State Dept Report: Government of Armenia does not fully meet minimum  standards for elimination of trafficking 

ArmInfo.The Government of Armenia does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination 

of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so. The government demonstrated overall increasing efforts compared with the previous reporting period; therefore Armenia remained on Tier 2,  the State Department's 2024 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report reads.

As the source notes, these efforts included investigating and 

prosecuting more suspected traffickers and identifying more victims. 

The government increased resources for victim protection, including 

to the NGO-run shelter. 

"The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (MOLSA) published a guide 

for social workers to identify victims and developed leaflets to 

inform victims on available state resources. The government increased 

resources to prevention efforts and sought input from survivors on 

the gaps in victim services. However, the government did not meet the 

minimum standards in several key areas. First responders did not 

consistently screen vulnerable populations for trafficking 

indicators. Prosecutors dropped or reclassified cases due to a lack 

of evidence or a high reliance on victim testimony without 

corroborating evidence. Law enforcement officials did not always take 

victim-centered approach in criminal proceedings, and the government 

did not implement victim-centered policies and victim-witness 

assistance measure. The government continued to fund victim 

assistance reintegration programs, which, at times, was not 

sufficient to fully meet victim needs," the Report notes.  As 

reported by the State Department, 

Prioritized recommendations: Vigorously investigate and prosecute, 

trafficking crimes and seek adequate penalties for convicted 

traffickers, which should involve significant prison terms.  

Increase proactive identification efforts, including implementing 

SOPs for screening trafficking victims and training officials on 

screening for trafficking among individuals in commercial sex, 

migrants, refugees, and other at-risk populations. Provide advanced 

training to investigators and prosecutors on trafficking 

investigations and prosecutions, including evidence collection and 

victim-centered approaches. Increase victim-witness assistance 

during court proceedings, such as establishing victim-centered 

policies to reduce re-traumatization and strengthening measure to 

ensure confidentiality. Seek and implement recommendations from 

civil society, NGOs, and members of the Victim Identification 

Commission (VIC) on decrees standardizing victim protection.  

Increase resources for reintegration services for victims.  

Implement legal authorities for labor inspectors to conduct regular 

inspections, including non-legal employers, and identify victims 

through unannounced visits. License, regulate, and educate local 

employment agencies and agents so they can help prevent the labor 

trafficking of Armenians abroad, and take steps to eliminate 

recruitment fees charged to workers. Establish and implement 

preventative measures for labor violations and child labor and 

potential child trafficking in state childcare institutions. Train 

prosecutors and judges on issuing restitution in criminal cases, 

establish procedures to seize assets from traffickers, and create 

effective methods to allocate restitution in a timely manner.

Prosecution: The government increased law enforcement efforts. 

Articles 188 and 189 of the criminal code criminalized sex 

trafficking and labor trafficking and prescribed penalties of five to 

eight years' imprisonment for crimes involving adult victims and 

seven to 10 years' imprisonment for crimes involving child victims. 

