The special residency passport of Armenia is a document granted by the Prime Minister of the Republic. It has a validity of 10 years and can be extended continuously, by 10-year increments.  

The special passport is not a regular passport and its holders are not granted citizenship of Armenia. Instead, they are considered special residents. In other words, the special passport serves as a residence permit. It allows its holders to travel freely to and from Armenia without a visa, to live, work, study, engage in business or any other lawful activities in Armenia. Special residents can be employed without a work permit. They are allowed to own agricultural land on equal footing with citizens. 

There are no minimum stay requirements for special residents: it is not necessary to spend a certain number of days in Armenia to maintain the special residency status. Unlike Armenian citizens, holders of special passports are exempt from military service. Acquiring a special residency status should not affect your taxes. Normally, you will have to spend at least 183 in Armenia to become a tax resident. 

​A special resident is eligible to apply for Armenian citizenship if he has been permanently residing in the country for the last three years. Because the Citizenship Law does not define the term "permanent resident" and does not provide for minimum stay requirements, in practice the three-year period applies to maintaining the residency status (temporary, permanent or special). 

In addition to the three-year residency requirement the resident will have to pass the test on the knowledge of Armenian Constitution. It is an easy multiple-choice test with 33 questions, and the applicant needs to answer correctly to only 17 of them to pass the test. However, the test is in Armenian language and the applicant will probably need to spend some time to gain basic knowledge of Armenian language before he attempts to pass it.

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As of 2019 Armenian passport ranked 65th in the world, according to Arton Capital Passport Index, and 79th, according to Henley & Partners Passport Index, and allowed visa-free travel to 61 countries, including Russia, most of CIS countries, and Iran.

Armenia specifically allows dual citizenship, and you will not be required to renounce any other citizenship.

Upon request, special residency passports may be issued to the children of the special resident, provided they are aged 15 and below. Children aged 16 and above as well as adult family members must apply separately. 

Special residents may also sponsor their family members for temporary or permanent residence permits, to the same extent as Armenian citizens. Family members may be required to provide documents showing kinship (e.g. marriage certificate, birth certificate).

Special residency is available to ethnic Armenians and to foreigners who conduct economic activity in the country (investors). The immigration authorities (Police and National Security Service) will consider the amount and nature of the investment, its size and impact on the economy, your nationality and other factors in deciding whether you qualify for a residence permit. Normally, an investment of $50,000 made into a priority area of economy should qualify the investor for special residency. Please contact us for more information on investment requirements. 

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