إنهاء خدمة موظف في أرمينيا: الأسباب القانونية، والإشعار، والتعويضات، وقائمة الأوراق المطلوبة

Dismissals in Armenia must fit a legal ground listed in Article 113 of the Labour Code and follow strict notice, severance, and paperwork rules — otherwise they are unlawful and can result in reinstatement with back pay.

Procedural mistakes in dismissals are costly. To dismiss an employee lawfully, employers must select the correct legal ground, apply the right notice and severance, and complete mandatory paperwork on time. This guide covers the full process under Armenian labour law — termination grounds, notice periods, severance entitlements, protected categories, and the paperwork checklist — so you can handle الامتثال لقوانين العمل في أرمينيا بكل ثقة.

في لمحة

الأسس القانونية لإنهاء الخدمة بموجب قانون العمل الأرميني

Armenia is an exhaustive-list jurisdiction: an employer may dismiss only on the statutory grounds set out in Article 113 of the Labour Code. Dismissing outside these grounds is unlawful and can lead to reinstatement with back pay.

The recognised grounds include company liquidation or cessation of activity, workforce reduction or reorganisation, permanent change of employment conditions (refused by the employee), loss or change of required qualification, unsuitability for the position, health-based inability to perform duties (requires a medical-social expertise conclusion), material damage combined with loss of trust in financial or custodial roles, systematic failure to perform duties (requires two prior unexpired disciplinary penalties), serious misconduct or gross violation, unjustified absence, mutual agreement at the employer’s initiative, loss of a required license or work authorisation, force majeure, and other cases specifically provided by law.

Reaching retirement age is no longer a standalone termination ground — age-based termination is now treated as discriminatory under Armenian law.

Who is protected: prohibited reasons and safeguarded categories

Dismissals for prohibited reasons are void. Under Armenian labour law, the following categories have special protection against termination:

• الموظفات الحوامل — protected from the date of the medical certificate until one month after the end of maternity leave. Exceptions: liquidation, gross misconduct, loss of trust
• الموظفات في إجازة الأمومة — same protection window and exceptions as pregnancy
• Employees caring for a child under 1 year — applies to any employee (not just mothers). Exceptions: liquidation, bankruptcy or death of the employer, and probation failure
• Employees on sick leave or temporary disability — except in cases of liquidation and gross misconduct
• Employees on any type of leave — general prohibition during the leave period, including childcare leave up to age 3
• ممثلي النقابات العمالية — require prior consent of the state labour inspectorate before dismissal. Exception: liquidation

Courts typically reinstate unlawfully dismissed employees with back pay. Where reinstatement is not feasible, compensation of roughly 1 to 12 months’ average salary can be awarded.

فترات الإشعار، ومتطلبات الشكل الكتابي، والفصل الفوري

The required notice period depends on the termination ground and the employee’s length of service:

Liquidation or redundancy: at least two months’ written notice, regardless of tenure.

No-fault, non-redundancy grounds (unsuitability, long-term incapacity, change of conditions, loss of qualification): graduated notice by tenure:

القضايا القانونية العاجلة (revocation of work authorisation or residence permit, failure to submit required documents): three business days’ notice.

سوء سلوك خطير (gross breach, intoxication, unjustified absence, loss of trust): termination may be immediate — no notice is required.

فترة التجربة: three days’ notice by either party.

استقالة الموظف: 30 days’ written notice (5 days if illness or employer breach). The employee has a 3-day withdrawal right.

Notices must be in writing and state the legal ground and supporting facts. Employers who shorten notice must pay compensation for each day of the shortfall — this pay in lieu of notice is in addition to (not a substitute for) severance. During the notice period, the employee is entitled to at least 10% of daily working hours (paid at average salary) to seek new employment.

Best practice is to deliver the notice personally against signature or by registered mail with delivery confirmation, and to maintain service logs. Immediate dismissal is lawful for specified serious grounds, but the employer should document the violation, any prior disciplinary measures, and the investigation record.

