Armenia (AM)

Valid passport required for all immigration, banking, notarial, school, rental, and utility applications in Armenia. The Migration and Citizenship Service (migration.e-gov.am) and most banks require at least 6 months validity beyond your intended stay or residence card expiry. Bring the original plus 3–4 certified copies — residence applications, banks (Ameriabank, Inecobank), and landlords each retain a copy. A notarised Armenian translation of the passport data page is required for some residence applications and notarial deeds; cost AMD 5,000–15,000 at a licensed notary (notarial chamber — notariat.am). Store a scanned PDF in encrypted cloud storage (Bitwarden, Google Drive, Proton Drive) — if your passport is lost or stolen in Armenia, your home-country embassy will require a scanned copy, a police report (file at the nearest police station or 102), and a signed statutory declaration. If your passport expires within 18 months, renew before departure — home-country renewal from Armenia: UK FCDO 10–15 weeks from abroad, £88.50; US 12–18 weeks standard, USD 165, or 6–8 weeks expedited; EU: varies by country's consular representation in Yerevan.

Required for: residence applications at the Migration and Citizenship Service (migration.e-gov.am); citizenship applications (especially by Armenian ethnic origin — Article 13 citizenship route); school enrolment (international and state schools); notarial deeds (inheritance, property transactions); marriage registration in Armenia; banking for minors. Must be apostilled by the issuing country and officially translated into Armenian by a licensed translator registered with the Ministry of Justice of Armenia (moj.am) or courts.am translator registry. Translation cost: AMD 3,000–8,000/page for simple Armenian translation; AMD 5,000–15,000/page for notarised Armenian translation. Apostille costs: UK FCDO online £15 (3–5 business days), premium £75 same-day; US Secretary of State per state USD 20–50 (2–8 weeks); Germany Landesverwaltungsamt €15–30 (2–4 weeks); France Cour d'appel €10–25 (2–6 weeks); Australia state government AUD 15–60 (1–4 weeks). Obtain at least 3 apostilled copies — each residence application, citizenship step, and notarial matter consumes one copy. Migration may query birth certificates older than 5 years — request a fresh certified copy from the issuing civil registry before travelling.

Required for: permanent and some temporary residence applications at the Migration and Citizenship Service (migration.e-gov.am); Armenian citizenship applications; regulated profession licensing; and many employer background checks. Certificate must be from your home country and any country where you have resided for 12 or more months in the previous 5 years. Critical timing: Migration requires certificates issued within 3 months of application submission. Home-country processing times: UK ACRO Police Certificate (acro.police.uk): 2–3 weeks, £65; US FBI Identity History Summary (identityhistory.fbi.gov): 8–14 weeks standard USD 18, or 3–5 days via approved FBI channeler USD 75–150; Australia AFP National Police Check (afp.gov.au): 1–2 weeks, AUD 42; Germany Bundeszentralregister (bfj.bund.de): 3–6 weeks, €13; France Bulletin No. 3 (justice.fr): 1–3 weeks, free online. Apostille required and adds processing time: UK FCDO apostille adds 3–5 business days (£15 online / £75 same-day). Armenian translation required: AMD 3,000–8,000/page (moj.am translator registry). For applicants who have been in Armenia for 6 months or more: an Armenian criminal certificate is also required — apply at the Police Information Centre (102 for directions) with your passport and residence document; fee AMD 1,000–3,000; processing 1–5 business days. Plan 12–16 weeks total if using standard US FBI processing.

Required for: spouse-based residence permits at the Migration and Citizenship Service; joint property transactions (notarial deeds); banking (joint accounts); estate and inheritance planning; school enrolment for dependent children; citizenship by marriage applications. Must be apostilled in the issuing country and translated into Armenian by a licensed translator. Apostille costs same as birth certificate (UK FCDO £15 online 3–5 days; US per state USD 20–50; EU €10–30; Australia AUD 15–60). Armenian translation: AMD 3,000–8,000/page standard; AMD 5,000–15,000/page notarised. For marriages registered abroad that you wish to register in the Armenian Civil Registry (ARAR — e-registry.am or in-person): the full apostilled certificate plus Armenian translation must be submitted to the Civil Registry Agency offices in Yerevan (Movses Khorenatsi 4; Tel: +374 10 529 444). Same-sex marriages: Armenia does not recognise same-sex marriage domestically; a foreign same-sex marriage certificate will not be registered or accepted for dependent residence purposes. Divorced applicants must also provide the divorce decree (apostilled and translated) separately. Obtain 2–3 apostilled copies.

