Employment 2026 Comparisons

In the Republic of Armenia (RA), the Labour Code (the “Code”) applies to all employment relationships without distinguishing between blue-collar and white-collar workers. Furthermore, the Code does not provide such definitions.

There are two main types of employment contracts: indefinite and definite contracts. Indefinite contracts are considered the general rule, whereas definite contracts are the exception. This is because definite contracts are concluded only when the employment relationship cannot be established for an indefinite period due to the nature of the work to be performed or the conditions of its performance. The Code also provides an exhaustive list of situations in which fixed-term contracts can be established – for example, with seasonal workers, temporary workers (working for a duration of up to two months), replacement employees, and foreigners (for the period of validity of their residence permit, if required to work in Armenia).

Under Armenian labour law, employment relations between an employee and an employer arise through a written employment contract concluded in accordance with the procedure established by labour legislation. An exception applies to people holding public positions and public service positions, whose employment relations arise through an individual administrative legal act (unless otherwise provided by sectoral laws).

The law requires contracts and individual legal acts to be in written form. An employment contract may also be established through an exchange of communications between the parties by post or electronically, provided the method ensures the authenticity of the contract and confirms beyond doubt that it originates from a party to the employment contract.

Under legislative amendments enacted in February 2026, starting from 1 July 2027, the initiation, modification, and termination of employment relations must be processed through a centralised digital system. The following cases constitute exceptions where employment contracts shall still be concluded in paper form:

• where information concerning the person is defined by legislation as a state secret or official information of restricted distribution due to restrictions on the publication of information regarding specific positions in state bodies;
• where the employment relationship is initiated with a person located outside the Republic of Armenia (where the work is performed outside Armenia);
• employment contracts concluded with foreigners, for the period of their stay or residence for the purpose of working in Armenia; and
• employment contracts concluded with refugees or asylum seekers in the Republic of Armenia.

In the latter two cases (foreigners, refugees, and asylum seekers), employment contracts after 1 July 2027 shall be concluded in paper form subject to the condition that within three months after obtaining the document confirming legal residence in the Republic of Armenia, the signed contract is registered in the digital employment contract system in accordance with the law.

Prior to 1 July 2027, the initiation, modification, and termination of employment relations may be carried out voluntarily through the digital system.

Compulsory Information

The contract or the individual legal act on employment must include:

• the year, month, date, and place of signing the employment contract;
• the employee’s full name (first name, last name, middle name);
• the employer’s Tax Identification Number (TIN) and:
1. company/organisation name, or
2. full name (first name, last name, middle name) if the employer is an individual;
• the workplace location;
• the specific structural or separate subdivision, office, or institution of the employer where the employee will work (if applicable);
• the year, month, and date of starting the work;
• the employee’s Social Services Number (SSN) (or certificate number stating the absence of a SSN), except if the employee is a foreign citizen or stateless person without residency status in Armenia who will not physically be present in the Republic of Armenia;
• the employee’s email address;
• the title of the position and:
1. the job functions/duties, or
2. a reference to the document defining the functions arising from the position (which serves as an annex to the contract);
• the amount of the basic salary (including taxes, social charges, or other mandatory payments defined by law) and the method used to determine it (hourly, daily, piece-rate, or monthly rate);
• additions, bonuses, and supplementary payments provided to employees under RA legislation (note: non-governmental and non-public entities may optionally include additional allowances not defined by RA legislation as other terms);
• the term/period of validity of the employment contract (if applicable);
• the duration and terms of the probation period (if established);
• the working time regime (normal, part-time, reduced working hours, or summarised accounting of working hours) and the weekly duration (except in the case of summarised accounting of working hours);
• the type (minimum, supplementary, extended) and duration of annual leave.
• the position, first name, and last name of the person signing the employment contract; and
• the methods of mutual notification between the employer and the employee regarding employment relations.

Other terms may be included in the employment contract upon agreement of the parties.

Standard Hours

In Armenia, standard working hours are 40 hours per week and eight hours per day. However, the parties may agree on flexible working arrangements, provided that the mandatory requirements of the Labour Code are observed.