These penalties were sufficiently stringent and, with respect to sex 

trafficking, commensurate with those prescribed for other grave 

crimes, such as rape. The government adopted an amendment to the 

Labor Code in October 2022, which included a definition of forced 

labor. The government investigated 27 cases (four for sex trafficking 

and 23 for labor trafficking), compared with eight cases in 2022. The 

government continued to investigate three sex trafficking cases and 

three labor trafficking cases from previous years. The government 

prosecuted eight defendants (five for sex trafficking and three for 

labor trafficking), compared with four defendants in 2022. The 

government continued to prosecute two defendants for sex trafficking 

and two for labor trafficking from previous years. Courts convicted 

two labor traffickers in 2023, the same number as in 2022. Judges 

sentenced one trafficker to 10 years' imprisonment and the other to a 

suspended sentence of five years with three years of probation, which 

did not serve to deter the crime or adequately reflect the nature of 

the crime. The government did not report any investigations, 

prosecutions, or convictions of government employees complicit in 

human trafficking crimes, compared with two convictions of complicit 

government employees in 2022.  The Police of the Ministry of Internal 

Affairs (MOIA) maintained an Anti-Trafficking Unit; however, the July 

2022 criminal procedural code required police to transfer only 

findings and reports to the Investigative Committee (IC), which was 

responsible for starting an official investigation. Investigators in 

the IC's General Department of Investigation of Particularly 

Important Cases investigated trafficking cases, and the Office of the 

Prosecutor General's (OPG) Department of Combating Crimes Against the 

Person maintained several specialized prosecutors. Local police units 

designated an officer as the main point of contact for trafficking 

within their jurisdiction, but officers also investigated other 

crimes, such as domestic violence and sex crimes. The IC and the OPG 

continued to dismiss or reclassify trafficking cases referred by 

local police because of a lack of evidence or a high reliance on 

victim testimony without corroborating evidence. Additionally, GRETA 

reported high turnover among law enforcement created obstacles in 

maintaining specialized knowledge. The Educational Complex of MOIA 

and Justice Academy maintained classes on trafficking for police, 

prosecutors, and investigators. The Ministry of Defense trained 

military police officers on anti-trafficking issues. The government 

did not report information on international cooperation with foreign 

law enforcement authorities.

Protection: The government increased protection efforts. The 

government identified 25 victims, compared with six victims in 2022. 

Of the 25 victims identified, traffickers exploited seven in sex 

trafficking and 18 in labor trafficking; 10 were women, nine were 

men, three were girls, and three were boys; three were persons with 

disabilities; and all were Armenian. The 2014 Law on Identification 

and Assistance to Victims of Human Trafficking and Exploitation 

prescribed identification, referral, and assistance procedures for 

relevant actors. Police reported inspecting businesses involved in 

commercial sex, using checklists to screen individuals in commercial 

sex, and training officers on trafficking indicators; the government 

did not report the number of inspections. MOLSA published a guide for 

social workers to identify victims, including screening indicators 

when working with vulnerable populations, and also developed leaflets 

in three languages to help inform victims on available state 

resources. The Migration and Citizenship Service of MOIA continued 

implement screening procedures to identify victims in migration 

flows.  Experts continued to report officials did not proactively 

identify victims and instead relied on victims to self-identify. 

First responders did not consistently screen vulnerable populations 

for trafficking indicators, particularly individuals in commercial 

sex and foreign migrant workers. Additionally, the July 2022 criminal 

procedural amendments decreased the police's involvement in 

investigations, contributing to the lack of proactive efforts to 

identify victims. The government trained victim service providers on 

victim identification and referral and government services available 

to victims.  The government provided temporary shelter, emergency 

medical services, and psychological aid to potential trafficking 

victims during the "pre-identification stage," a stage where the 

government collected information on a potential victim within a 

maximum of 10 days. The VIC, which consisted of representatives from 

MOLSA, OPG, police, and NGOs, officially recognized victims based on 

information collected during the "pre-identification stage;" the VIC 

met eight times (three in 2022). The government issued a circular 

with standardized indicators in October 2022 for the VIC to assess 

potential victims. Experts reported establishing standardized 

indicators was a positive step, but the government did not consult 

VIC civil society members in the process, which resulted in some 

unrealistic indicators. In 2022, the government also amended 

procedures to allow all governmental organizations and NGOs to refer 

potential victims to the VIC. Civil society reported the referral 

procedures functioned well in 2023, and they had positive cooperation 

with the government.

The government allocated approximately 34.7 million drams ($86,750) 

for victim protection efforts, including operation costs for an 

NGO-run shelter, compared with approximately 28 million drams 

($70,000) in 2022. In 2022, the government issued a decree that 

provided minimum standards for victim assistance but did not solicit 

input from civil society on many of the standards. Experts reported 

the standards were reasonable, but some were not always applicable to 

trafficking victims. For example, minimum standards required a 

mandatory medical evaluation for victims upon arrival at the shelter, 

but some victims would not be ready to undergo such examinations. The 

government and local NGOs jointly provided legal, medical, and 

psycho-social support; housing; a one-time monetary compensation of 

250,000 drams ($625); and access to social, educational, and 

employment projects. The government allowed legal guardians of child 

victims to receive the one-time monetary compensation. The government 

maintained a cooperation agreement and fully funded one specialized 

NGO-run shelter to provide services to victims. The government and 

the partner NGO provided support to 23 victims, including 

accommodation for 10 victims, psycho-social support for 13 victims, 

food and clothes for 12 victims, and the one-time monetary 

compensation for seven victims. The NGO-run shelter allowed victims 

to leave the shelter at will but required victims to notify staff 

when they left shelter unescorted. In addition, the NGO-run shelter 

provided male victims with separate rooms or rented apartments. In 

2023, three male victims stayed at the shelter. The government 

provided assistance in job placement and vocational training classes 

for victims. In addition, the government did not include trafficking 

victims in the list of vulnerable people eligible for state housing. 

