian diplomatic or consular posts, but do not require an invitation. Application form for entry visa to Armenia- pdf
List of countries, citizens of which can obtain Armenian visa only upon invitation and only at the diplomatic representations of consular offices of the Republic of Armenia
Invitations can be submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs by. Form- Invitation to Armenia - English . Armenian
a) juridical persons registered in Armenia
b) authorities of Armenia and diplomatic representations or international organizations or their representatives (physical persons submit invitation to the Passport and Visa Department of the Police)
Foreigners who can travel to Armenia only upon invitation cannot obtain Armenian visa upon arrival.
Armenian nationals who are citizens of those countries can obtain Armenian visa without invitation and upon arrival.
The fees for Armenian visa are as follows.
Transit visa – single entry visa or multiple entries visa with validity of 1 year with stay in Armenia for no more than 3 days and with possibility to extend maximum for 4 days
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia issues and extends Official and Diplomatic visas, as well as issues e-visas. Visitor and Transit visas are issued and extended by the Passport and Visa Department of the Police of Armenia.
If a foreigner is transiting through Armenia he must present tickets to a third country or a visa to a third country and can stay on the territory of Armenia for no more than 72 hours except in cases of emergency.
Foreigners transiting Armenia by land can obtain transit visas without tickets or visas of a third country.
A foreigner can stay in the Transit Zone for no more than 48 hours if not going to enter Armenia, except in cases of emergency.
Residency
Special residency status
Special residence status shall be granted to foreigners of Armenian origin. The Law on Legal Status of Foreign Citizens in the Republic of Armenia, enacted in 1994, and then the revised Law on Aliens allow foreign citizens to receive a Special Residency Status in the Republic of Armenia. The Special Residency Status is granted by the President of Armenia to the foreign citizens of Armenian ancestry and also to other distinguished individuals, who have provided significant services to the Armenian state and nation and/or are engaged in economic and cultural activities in Armenia. The Special Residency Status is granted for a ten-year term.
Those granted Special Residency Status will be issued Special Armenian Passports and will no longer be required to obtain entry visas for traveling to Armenia. While in Armenia, they will enjoy the full protection of the Armenian law, as well as the rights and obligations of Armenian citizens, except for the right to vote and to run for office, enroll in political organizations. They will be exempt from military service in the Armenian National Army. Please note, that Special Passport will not waive visa requirements for other CIS countries. For travel to those and other countries the bearer of Special Passport should use his/her national passport.
The survivors of the Armenian Genocide are granted Special Passports through a facilitated procedure, and the application fee is waived.
Application Information- Armenian Residency application form PDF
To apply for the Special Residency Status in the Republic of Armenia, applicants need to submit certain documentation to the Embassy or the Consulate of the Republic of Armenia in the country of residence. In case there is no Armenian diplomatic mission or consular post in your country, please apply through the nearest or most convenient one for you to travel to. For a complete list of Armenian Embassies and Consulates please click here . At the territory of the Republic of Armenia the documents are submitted to the Passport and Visa Department of the Police of the Republic of Armenia.
The following documents need to be submitted in person or by any registered mail:
- A filled out application-questionnaire (download pdf file),
- Letter in the name Ambassador or Consul General of the Republic Armenia, requesting the Special Residency Status. The letter must contain the following:
a) Information regarding present citizenship.
b) Information regarding past citizenship, if any, including country and reason for loss of citizenship.
c) Country of origin and nationality at birth.
d) Reason for applying for Special Residency Status in Armenia, i.e., business, cultural, charity, etc. Please provide details.
e) Your occupation and place of employment. Please be as specific as possible.
f) How many stays have you had in Armenia: when, for how long and under what circumstances. if you were previously granted other type of Residency Status in Armenia (Temporary, Ordinary, Exclusive, Permanent), please indicate.
g) Information on possible conviction or involvement in a criminal investigation. - Clear photocopies of pages of your passport with photograph, validity and personal data.
- Photocopy of birth certificate.
- Six passport size professional colour photographs with light background.
- Special Passport fee (Payment method may vary. Please contact the respective Embassy or Consulate). The fee does not include Embassy/Consulate application surcharge which may vary. Please contact the respective Embassy or Consulate.
If you have lost the Special Passport
To apply for replacement Special Passport the holder of Special Residency Status must submit the following documentation:
- Letter in the name Ambassador or Consul General of the Republic Armenia, requesting the replacement Special Passport.
- Clear photocopies of pages of your passport with photograph, validity and personal data.
- Two passport size professional colour photographs with light background.
- Photocopy of lost Special Passport (if available),
- Replacement passport fee (Payment method may vary. Please contact the respective Embassy or Consulate). The fee does not include Embassy/Consulate application surcharge which may vary. Please contact the respective Embassy or Consulate.