How to lawfully dismiss an employee: step by step

1. Confirm a statutory ground under Article 113 and collect objective evidence — an organisational decision, performance records, a medical opinion, or other supporting documentation.
2. Check for prohibitions. Verify whether the employee falls into a protected category (pregnancy, maternity or parental leave, child under 1 year, sick leave, trade union activity) and review any internal policies or collective agreements that add safeguards.
3. Calculate the correct notice period and decide whether to serve it in full or pay in lieu. Document the calculation by tenure and ground.
4. Prepare and serve written notice stating the legal clause and the facts supporting it. Log service and start the notice clock.
5. Draft the termination order (decree) citing the specific Article 113 clause, the effective date, and the amounts due — final wages, unused annual leave payout, severance, and any pay in lieu of notice.
6. Settle all payments on the last working day. This includes salary, overtime, bonuses, unused annual leave compensation (standard entitlement is 20 working days per year, or 24 days for certain categories), severance, and any pay in lieu of notice. Late payment triggers a penalty of 0.15% per day, capped at the total amount owed.
7. If part of a mass layoff, notify the State Employment Service and employee representatives at least two months before dismissals take effect.
8. Collect company property, revoke access, execute handover acts, update and deliver the employee’s labour record, and archive the file (notice, order, delivery proofs, calculations) for potential inspection or litigation.

Severance pay: entitlements, calculation and exceptions

Severance is owed when termination is not the employee’s fault. Armenian law provides two severance regimes:

Regime 1 — flat amount: One month’s average salary. Applies to dismissals due to liquidation, redundancy, and reinstatement of a previously dismissed employee.

Regime 2 — graduated by tenure: Applies to dismissals for unsuitability, long-term incapacity, change of material conditions, and military service. Minimum amounts are tied to continuous service:

No severance is payable for voluntary resignation or for dismissals based on serious misconduct where the employee is at fault. Collective agreements may provide higher amounts than the statutory minimums.

مصفوفة سريعة: الإشعار والفصل حسب الأساس النموذجي

إجراءات التسريح الجماعي والتسريح الجماعي

Armenian law treats as a mass layoff the dismissal of at least 10 employees, or more than 10% of the workforce, over a two-month period. This triggers additional procedural duties beyond the standard termination process.

The employer must notify the State Employment Service and employee representatives at least two months before the dismissals take effect. The notification must include the reasons for the layoff, the number and categories of employees affected (broken down by profession, gender, and age), and the planned timeline. This enables the state to organise mitigation and redeployment efforts.

During redundancy, certain categories have preferential rights to remain — including employees with military or disability-related status and families of fallen or missing servicemembers. Collective agreements may add further categories entitled to priority retention.

Wrongful termination: remedies and penalties

An employee who believes their dismissal was unlawful has two months from the date they received the dismissal order to file a claim with the Court of First Instance of General Jurisdiction. The employer effectively bears the burden of proving that the grounds were lawful and the procedure was followed correctly.

Available remedies include:

• Reinstatement with back pay for the entire forced-idleness period
• Non-reinstatement compensation of 1 to 12 months’ average salary if reinstatement is impossible
• If the employee worked elsewhere during forced idleness, compensation is capped at nine months’ previous salary plus any positive salary difference

Courts must account for the employee’s alternative employment when calculating forced-idleness compensation. Wage claims have no statute of limitations. For employers hiring foreign staff, proper تصريح العمل and termination procedures are especially critical to avoid compounding compliance risks.

Paperwork checklist

Before you deliver a termination notice, confirm that the following documents and calculations are prepared:

• Termination order (decree) — citing the exact Article 113 ground, supporting facts, and the effective date
• إشعار مكتوب — stating the ground, facts, and effective date, with a service plan (hand delivery against signature or registered mail)
• ملف الأدلة — organisational charts or reduction plan, performance records, medical conclusions, prior disciplinary acts (if applicable)
• الحسابات المالية — notice entitlement or pay in lieu, severance (one month or 10–44 days by tenure), unused annual leave (20 or 24 working days), and final wages including overtime and bonuses
• وثائق التسليم — asset return list, access removal plan, labour record update and delivery on the last day
• إشعارات التسريح الجماعي (if applicable) — draft notices to the State Employment Service and employee representatives, to be delivered two months ahead

For companies considering an employer of record (EOR) arrangement, the EOR handles termination compliance on your behalf — but you should still understand the legal framework to make informed decisions.

إذا كنت تقوم بـ تسجيل شركة في أرمينيا, building compliant termination procedures into your employee handbook from the start will prevent issues down the line.

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