More than a year after starting visa liberalization talks with the European Union, Armenia has received an action plan outlining the steps Yerevan must take to qualify for visa-free travel.
The European Commission has presented its visa liberalisation roadmap to Armenia, marking a key step toward granting Armenian citizens visa-free travel to the EU. This development follows the launch of visa liberalisation negotiations in September 2024 and comes amid Armenia’s growing engagement with Western partners.
On Wednesday in Yerevan, Johannes Luchner, the European Commission’s Deputy Director-General for Migration and Home Affairs, formally handed the document to Armenia’s Interior Minister, Arpine Sargsyan.
“The plan outlines a comprehensive set of objectives across multiple areas - from security to human rights — to be achieved over the coming years,” Luchner stated at a press conference. “I commend the minister and the Armenian authorities for the swift and meaningful progress made so far. We stand ready to continue our cooperation to ensure these goals are fully realised.”
Sargsyan described the event as “a historic moment,” emphasising that “within the framework of the visa liberalisation dialogue, we are taking our first concrete step - the outcome of joint efforts.”
She added that the action plan “introduces a series of measures that will significantly affect the daily lives of Armenian citizens and, in the context of visa liberalisation, will guarantee the right to travel to EU countries with dignity.”
The EU grants visa-free travel only after partner countries meet specific benchmarks. Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine, for example, had to complete four sets of reforms focused on border management, migration and asylum, public order and security, and external relations and fundamental rights before obtaining visa-free access to the Schengen area.