Required for: dependent children's residence applications at Migration and Citizenship Service; school enrolment (all Armenian public and international schools); Armenian civil registration of the child's birth if born in Armenia; health insurance declarations; custody documents; and international travel permissions for children leaving Armenia without both parents (requires notarised parental consent letter, apostilled if the other parent is abroad — Armenian notary AMD 5,000–15,000 per letter). Apostille required from issuing country; Armenian translation required. Same apostille costs as adult birth certificates. Armenian translation AMD 3,000–8,000/page. Obtain at least 3 apostilled copies per child — residence, school, and health insurance applications each consume a copy. For children born in Armenia to foreign parents: the Armenian birth certificate is issued by the Civil Registry Agency (ARAR — e-registry.am) and does not automatically confer Armenian citizenship. Foreign parents must separately register the child with their home-country embassy/consulate immediately after birth for passport and citizenship purposes — embassy waiting times for child passport: UK 4–8 weeks, US 4–8 weeks, EU varies.

Entry stamp, e-visa, visa sticker, or electronic border record confirming your legal entry and current status. The Migration and Citizenship Service (migration.e-gov.am) uses entry/exit records from the border system — if your entry stamp is faint or missing (land border crossings can be stamped lightly), request a migratory movement certificate (passport movement history printout) from Migration. Required for: all residence permit applications; employment-based authorisation; banking KYC for new accounts; employer onboarding; and any legal or notarial matter confirming your status. Keep boarding passes and border-crossing receipts until your residence card is issued. For e-Visa holders: download and print the e-Visa approval and carry it with your passport — border officers may not always have electronic access to e-Visa records, especially at small land crossings.

Residence status applications at the Migration and Citizenship Service typically require 2–6 colour passport-format photos: standard size 35×45 mm; white or light background; face clearly visible; no glasses; recent (within 3 months). Armenian photo studios (ֆotostudio) are located throughout Yerevan (near migration offices, in malls, near post offices); cost AMD 1,000–3,000 for a set of 6 photos. Bring extra photos — different applications (residence, bank, driving licence, school) each require photos, and Armenia's requirements can be strict about format. Digital copies are increasingly accepted for some online applications (e-gov.am portal) but physical photos remain required for physical card applications. Check the current Migration and Citizenship Service requirements at migration.e-gov.am before your appointment.

Required for permanent residence applications at the Migration and Citizenship Service (migration.e-gov.am) — the applicant must provide a medical reference confirming the absence of certain communicable diseases (tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, and other listed conditions per the Law on Foreigners). The reference must be issued by an accredited Armenian medical institution, not a home-country hospital. Accepted facilities in Yerevan: Nairi Medical Center (+374 10 589 999; Paronyan 22), Erebouni Medical Center (+374 10 459 191; Titogradyan 14), or a state polyclinic. Cost: AMD 10,000–30,000 for the medical examination and reference letter; results typically within 1–3 business days. The reference is valid for 3 months from issue date — time your application carefully so it does not expire before submission. Bring your passport and residence document to the medical appointment. Ask the Migration and Citizenship Service in advance for the current accepted list of issuing facilities and the exact form required.

Required for: employment-based residence permits at the Migration and Citizenship Service; employer notification/registration with migration authorities; payroll and social insurance setup; bank account opening (proof of income/source of funds); and tenancy applications. The contract must: be in Armenian or accompanied by a certified Armenian translation; state the gross salary in AMD (or with a clear AMD conversion methodology if USD/EUR is specified); specify the employment start date, position, and workplace address; be signed by both parties. The employer must notify the Migration and Citizenship Service of the foreign employee's employment within the statutory timeframe. Armenian translation of a foreign-language employment offer: AMD 5,000–15,000/page notarised. Banks (Ameriabank, Inecobank) require the employment contract for KYC when opening an account for a new resident. A foreign employer contract for a remote worker: accepted by banks with source-of-funds documentation but does not provide an employment-basis for Armenia residence permits (remote workers need a different residence basis).

