18-year-olds may serve 1 month by paying 20 million drams
Hayk Sargsyan, a lawmaker from the Civil Contract faction, has introduced a legislative proposal that would allow 18-year-old Armenian citizens to fulfill their military obligation through a one-month service by paying 20 million drams, Sputnik Armenia reports.
Currently, only citizens aged 27 and above or those who have evaded military service are eligible for this option. Sargsyan stated that under the new bill, conscripts will be able to choose among three alternatives: full service with higher financial compensation, six-month service with a 15-million-dram payment to the state, or one-month service for 20 million drams.
The initiative aims to encourage ethnic Armenian males—mainly born in Georgia or the U.S.—to acquire Armenian citizenship before reaching conscription age, thus making them eligible for the reduced service or monetary contribution.
The MP emphasized that funds collected through this mechanism would be directed toward meeting the needs of Armenia’s armed forces.
Sargsyan also noted that only 30–40% of eligible citizens actually serve in the military. From 2020 to 2024, 8,721 male Armenian citizens renounced their citizenship before turning 18. Others left the country for study, medical treatment, or other reasons and never returned before the age of 27 or 37—the latter being the statute of limitations threshold.
From 2010 to 2024, around 2,500 criminal cases under Article 461 of Armenia’s Criminal Code (evasion of military service) were terminated due to expiration of the limitation period.
According to the MP, over 80% of deferments or exemptions from mandatory military service were based on documented health conditions.
In December 2023, Armenia’s parliament adopted another proposal by Sargsyan, amending the Law on Military Service and the Status of Servicemen. This allowed citizens over 27 who had not served to avoid prosecution by choosing one of five service formats.