There are no specific statutory requirements governing the terms of part-time employment contracts; these terms are determined by agreement between the parties.

Maximum Hours

Maximum working hours, including overtime, may not exceed 12 hours per day, including breaks for rest and meals, or 48 hours per week.

For certain categories of employees, including those working in healthcare, emergency response and supply services, working hours may be up to 24 hours per day. However, the average working time over the week may not exceed 48 hours, and such employees must have at least 24 consecutive hours of rest between working days.

An employee who works under two or more employment contracts, whether with the same or different employers, must not work more than 12 hours per day, including breaks for rest and meals.

Overtime

As a general rule in Armenia, overtime work is allowed only in the following exceptional cases, namely if:

• work necessary for state defence is being performed – including within the framework of transitioning the operations of state and territorial administration bodies, local self-government bodies, and organisations to a martial law work regime – as well as work necessary to prevent or eliminate the consequences of natural disasters, technological accidents, epidemics, accidents, fires, and other emergency situations;
• it is necessary to complete work already initiated that could not be finished during regular working hours due to accidental or unforeseen obstacles, provided that interrupting the work could cause spoilage or destruction of materials or equipment failure;
• repair or restoration work is being performed on mechanisms or equipment whose breakdown has interrupted the work of a significant number of employees;
• a shift worker fails to report to work, which could disrupt the continuity of operations; in such cases, the employer or their representative is required to take immediate measures to replace the absent worker with another employee;
• loading, unloading, or related operations are being performed to prevent or eliminate cargo accumulation and vehicle downtime at shipping and destination points, or to clear the organisation’s warehouses; and/or
• there is an urgent need to fulfil the employer’s contractual obligations.

Overtime work shall not exceed four hours over any two consecutive days or 180 hours per year. For overtime work specified in the first bullet point, overtime shall not exceed eight hours over any two consecutive days, provided that the statutory limits on maximum daily and weekly working hours are observed.

In the absence of these exceptional circumstances, an employee may be required to work overtime only with their written consent.

In Armenia, the minimum monthly salary is AMD75,000 net. Besides the monthly salary, employees may receive additional compensation in the form of allowances, extra compensation, bonuses, or additional payments. However, the payment of such bonuses is at the discretion of the employer and can be established in the employment contract or in the internal legal acts of the employer. Moreover, there is no mandatory requirement to provide a 13th salary in Armenia.

When an employee works overtime, the employer must compensate them with additional pay for each extra hour worked, which should be at least 50% over the regular hourly rate.

For night work, this compensation must not be less than 30% more than the hourly rate for each hour worked. While the government can establish conditions under which employees may receive allowances, it does not otherwise intervene in the private sector.

Annual Leave

Employees who work a five-day week must be granted a minimum of 20 working days of annual leave, while those who work a six-day week must be granted 24 working days of annual leave. For annual leave, the employer pays the employee an average wage, which is calculated by multiplying the employee’s average daily wage by the number of days of leave granted. As a rule, replacement of annual leave with monetary compensation is not allowed. If the employee refuses to take the annual leave or a part of it for two-and-a-half consecutive working years, the timing of annual leave may be determined by the employer.

Pregnancy and Maternity Leave

Women are entitled to the following types of leave:

• 140 days of leave, comprising 70 days of pregnancy leave and 70 days of maternity leave.
• In cases of difficult delivery, a total of 155 days is allowed, with 70 days allocated for pregnancy leave and 85 days for maternity leave.
• In the case of the birth of more than one child at the same time, 180 days are granted, divided into 70 days of pregnancy leave and 110 days of maternity leave.

These leaves are calculated and granted to the woman in full. In the event of premature delivery, any unused days of pregnancy leave are added to the maternity leave period.

Additionally, an employee who adopts a newborn or becomes a guardian of a newborn is entitled to leave starting from the day of adoption or appointment until the infant reaches 70 days of age (or 110 days if adopting or becoming guardian of two or more newborns). Similarly, a biological mother who gives birth to a child through a surrogate is entitled to leave from the day of the child’s birth until the newborn reaches 70 days of age (or 110 days for the birth of two or more newborns).

