Draft Deferral System Changes Significantly Under Government Initiative

The government will provide support for Armenian citizens studying or graduated from the top 50 universities in the world through deferral, as long as they return to Armenia after completing their studies.

The Cabinet has approved the draft amendments to the law on "Military Service and the Status of Military Personnel," which proposes to reshape the deferral system for students at high-ranking universities. According to the draft, deferral will only be granted to those studying in bachelor's, master's, PhD, and other full-time programs at the top 50 universities worldwide, contingent on mandatory return and employment in sectors and areas specified by the government.

The same requirement will apply to citizens who have previously received deferral and are completing their studies in the future. The amendments stipulate that only students who will work for a certain period in Armenia after graduation and apply their knowledge in the country's science, economy, public management, or other sectors can receive final exemption from military conscription.

According to government data, since 2018, 650 citizens have received deferral to study at universities ranked in the top five of the Shanghai Academic Ranking of World Universities, of which 570 continue their studies. The authors of the draft emphasized the necessity to improve regulations for return and integration into the Armenian labor market, as the outflow of highly qualified specialists remains a serious problem, including in the IT sector, healthcare, and engineering professions.

The amendments will also remove the existing deferral based on the “achievements” principle defined by decision 451-N, which allowed for deferral even when studying at Armenian universities.