Special residency status
General Information
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 Prime Minister 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
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 Migration and Citizenship Service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Armenia.
Address: 17/10 Building, 4th District, Davtashen, Yerevan 0054, Armenia,
Tel. +374 10-370264
Required documents
1. A filled out application-questionnaire (download pdf file),
2. Letter in the name of the Ambassador or Consul General of the Republic of 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.
3. Passport or travel document and its notary-certified Armenian translation;
4. 6 color photos, 35x45 mm in size;
5. Any of the below-listed documents confirming the Armenian descent of the person:
a) a document of baptism issued by religious institutions and validated by the embassy or consular service, with an indication of Armenian descent of the baptized person or of a parent;
b) a document on having Armenian descent issued by an authorized body of a foreign state, with apostille and consular validation;
c) other document confirming the Armenian descent validated by the embassy or consular service;
d) birth certificate or identification document of a parent (grandfather, grandmother, full sister or full brother /full siblings/), with an indication of Armenian descent.
The birth certificate of a half-brother or half-sister (half-siblings) or any other document confirming Armenian descent may serve as a document confirming Armenian descent in the case the Armenian descent of the sibling is conditioned by having the same parent;
Besides the documents mentioned in paragraph "d" of this point, the applicant is required to submit a document confirming the family connection of the person, issued by an authorized state body (documents confirming Armenian descent also include passports and birth certificates with an indication of Armenian ethnicity);
6. In the case of an underaged person, the parents’ passport, or the passport of the legal representative, as well as a document proving family ties;
7. In the case of an authorized person, the latter’s passport;
8. The receipt confirming the payment of state duty (no state duty applies for persons under the age of 18);
If you have lost the Special Passport
To apply for a replacement Special Passport, the holder of Special Residency Status must submit the following documentation:
- Letter in the name of the Ambassador or Consul General of the Republic of Armenia, requesting the replacement Special Passport.
- Clear photocopies of pages of your passport with photographs, validity, and personal data.
- Two passport-size professional color photographs with a 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 the Embassy/Consulate application surcharge which may vary. Please contact the respective Embassy or Consulate.
Please note that the replacement passport validity can not exceed the validity of lost passport.
Important Notes
- 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.
For more information please contact us by e-mail or call us at (060) 620516.