Maternity leave pay is calculated based on the employee’s average monthly salary.

Paternity Leave

Five days of paternity leave are granted upon request of the employee within the first 30 days of childbirth. For each day, the employer pays an amount equal to the employee’s average daily wage.

Childcare Leave

Childcare leave, intended for caregivers of children up to three years old, is granted upon request to a parent, stepparent, or guardian caring for a child until the child turns three years old. No leave pay is provided, apart from any applicable state benefits.

Temporary Incapacity Leave

Temporary incapacity leave is granted for incapacity caused by:

• illness/injury;
• prosthetics;
• the need for sanatorium treatment; and
• the need for care caused by the illness or injury of a family member.

Temporary disability benefits for a salaried employee are paid as follows:

• first seven calendar days – paid by the employer (unless exempt from tax agent duties under the law) at their own expense, based on calculations made by the state body authorised by the government of the Republic of Armenia;
• from the eighth calendar day onwards – paid by the authorised body using state budget funds; and
• fully state-funded – paid entirely by the authorised body from state budget funds if the employer is exempt from tax agent duties under the law.

Employee Liability

An employee may be held liable under the law when certain conditions are met: damage exists, the damage stems from illegal activity, there is a direct causal link between the activity and the damage, fault is attributable to the employee, the parties affected by the violation were in an employment relationship at the time, and the occurrence of damage is connected to work-related activities.

An employee is obliged to pay compensation for damage caused to the employer only in the following circumstances:

• damage to or loss of the employer’s property;
• overspending of materials;
• compensation paid by the employer for damage caused to a third party by the employee while performing work duties;
• expenses incurred due to damage to the employer’s property;
• improper preservation of material values; and
• failure to take necessary measures to prevent the release of low-quality products, or embezzlement of material or money.

The employee is obliged to compensate the damage caused to the employer in full, but liability may not exceed three months’ average salary, except in the following cases:

• the damage was caused intentionally;
• the damage was caused by the employee’s criminal activity;
• an agreement on full financial responsibility was signed by the employee;
• the damage was caused by the loss of necessary tools, equipment, special clothing, etc, provided to the employee for work;
• the damage was caused in such a way or to such property as falls under full property liability as defined by law; or
• the damage was caused under the influence of alcoholic beverages, drugs, or psychoactive substances.

Limitations on Confidentiality and Non-disparagement Requirements

The Code does not explicitly regulate confidentiality and non-disparagement clauses in employment contracts. As a result, the parties include such provisions by mutual agreement, and they are governed by general legal rules and civil contract law.

Confidentiality clauses typically exclude information that is publicly available, already known to the employee, or required to be disclosed by law. Similarly, non-disparagement clauses are limited by laws protecting truthful court testimony, whistle-blower rights, and mandatory communications with government or regulatory authorities.

Under Article 141 of the Civil Code of the Republic of Armenia, an employer can seek compensation for damages if an employee unlawfully obtains or discloses information constituting an official, commercial, or banking secret in breach of an employment or civil-law contract.

Armenian legislation does not explicitly regulate restrictions on a worker’s ability to work for competitors after termination. There are also no reported court cases addressing this issue, so it is unclear how such provisions would be interpreted by the courts and whether compliance with international standards would be sufficient for a court to recognise them as valid and enforceable.

The legal situation regarding non-solicitation is similar to that of non-compete clauses. Armenian legislation does not regulate non-solicitation obligations after the termination of employment. There are no specific statutory requirements or limitations, and there is no established court practice on this matter, making it difficult to predict how courts would address such cases.

Data privacy in employment law is primarily governed by the Code, with additional regulations provided by the Law on the Protection of Personal Data.

