Armenia switches on biometric passports and ID cards in its bid for visa-free travel to Europe
A new identity system launches on 1 November, part of the reforms Armenia must finish by 2029 to win visa-free access to the EU.
Armenia has set 2029 as the target for completing the reforms in its EU Visa Liberalisation Action Plan, and a new biometric identity system at the heart of it is due to launch on 1 November. Embassies and consulates will suspend passport issuance and replacement from 5 October to make the switch.
Interior Minister Arpine Sargsyan, who leads the negotiations with Brussels, met EU officials in Yerevan and said the government is committed to implementing the plan in full. Migration management, including the new identity system, is a central part of it.
What changes
The reforms follow the Law on Identification Documents, adopted in May 2026, which makes biometric ID cards mandatory for everyone aged 16 and over. Children aged 6 to 16 can get one voluntarily; younger children will rely on birth certificates. All travel documents will meet the ICAO 9303 standard, and the new passports will work at contactless border gates.
The system is being delivered through a public-private partnership. Haypass, a local company formed by a consortium involving Idemia and A.C.I. Technology, runs implementation, infrastructure and offices; IN Groupe later bought Idemia Smart Identity, the unit that co-founded Haypass.
Nelly Davtyan, head of the Migration and Citizenship Service, said the ID card will cost 5,950 drams, about $15, and the passport 28,650 drams, about $74.
A border management strategy is due to go to the government by the end of the year. Officials present the new documents as a security upgrade, but the political prize is mobility: visa-free travel to the Schengen area would be a tangible return on a digital identity project.
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