This October news about Armenian citizenship by investment program became one of the most discussed among the experts of the industry. Let’s have a closer look to the details that became known at the moment. The Republic of Armenia is considering a draft of the local CIP and here are the options: foreign citizens will be required to provide at least $150,000 US
- to a foundation created for operating in education or science sector;
- in the shares of a commercial organization for at least 10 years;
- acquire government bonds of at least $150,000 USD for at least 7 years,
purchase real estate for at least $150,000 USD for a minimum of 10 years, with a cadastral cost approximated to the market cost of real estate, per the official state news agency.
Special options for IT companies
Foreign citizens can invest at least $150,000 USD in any investment fund approved by the government for at least 10 years, found a high-tech and (or) IT company in Armenia with capitalization equal to $1 million USD or more, with a condition that the center of vital interests of the founder is in Armenia.
Foreign nationals can create a branch of a foreign IT company in Armenia with capitalization equal to $100 million dollars or more, which has 500 or more staffers in Armenia, establish a venture foundation in the amount of $80 million dollars or more, make a financial investment worth $100,000 USD or more in a high-tech company or a venture foundation.
Amendments to Armenia’s citizenship law were adopted in July 2022 showing how serious government is about its CIP. And here the focus is on the candidates who provide “exceptional services” to Armenia including “significant contribution” to the Armenian economy. CIP applications will be processed by Prime Minister’s Office, vetted by National Security Service, and approved by President.
Note that Armenia requires all male citizens aged 16 to 55 to register with the military office and males aged 18 to 26 may be subject to mandatory two-year military service.
The evaluation criteria shall be enacted by the Cabinet of Ministers of Armenia by the end of January 2023.
Benefits of Armenian citizenship
The country allows dual citizenship and does not require a person to renounce their existing citizenship. Citizenship does not affect a person’s tax liabilities since Armenia does not have citizenship-based taxation.
An Armenian passport provides travel visa-free entry to 65 countries, including China, but holder would not be able to visit Schengen zone without visa, as that is the core benefit of Caribbean citizenship by programs with quite the same investment requirements. Nevertheless, as some programs are about to quite taking applications, such as Montenegrin CIP in the end of year 2022, we need a new option on the market.