The 16th chapter of the Code establishes how employers should handle, protect, and process employees’ personal data while outlining employees’ rights and the legal implications of non-compliance. In particular, it defines personal data as information required for employment purposes and covers all activities related to handling this data. Employers must process data only for legitimate employment-related reasons, such as compliance with the law or ensuring safety, and must obtain employee consent to process sensitive information. They are also responsible for ensuring data security and informing employees about how their data is managed.

When it comes to protecting and transferring data, it must be handled according to legal standards and not shared with third parties without employee consent, except in specific circumstances. Employees have the right to access their data, request corrections or deletions, and seek legal remedies if their data rights are violated. Violations of data protection rules can result in legal consequences for those responsible.

As an exception to the general rule that employment contracts are concluded for an indefinite term, a fixed-term contract may be concluded with a foreign worker for the duration of their right of residence, where the foreign worker is required to hold residence status in order to work in Armenia.

In addition, such a contract may be terminated if the foreign worker’s residence status is revoked or declared invalid. This provision does not apply to foreign workers who perform their work remotely for the employer from outside the territory of the Republic of Armenia.

Foreign nationals may work in Armenia if they hold a residence status permitting employment or if they qualify for an exception under the law. Upon obtaining residence status, they must register their address in the State Population Register. Beyond this, there are no additional mandatory registration requirements.

Mobile work itself is not regulated under Armenian law. However, Armenian legislation does permit work to be performed remotely. Remote work can only be established by mutual agreement between the employer and the employee, subject to the nature of the work allowing for remote execution. The procedures and conditions for remote work, including the reimbursement of expenses for necessary equipment and materials, or their acquisition, are determined by a collective agreement, the internal disciplinary rules of the employer, or a written agreement between the parties.

Data Privacy

Armenian legislation does not differentiate between the obligations of employers regarding the processing of personal data whether work is performed at the workplace or remotely. In all cases, employers must comply with the requirements established by the Code and Armenian Law on the Protection of Personal Data.

Occupational Health and Safety

According to the Code, when work is performed remotely, employers are exempt from complying with the standard health and safety requirements for employees, except for the obligation to provide employees with personal protective equipment.

Armenian legislation does not mandate paid sabbaticals, but employers have the discretion to provide employees with such type of paid leave by including the relevant provisions in their internal acts.

Matters related to “new work” are not currently regulated under Armenian law, and there are no anticipated changes or legislative initiatives expected in this field in the near future. The implementation and use of such practices are at the discretion of the employer.

Under Armenian law, unions are established to protect the rights of parties to employment contracts. These unions come in two types: trade unions for employees and employers’ associations.

Trade Unions

Trade unions have the right to:

• set rules (elect representatives, manage staff) and goals (plan programmes);
• obtain work information, propose improvements and negotiate contracts;
• monitor labour law compliance and defend employees’ rights;
• participate in production planning and suggest workplace changes;
• co-ordinate employee–employer interests and influence government policy; and
• organise strikes (if necessary).

Employers’ Associations

Employers’ associations are non-profit organisations that unite both employer organisations and individual employers. The member organisations are represented by their authorised representatives within the associations. The activities of these associations are regulated by the Code, applicable laws, and their own charter.

Employee representative bodies in Armenia are trade unions, which have the right to represent and protect employees’ rights and interests in labour relations.

Their primary functions include representing employees and negotiating collective agreements at the national, sectoral, territorial, and organisational levels to improve working conditions. Additionally, trade unions have the authority to decide on and declare strikes.

Trade unions are established by decision of a founding meeting convened on the initiative of at least three employees. The founding meeting approves the union’s charter and elects its management and supervisory bodies. Trade unions acquire legal status upon registration with the State Register of Legal Entities of the Republic of Armenia.

A collective contract is a voluntary agreement concluded in writing between an employer and employee representatives, or the employers’ union and the trade union (bilateral contract). In some cases, it may also involve the government of the Republic of Armenia (tripartite contract). This agreement regulates labour relations and related social or economic matters between employees and employers.

There are three levels of collective contracts: republican, branch and territorial, and local (or of the organisation).

