Armenia considers tightening citizenship requirements

Armenia is considering tightening the process for obtaining citizenship, with Deputy Interior Minister Armen Ghazaryan saying that current requirements for ethnic Armenians are too lenient and should be reviewed.

According to Ghazaryan, more than 32,000 Armenians obtained Armenian citizenship in 2025, the highest figure on record, Caliber.Az reports, citing Armenian media.

He said most of them were likely Armenian citizens of Russia and suggested the surge was linked to the conflict in Ukraine and difficulties faced by Russian citizens when entering various countries.

He argued that citizenship should have value and should not resemble a transaction.

“There are no requirements for ethnic Armenians to obtain a passport of our country. This is a problem, and it needs to be addressed specifically,” he noted, while not ruling out relevant legislative changes.

Ghazaryan made it clear that foreigners seeking Armenian citizenship must go through a naturalisation process that includes three years of residence in the country and tests on the Armenian language and legislation.

Ethnic Armenians, however, undergo a simplified procedure and, in practice, face no such requirements.

He further stated that a person can renounce Armenian citizenship and apply to obtain it again just 15 minutes later, arguing that this is not right.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov