From now on, boys will receive passports until the age of 19 instead of 18: government decision

The government approved the draft amendments to the laws on the "Passport of the RA citizen" and "Identification cards." Following discussions with the Ministry of Defense, it was decided that, according to the presented draft, male citizens will be provided their passports in accordance with the established general procedure until they reach the age of 19, instead of 18.

The justification states: "This draft proposes to empower the RA police to grant passports with a longer validity period based on a justified request from the Minister of Defense for male citizens of the Republic of Armenia who are of conscription age or serving in mandatory military service. This proposal is motivated by the fact that individuals in mandatory military service often cannot leave the territory of Armenia to participate in sports, cultural, military, or other events held in foreign countries, as passports are issued only until they turn 18.

Moreover, students at the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem's Apostolic Holy Church seminary or those belonging to the Patriarchate who have not yet completed their mandatory military service also frequently encounter obstacles to residing legally in Jerusalem due to the validity period of their passports.

As a rule, these students study until they are 18, and upon returning to Armenia, they are drafted into mandatory military service. However, according to Israeli legislation, to legally ensure their stay in that country, they are required annually to renew their entry visa, which requires at least a 2-year validity period on their passport. The same problem applies to male monks of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem who are of conscription age. Similar issues arise for Armenian citizens studying abroad when obtaining a student visa, which also requires at least 2 years of validity, necessitating that passports for boys aged 17 to 18 have a validity period extending beyond their 19th birthday.

To address these issues and guarantee educational rights for male citizens, it is proposed to issue passports with a longer validity when there is a request from the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Armenia. It is also noteworthy that the completion of the current 12-year general education program coincides with an individual turning 18, and male citizens wishing to continue their education often face numerous problems related to the validity of their passports during admission tests both in Armenia and abroad, which obstructs the full realization of their right to education.

Furthermore, there are often cases where a male citizen turns 18 in August but is subject to conscription in the following winter. However, since the law states that after turning 18, a passport is issued only with the validity period of the deferment received from conscription, it becomes impossible to issue a passport to the citizen during that period, thus again denying the individual the opportunity to exercise various rights. As a result of discussions with the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Armenia, it has been decided to grant passports to male citizens according to the established general procedure until they turn 19 instead of 18.