Republican Collective Contracts

Republican collective contracts are signed by the Republican Union of Trade Unions, the Republican Union of Employers and the government of the Republic of Armenia. They include provisions for safety, employment security, broader social benefits, and mechanisms for monitoring and ensuring compliance with their terms.

Branch Collective Contracts

The parties to branch collective contracts are the union of employers of the relevant branch of the economy (production, services or professions) and the branch republican union of trade unions. The parties to territorial collective contracts are the territorial union of employers operating in a certain territory and the territorial union of trade unions. These two parties address crucial areas such as remuneration, working hours, job security during workforce reductions, and opportunities for professional growth, as well as procedures for implementation and dispute resolution.

Local Collective Contracts

A collective contract of the organisation or local collective contract is a written agreement concluded between the employer and the representatives of the employees in the given organisation. The parties can define conditions that are not covered by labour laws or higher-level collective contracts, providing they do not contradict such regulations and, at the same time, do not negatively impact employee conditions specified by those agreements.

Under Armenian law, an employer must establish a valid justification in advance before terminating an employment contract. An employer cannot terminate an employment contract without a specific legal basis explicitly listed in the Labour Code (Article 113). The notice of termination and the dismissal order must contain exact factual and legal grounds.

The dismissal procedure differs depending on the grounds for termination.

In cases of dismissal for an employee’s non-compliance with the position held or the work performed, reinstatement of the employee to a previous job, or a reduction in the number of employees and/or positions due to production necessity, termination is possible if the employer has offered the employee another job in accordance with their professional training, qualification and state of health, and the employee has refused the offered job, or if no suitable job opportunities are available within the organisation.

In the event of non-compliance of the employee with the position held, the employment contract can be terminated if the employee is unable to perform their work duties due to lack of professional ability or health conditions.

In the event of dismissal for regular non-fulfilment of duties or contravention of internal disciplinary rules without a valid reason, termination is possible if the employee who committed a labour disciplinary violation already has at least two prior active disciplinary penalties. The suitability of the employee’s professional abilities to the position held or the work performed is evaluated by the employer, and the suitability of the employee’s state of health is determined by a medico-social examination report.

An employer has the right to terminate an employee’s contract without giving notice if:

• the employee is reinstated to their previous position;
• the employee repeatedly fails to perform their duties or breaches internal disciplinary rules without a valid reason;
• the employer loses trust in the employee;
• the employee is under the influence of alcohol, narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances while at the workplace or while performing work functions, whether at or outside the workplace;
• the employee fails to attend work for the entire work shift without a valid reason; and/or
• the employee refuses or avoids undergoing a mandatory medical examination.

For all other cases, notice is mandatory.

Collective Redundancies

Collective redundancies are possible in case of cessation of activity (liquidation) or reduction of the number of employees or positions. The employer must notify the employees’ representative, as well as the State Employment Service, of the number of employees who will be dismissed two months in advance if the employer intends to dismiss more than 10% of the total number of employees, and no fewer than ten employees within a two-month period.

Notification

The minimum statutory notice period for terminating an employment contract depends on the grounds for termination.

Two months’ notice

Two months’ prior written notice is required when:

• the employment contract is terminated on the ground of liquidation of the employer (termination of activity), removal from state registration, and in the case of a notary employer, dismissal from office; and
• there is a reduction in workforce due to changes in volumes of production and/or economic and/or technological and/or work organisation conditions and/or production needs; for mass terminations, the employer must also notify both the government agency responsible for employment in Armenia and the employee representative body.

Three days’ written notice

Three days’ prior written notice is required when:

• a foreign national’s residence permit is recognised as invalid;
• the employee fails to submit, in accordance with the procedure and within the deadlines established by the legislation of the Republic of Armenia, the licence or certificate required by law to continue professional activity; or
• the employee fails to perform their duties for more than ten consecutive working days (shifts) or more than 20 working days (shifts) within the last three months as a result of not being allowed to work, in the case stipulated by the Code.

Notice based on period of employment

In cases where the employment contract is terminated because the employee is not suitable for the position held or the work performed, because of a long-term disability, or because the employee has not agreed to continue working after essential changes to working conditions, the notice period varies depending on the employee’s length of continuous employment as follows:

• continuous employment for a period of up to one year – notice of at least 14 days;
• continuous employment for a period of up to five years – notice period of 35 days;
• continuous employment for a period of five to ten years – notice period of 42 days;
• continuous employment for between ten and 15 years – notice period of 49 days; and
• continuous employment for more than 15 years – 60 days’ notice period.

No prior notice

For terminations where no prior notice is required, refer to 7.3 Dismissal for (Serious) Cause.

In all cases, an employer has discretion to terminate employment without prior notice by paying a fine for every due day of notification, calculated based on the average daily salary rate.

Mass dismissal

In the case of liquidation of a company or a reduction in the number of staff, an employer is obliged, no less than two months’ prior to the termination of employment contracts, to submit data on the number of employees to be dismissed (by profession and gender and age) to the state body authorised by the government of the Republic of Armenia in the field of employment and to the employees’ representative, if it is planned to dismiss more than 10% of the total number of employees within two months, but not less than ten employees (mass dismissal).

Severance

Under the Code, severance pay is required on top of notice, not in lieu of it. Employees are entitled to severance payment equivalent to one month’s salary in the following situations:

• the organisation is liquidated (the activity of an individual entrepreneur is terminated);
• the number of employees and/or staff positions is reduced due to changes in volumes of production and/or economic and/or technological and/or work organisation conditions and/or by production needs; and
• the employee is reinstated in a previous position.

In cases where the employment contract is terminated because the employee is not suitable for the position or the work performed, or has a long-term disability, the amount of severance pay varies depending on the employee’s period of continuous employment as follows:

• continuous employment for up to one year – ten times the average daily wage;
• continuous employment from one to five years – 25 times the average daily wage;
• continuous employment from five to ten years – 30 times the average daily wage;
• continuous employment from ten to 15 years – 35 times the average daily wage; and
• continuous employment for more than 15 years – 44 times the average daily wage.

In situations other than those listed above, severance pay is at the employer’s discretion.

The legislation does not explicitly define “dismissal for a serious reason”. Nevertheless, it stipulates instances where an employment contract can be terminated without giving prior notice to an employee and without the obligation to provide severance pay. These instances include:

• the employee regularly fails to fulfil the obligations assigned to them under the employment contract or the internal regulatory rules, without a valid reason;
• the employer has lost confidence in the employee;
• the employee is found to be under the influence of alcohol, narcotics or psychotropic substances at the workplace or during the performance of their work;
• the employee fails to come to work throughout the entire working day (shift) with no good reason; and
• the employee refuses or evades a mandatory medical examination.

According to Armenian employment law, termination agreements can be mutually agreed upon by the parties involved. One party must propose in writing to terminate the employment contract. If the other party accepts the offer, they must notify the proposing party within seven days.

Upon agreement, the parties sign a written termination agreement detailing the termination period and other conditions, such as compensation.

If the party receiving the termination proposal does not respond within the specified period, the proposal is considered rejected.

An employment contract cannot be terminated by an employer under the following circumstances:

• during the period of temporary incapacity of the employee for work, except when the employee has long-term incapacity for work, defined as temporary disability lasting more than six consecutive months or exceeding 180 days within the last 12 months, excluding maternity leave days;
• during the leave of the employee;
• from the day a pregnant woman notifies the employer of her pregnancy until one month after maternity leave;
• throughout the period of caring for a child under one year of age, unless:
1. the employer (the company) is liquidated;
2. the employee repeatedly fails to fulfil contractual obligations or internal working rules;
3. the employee loses the employer’s trust without a valid reason;
4. the employee is under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or psychotropic substances at work or while performing duties outside the workplace; or
5. the employee refuses mandatory medical examinations;
• after a decision to strike is made, and during the strike, provided the employee participates as prescribed by the Code;
• while fulfilling obligations imposed by the state or local self-government bodies, except as provided by the Code;
• during natural disasters, technological accidents, epidemics, accidents, fires, or other emergencies, or when addressing their immediate aftermath, if the employee is absent due to these circumstances; and
• during unplanned transfers or the provision of vacations in educational institutions (including preschools), when the employee is absent to arrange childcare for a child under 12 years old.

