Head and Employee at Passport and Visa Department Violate Regulations

Individuals seeking citizenship and passport services have approached the Passport and Visa Department of the police, as well as other departments. However, due to the low professional quality of the staff, the process lasted about five months, and the applicants faced disrespectful treatment. This information was reported by the Armenian police.

An internal investigation revealed that a woman applied to the Passport Division of the Police on July 30, 2019, for a passport as an Armenian citizen. Since the woman had changed her surname in Canada, she was directed to the Ministry of Justice's Civil Status Act and New Nork-Mararsh Division to obtain documentation regarding the name change. Based on the marriage certificate provided by the civil registration bodies, she applied to the Passport Division of the Passport and Visa Department on October 24 of the same year, and her Armenian passport was issued on October 31, 2019, approximately three months after her application.

It was also found that the head of the Citizenship Division of the Police, while directing the woman to the passport division, displayed unbecoming behavior typical of a civil servant and treated her with rudeness, violating norms of decency. Additionally, an employee of the passport division conducted inappropriate conversations with her during the service. Upon learning that she had returned from Canada, she asked accusatory questions about her return. After discovering that her return was related to a statement by the Prime Minister of Armenia, she made derogatory comments about a representative of the highest authority, claiming, "Pashinyan has deceived all of you."

According to the police's information, both the head and the employee violated the ethics rules of public service. Furthermore, the head of the Passport Division failed to clearly explain the procedure to the woman in a timely manner, only clarifying two months later that she needed to apply to the territorial division of the civil registration agency, thus also neglecting her duties.

Following these events, by order of the chief of the police, the employee of the passport division was dismissed from her position, while the other two received a formal 'Severe Remark'.