- Usually the application is processed within 3-4 months. In some cases, requiring additional consideration, the processing time can be longer.
- The application may be denied by the Armenian authorities in some cases. The rejected applicants may reapply for the Special Residency Status one year after their initial application was rejected.
- Special Passport fee is a state duty and it is 150000 Armenian Drams. Replacement passport fee is 75000 Armenian Drams.
- Residents of Australia must submit the applications to the Embassy of the Republic of Armenia in Washington, DC or Consulate General in Los Angeles, CA.
- For residents of Australia, Canada, Europe, and the US. If applying by mail, applicants are responsible for the cost of the return shipment. It can be either a prepaid return envelope of any registered mail with a tracking number or a separate money order in the corresponding amount to cover the cost of FedEx, DHL or other postal services. The Embassy or the Consulate of the Republic of Armenia is not responsible for documents lost in the mail.
Return certificate to RA
Certificate of Return to the Republic of Armenia - is a temporary one-way travel document issued to return to Armenia from foreign countries. The Certificate of Return issued to citizens of Armenia who lost passports, traveling to Armenia in a matter of urgency and who do not have time to exchange unusable passport (including the former Soviet Union and the Child Insert to the passport of the Republic of Armenia).
Certificate of return to the RA is issued for:
- The citizens of the RA
- Persons recognized as refugees in RA
- Stateless persons who have residence permit for RA
In order to receive a Return Certificate, the following documents must be submitted to the diplomatic missions and consular offices of RA;
- Application form for receiving Return Certificate
- the invalid passport of the citizen of RA or identification card (in case of lost passport- only the copy, if available)
- In case of a former USSR passport- non-citizen certificate issued by the authorities of the host state
- If the passport has been stolen – police report and explanation for loss of the passport (if available)
- Two photos (35x45mm)
- Fee for issuing the Return certificate
For children-citizens of RA who have never been granted passport before, the following documents must be submitted:
- Application form for receiving Return Certificate
- Birth certificate issued by the Armenian authorities or by the authorities of the host state, certified according to the norms of international treaties RA is a member of
- Two photos (35x45mm)
- Copies of parents' passports
If an application is submitted by the certificate seeker’s parent, brother, sister, spouse, child or an authorized representative will have to submit the following documents:
- a. in case of a parent - the applicant 's passport (identity card) and a copy of the original certificate seeker’s passport (identity card) and a copy of birth certificate;
- b. in case of the applicant's brother and sister - the original and the photocopy of the applicant’s passport (ID card), the photocopies of the certificate seeker's birth certificate and passport (ID card);
- c. in case of the spouse, the original and the photocopy of the applicant's passport (identity card), the photocopy of the certificate seeker's marriage certificate and passport (ID card);
- d. in case of a child - the original and the photocopy of the applicant's passport (identity card) and the photocopy of the certificate seeker's birth certificate and passport (ID card);
- e. in case of an authorized representative - the authorized person's passport (identity card), the original of power of attorney and copy of the passport (identity card) of the certificate seeker. In this case the power of attorney is to have been approved according to the international treaties or legislation of the Republic of Armenia.
- Certificate of Return to the Republic of Armenia is issued during a maximum of 15 working days.
- Certificate of Return to the Republic of Armenia is issued also in accordance with Readmission agreements.
- The Certificate of Return to the Republic of Armenia has one month validity period.
- If the certificate is issued in the framework of Readmission the validity period of the certificate might be changed, based on the provisions of a certain agreement.
Cases where Certificate of return to the Republic of Armenia is issued free of charge
Free Certificate of return to the Republic of Armenia is issued to:
- Those citizens of the Republic of Armenia who has not been granted RA national passport before,
- Children -citizens of RA under 16 year old and adults after 63,
- Persons recognized as refugees in RA
- Any RA citizen applied for the national passport of the Republic of Armenia (exchange) and failed to receive the passport within due period,
- Any RA citizen leaving for the Republic of Armenia for being called for military service, participation in training sessions or mobilization,
- Any RA citizen, member of large family (four and more minors)
- Any first or second class disabled person, citizen of RA
- Any citizen of the Republic of Armenia leaving for the Republic of Armenia on the basis of decision of court or any other authority
- Citizens of the Republic of Armenia released from detention centers of the foreign countries,
- Any citizen of the Republic of Armenia lost his RA national passport as a result of theft or criminal actions, as well as force majeure circumstances (natural or technical disaster, political actions, war, etc.), provided that appropriate evidence of such circumstances are presented,
- Those citizens of the Republic of Armenia with permanent residence in foreign countries for whom such circumstances, treating their lives and health have occurred.