The grounds for a wrongful dismissal claim are the absence of legal or factual grounds for termination or the violation of the requirements set out in the law, internal or individual acts of the employer or the employment contract.

Damages/Relief

In the event of wrongful termination, the court will restore the employee’s legal rights, requiring the employer to compensate the employee for the lost average salary for the period of forced absence from work. However, if reinstatement to the former position is unfeasible, the court may award monetary compensation in lieu of reinstatement, calculated at an amount ranging from 1 to 12 average monthly salaries.

Armenian labour law prohibits all kinds of discrimination on the grounds of sex, race, colour, ethnic or social origin, genetic characteristics, language, religion, political or other views, being a national minority, property, birth, disability, age or other circumstances of a personal or social nature.

Burden of Proof

If an employee claims to be a victim of discrimination, the burden of proving the occurrence of the discrimination lies with the employee.

Damages/Relief

The relief in such cases is the same as previously stated – restoration to their previous job or, where this is not possible, compensation equal to the employee’s average salary for the entire period of forced absence from work.

Effective January 2024, Armenia launched an electronic justice system for civil litigation. Under these legislative amendments, traditional paper documentation is being replaced, and case management is executed entirely through the digital e-justice platform.

Submissions to the court by system users, including applications, appeals, complaints, responses, position papers, and petitions, must be made strictly through the digital platform. As an exception, documents containing state secrets must still be submitted in physical hard copy. Existing proceedings initiated prior to the digital transition will continue under the paper-based system.

The requirement to use the digital system applies to:

• individuals who have conducted at least one action through the system during a civil case, provided they have not formally declared to the court an incapacity to continue using it; and
• legal entities, sole proprietors, state and local authorities, respondents in procurement litigation, legal counsel, bankruptcy managers, notaries, and licensed mediators, unconditionally.

Currently, remote court hearings via video conference are not supported; however, legislative and technical developments may enable this option in the future.

There are no specialised employment forums in Armenia.

Under the Armenian Civil Proceedings Code, a class action claim must be brought jointly by a minimum of 20 co-plaintiffs. The court decision will be in accordance with the common procedure.

An appeal against a court decision may be filed by a class action representative.

Class action plaintiffs may litigate their cases in court through a class action representative or representatives, the number of which may not exceed five. A representative in a class action can be any claimant, non-governmental advocacy organisation or lawyer. They represent the interests of all plaintiffs.

In a class action, the participation of a representative in the proceedings excludes the individual participation of the plaintiff. However, this does not prevent a plaintiff from accessing the case materials, withdrawing their individual claim, or terminating the representative’s authority to act on their behalf.

The court must terminate the powers of the representative at the request of the majority of the class action plaintiffs. If some of the plaintiffs, but not the majority, want to terminate the powers of the representative or to change the representative, then the court will separate the proceedings of the case in terms of their claims.

Employment disputes may be submitted to arbitration if there is an arbitration agreement between the employer and the employee, or if arbitration is provided in the collective contract as the method for resolving disputes. Disputes concerning employment contracts are subject to the same time limits as those applicable in the case of submission to the courts.

An arbitration agreement does not limit an employee’s right to submit the dispute arising from the employment contract to a court, unless the arbitration agreement was signed after the dispute arose and the parties unconditionally agreed to submit the dispute to arbitration.

Both employees and employers may claim reimbursement of court costs, including attorneys’ fees, in court proceedings. Court costs are allocated between the parties in proportion to the amount of the claims on which each party prevails. The court may order the unsuccessful party to reimburse the successful party for such costs, in whole or in part.

The court may reduce the amount of attorneys’ fees claimed by the successful party, taking into account factors such as the complexity and duration of the proceedings and the legal work performed.