Required for business owners, individual entrepreneurs (IE — Անհատ Ձեռնարկատեր), and LLC founders operating in Armenia. Key documents: State Registry of Legal Entities extract (e-register.am — downloadable within minutes, free; physical certificate AMD 1,000–5,000); Taxpayer Identification Number (SNCO / ՀՀ ՀՎՀՀ) confirmation from the State Revenue Committee (src.am); company charter/articles of association for LLCs (drafted by a lawyer, authenticated by notary AMD 15,000–40,000); current accounting records and tax filings (required by banks for KYC, by clients for due diligence, and by the Migration and Citizenship Service for business-based residence). IE registration: can be completed at the One Stop Shop (e-register.am or in-person at the Notarial Chamber offices) within 1–3 days; state fee AMD 10,000–20,000 (or free online in some cases). LLC registration: 3–7 days with a lawyer; state registration fee AMD 25,000–50,000; ongoing accounting AMD 20,000–80,000/month depending on activity volume. All business documentation in foreign languages must be translated into Armenian by a licensed translator (moj.am registry) — AMD 3,000–8,000/page.

Required for: regulated professions in Armenia (medical practitioners — licensed by Ministry of Health (moh.am; Tel: +374 10 521 261); lawyers — Bar Association (chamberofadvocates.am); engineers — relevant chambers; teachers — Ministry of Education (edu.am; Tel: +374 10 599 608)); some skilled employment roles where the employer requires verified credentials; university master's and PhD programme applications; and Armenian citizenship applications in some cases. Apostille from the issuing country is required for regulated profession licensing in Armenia. Armenian translation required: AMD 3,000–8,000/page standard; AMD 5,000–15,000/page notarised. Degree recognition (equivalence) for regulated professions is handled by the relevant professional licensing body — processing times vary from 2 weeks (engineering) to 3–6 months (medical). Medical degrees: the National Centre of Educational Technologies (armedu.am) handles academic equivalence assessments before professional registration — AMD 10,000–30,000 application fee; processing 1–3 months. Submit certified copies, never originals, to any licensing body or employer. Transcripts from UK, US, French, German, Russian, and most EU universities are generally recognised but local registration fees and equivalence steps still apply.

Foreign driving licences are valid in Armenia for short-term visits. Long-term residents (after obtaining a residence permit) should plan to exchange or obtain an Armenian driving licence. Exchange process: the Road Police Division of the Armenia Police (police.am; Tel: +374 10 539 000) handles licence exchange and issuance. Requirements for exchange: original foreign licence; certified Armenian translation if the licence is not in Russian or English (AMD 3,000–5,000); passport and residence card; medical/psychophysical examination (vision, reaction — AMD 5,000–15,000 at an approved Yerevan centre); state fee AMD 3,000–5,000; processing 5–15 business days. An International Driving Permit (IDP) is strongly recommended for the initial arrival period if your licence is in a non-Cyrillic/non-Latin script (Japanese, Arabic, Korean, Chinese) — prevents complications during police stops. IDP is issued in your home country by the national motoring association (AA UK, AAA US, NRMA Australia — typically USD 15–25, valid 1 year). If renting a car in Armenia: most rental agencies accept foreign licences with IDP; confirm the rental agency's requirements when booking. Driving without a valid licence in Armenia: fine AMD 10,000–50,000+ and potential vehicle impoundment.

Pet imports to Armenia are regulated by the Food Safety Inspection Body (FSIB — fsib.am; Tel: +374 10 274 845). Armenia is not rabies-free, so requirements are less restrictive than for island nations, but documentation must be complete before travel. Mandatory documents for dogs and cats: (1) ISO 11784/11785 microchip certificate (15-digit); (2) Current rabies vaccination certificate (vaccination must have been given at least 30 days before travel and not more than 12 months before arrival — verify current rule with FSIB); (3) Official government veterinary health certificate (Certificat Sanitaire) issued by the home-country government veterinary authority within 10 days of travel; (4) Treatment records for internal and external parasites within 1–5 days of travel (FSIB may require ticks, fleas, and worms treatment documentation). Import permit: contact FSIB (fsib.am; Tel: +374 10 274 845) at least 30 days before travel to confirm requirements for your country of origin and pet species — requirements are updated periodically. Airlines and transit countries may have additional rules (EU pet passport, specific crate dimensions, breed restrictions for brachycephalic dogs) — confirm with the airline separately. Documents in foreign languages must be accompanied by a certified Armenian translation (AMD 3,000–8,000/page). If documentation is incomplete on arrival: the pet may be held at the border inspection point at the owner's cost until corrected.