The NGO-run shelter and childcare institutions had the capacity to 

accommodate child victims.  The government provided foreign victims 

the same services as Armenian victims, and the law entitled foreign 

victims to a 30- day reflection period in which victims could recover 

before deciding whether to participate in criminal justice 

proceedings. The law also entitled foreign victims to receive a 

permanent residence permit.

According to experts, law enforcement officers in some remote areas 

may have lacked information and training to inform victims of their 

rights to protection or assistance. Observers continued to report 

investigations did not incorporate gender- sensitive approaches, such 

as the use of female medical professionals for forensics examinations 

with female victims.  Guidelines restricted interviews to four hours 

for adults and restricted interviews for children to 90 minutes in 

the presence of a psychologist. Observers reported victims hesitated 

to participate in criminal justice proceedings due to an absence of 

confidentiality in public testimonies, creating a fear of retaliation 

from traffickers and stigmatization from their families and 

communities. Authorities lacked victim-centered approaches during 

court proceedings, and victims, including children, appeared in front 

of the traffickers in court, which may have caused re-traumatization. 

The government continued to lack a formal victim-witness assistance 

program. The Criminal Procedure Code and a 2016 decree mandated some 

victim-witness assistance measures, but none were used in 2023. 

Prosecutors did not request restitution in criminal proceedings and 

recommended victims file civil suits for compensation; one victim 

filed a civil suit for compensation. In previous years, judges did 

not issue compensation in civil suits, asserting victims did not 

substantiate the financial damages they had suffered. The law allowed 

investigators to place defendants' property in custody to fund 

potential civil claims, but this rarely occurred in practice.

Preventetion: The government slightly increased prevention efforts. 

The Anti-trafficking Ministerial Council and the Inter- Agency 

Working Group against Trafficking in Persons (IWGTP) monitored and 

carried out anti-trafficking efforts; the Ministerial Council did not 

meet (once in 2022), and IWGTP held two meetings (six in 2022). In 

January 2023, the government drafted and adopted the 2023-2025 NAP 

and allocated 37 million drams ($92,500) for its implementation, 

compared with 40 million drams ($100,000) for the previous NAP. 

However, observers reported many of the goals and projects in the NAP 

depended on funding from donors and international organizations, 

which the government did not secure. The government allocated 600,000 

drams ($1,500) for prevention efforts, compared with 450,000 drams 

($1,125) in 2022. The government organized an awareness campaign 

targeting the public, and MOLSA sought input from survivors on the 

gaps of victim services to strengthen victim protection efforts. The 

government funded a website to make information on trafficking trends 

available to the public and hosted an annual awards ceremony for 

journalists publishing trafficking stories. The government did not 

regulate or monitor labor recruitment agencies or prohibit 

worker-paid recruitment fees. The Health and Labor Inspection Body 

conducted labor inspections but did not have jurisdiction to conduct 

inspections of "non-legal" employers, such as small farms or illegal 

businesses. MOLSA maintained a 24-hour hotline for social services, 

including trafficking victim services, and the government funded an 

NGO-run hotline for trafficking and sexual abuse; neither hotline 

reported receiving any trafficking-related calls. The government did 

not make efforts to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts.  

Traffiking pofile: As reported over the past five years, human 

traffickers exploit domestic and foreign victims in Armenia, and 

traffickers exploit victims from Armenia abroad. Traffickers exploit 

some Armenian migrants who seek employment in Russia often through 

recruitment fraud and recruitment fee-related debt bondage by labor 

brokers. Traffickers exploit Armenian women in sex and labor 

trafficking, including forced begging, within the country. 

Traffickers target Iranian and Indian migrants who willingly seek 

employment in the informal sector for exploitation in forced labor 

and force children to beg or sell items on the street, such as 

tissues. Some children work in agriculture, construction, and service 

provision within the country, where they are vulnerable to labor 

trafficking. Men in rural areas with little education, children 

staying in state childcare institutions, and persons with 

disabilities remain highly vulnerable to labor trafficking. 

Traffickers increasingly used social media to recruit victims. The 

more than 100,000 displaced persons and refugees from Nagorno 

Karabakh experiencing unemployment are vulnerable to trafficking.