In Special Cases, Entry of Citizens from Both Countries to Armenia or Azerbaijan is Carried Out Based on Special Permission: Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Today, media reports stated that citizens of the Republic of Armenia can visit Azerbaijan without a visa. To clarify the details, Auroranews reached out to the press secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“The Agreement on the Movement of Citizens of the CIS Member States across Their Territories without Visas, signed in Bishkek on October 9, 1992, established a regime for the visa-free entry, exit, and movement of citizens across each other's territories, allowing domestic legislation to regulate these procedures, as well as giving the authority to impose restrictions on movement and set other internal regulations. Later, the visa-free entry regime with several CIS member states was supplemented or replaced by bilateral agreements. For the citizens of the Republic of Armenia and Azerbaijan, the legal norms of the aforementioned agreement do not, de facto, function, and the entry of citizens from both countries to the Republic of Armenia or Azerbaijan is essentially carried out based on special permission, under the direct control of the competent authorities.

According to Article 6, Part 1 of the Law on Foreigners, the condition for foreigners to enter the Republic of Armenia is the permission of the state governing body authorized by the Government of the Republic of Armenia that carries out border control (border service), which applies to any foreigner regardless of the visa regime or visa requirement. This information has always been available on the official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia,” noted Ms. Naghdalyan.