A document that opens doors: strengthening legal protection for refugees in Armenia
A document that opens doors: strengthening legal protection for refugees in Armenia
A legal-awareness session for refugees from Karabakh. Vanadzor, Armenia, March 2026
A refugee rebuilding her life after displacement. A public defender explaining the next step in an asylum case. A government official issuing a renewed document. These are ordinary moments, but together they help turn legal status into practical protection.
For refugees and asylum-seekers, documentation is more than an administrative requirement. It can open the way to an asylum procedure, healthcare, education, lawful employment and social protection, and offer a measure of certainty after displacement.
Between June 2024 and March 2026, the Government of Armenia, supported by UNHCR and national partners and co-funded by the European Union, continued strengthening the systems that help refugees and asylum-seekers obtain documentation, understand their rights and access legal assistance. Support was provided according to assessed protection needs, including to refugees from Karabakh and refugees and asylum-seekers of other nationalities.
A legal-awareness session for refugees from Karabakh. Vanadzor, Armenia, March 2026.
Mrs. Siranush, a refugee from Karabakh, remembers how difficult it was to understand the procedures her family needed to complete.
“I am very grateful to the lawyer for patiently guiding us through the legal procedures required to access social services, pensions and health insurance, obtain Armenian citizenship and participate in the state housing programme. The free legal aid has been invaluable, helping us restore our documents and better understand how to access essential services,” she says.
By March 2026, more than 119,000 refugees and asylum-seekers held appropriate documentation or recognized legal status through Armenia’s national systems. This provided a formal basis for pursuing asylum procedures and accessing national services.
Making legal protection accessible
Close cooperation with the Migration and Citizenship Service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs supported asylum registration, documentation, Temporary Protection procedures and the issuance and renewal of identity documents.
Institutional support was accompanied by direct legal assistance. Through lawyers and public defenders from the Chamber of Advocates, 1,649 refugees and asylum-seekers received counselling, administrative assistance or legal representation.
Public defenders and lawyers exchange practical experience on legal assistance in asylum procedures during a workshop organized by UNHCR and the Chamber of Advocates. Yerevan, Armenia, October 2025
Legal assistance covered asylum procedures and appeals, identity and civil documentation, naturalization, housing and eviction, employment, pensions, social assistance, and representation before public authorities and courts. Interpretation and translation support enabled people who did not speak Armenian to understand legal advice and participate effectively in asylum interviews and other procedures.
Information was shared in different ways so people could receive it in the format that worked best for them, through community meetings, individual counselling, multilingual materials, the UNHCR HELP website and Hotline, as well as television, radio and digital platforms.
The Chamber of Advocates’ Project Coordinator presents multilingual legal-aid information materials for asylum-seekers and refugees during an EU Humanitarian Aid field visit. Yerevan, Armenia, November 2025
Looking beyond documentation
For many refugees from Karabakh, legal counselling also meant understanding the pathway from Temporary Protection to Armenian citizenship through national procedures. By March 2026, more than 34,000 had acquired Armenian citizenship.
For asylum-seekers and refugees from other countries, support included counselling, interpretation, legal assistance and referrals throughout Armenia’s asylum procedures. At the same time, technical cooperation supported public defenders, lawyers and asylum professionals to apply national law and international protection standards consistently and communicate effectively with people seeking protection.
Rights that can be exercised
While documentation created the legal basis for accessing rights, legal assistance helped people understand procedures and resolve obstacles. Information and referrals connected them with national services and specialized support where needed.
About the project
From June 2024 to March 2026, UNHCR and its partners, working in support of the Government of Armenia and co-funded by the European Union through its humanitarian aid operations, implemented a nationwide Protection Action linking documentation and legal assistance with social work, protection monitoring, referrals and rights-based information.
The project aimed to help refugees and asylum-seekers exercise their rights while strengthening the national systems and services that support them.
Across Armenia, the Action reached an estimated 144,706 people. 119,706 people obtained documentation or legal status, 1,649 received legal counselling, assistance or representation, and 65,760 received information on their rights and entitlements.
