Armenia countries/am.yaml
Possession of small amounts without intent to sell is anSmall possession and use are administrative offence punished by a fineoffences with heavy fines, doubled in May 2026; sale and large-scale growing are criminal. Industrial hemp is licensed at 0.3% THC, while psychoactive cannabis has no medical route.
Since 2008 possessing a small amount for personal use without intent to sell ishas been an administrative offence, not a crime.[@admin] The finethreshold is heavy —2.5 g of dried herbal cannabis; the fine was 200,000 to 400 times the minimum wage unit, roughly US$500–1,000 — but there is no prison and the fine is waived for people who voluntarily seek treatment. In drams.[@admin,amounts] From 22 May 2026 the fine is 200400,000 to 400800,000; drams, and 800,000 to 1,100,000 for a bill before parliament in May 2026 would double itrepeat within a year.[@admin2026] Above 2.5 g, possession becomes criminal: up to two years for 2.5 to 12.5 g, one to four years for 12.5 to 62.5 g, and three to six years above 62.5 g.[@criminal] A person who voluntarily surrenders the drug is exempt from administrative liability.[@admin]
hcaadmin, iwpradmin2026, upr09amounts, pan26criminal
Growing cannabisSmall and significant cultivation is aadministrative, not criminal offence: up to 500 g of plant material brings an 80,000 to 100,000 dram fine, and people living near wild stands say500 g to 2.5 kg a 100,000 to 120,000 dram fine.[@admin,amounts] Above 2.5 kg the police destroy the plantsoffence becomes criminal: up to two years for 2. Industrial5 to 12.5 kg, two to five years above 12.5 kg, and four to eight years for an organised group or involving minors.[@criminal] Licensed companies may grow industrial hemp with no more than 0.3% THC may be grown since 2021, but only by licensed companies and in greenhouses, not byCBD greater than THC; individuals may not.[@hempact]
hcaadmin, evn22amounts, balant25criminal, hempact
Users face a large administrative fine instead of the two months in jail that applied before 2008.[@hca] Sale and cultivation for saleabove the administrative thresholds remain crimes with prison.[@criminal] Drug offences recorded by the police rose from 2,266 in 2022 to 5,070 in 2023, and drug-trafficking cases rose 83% in the first half of 2025.[@azat23,azat25]
hca, iwprcriminal, azat23, azat25
SupplySale or distribution is a crime withcriminal: three to sevensix years in the base case, five to ten years for a group, a large amount, online sale, a school or morea prison, and eight to fifteen years for an organised group, an especially large amount or minors.[@criminal] There is no separate offence for an unpaid gift; a small gift may be treated as circulation without intent to sell, while a larger one can fall under the possession or supply provisions.[@criminal]
iwprcriminal
Use without a prescription is handleda separate administrative offence under Article 44.2, fined 200,000 to 400,000 drams, or 400,000 to 800,000 for a repeat within a year.[@admin,admin2026] A person who voluntarily seeks medical help is exempt.[@admin] Use is not the same administrative offence as small possession, though both sit in the administrative code.[@admin]
hcaadmin, admin2026
NoThere is no legal recreational source.[@hca] Psychoactive cannabis remains on List No. 1 of prohibited substances, and no medical cannabis programme or patient supply was found.[@list1129] Industrial hemp is on List No. 2 and is licensed only for companies.[@list1129]
hca, iwpr, upr09, pan26list1129
The verified production route coversis licensed industrial hemp, defined by with CBD content greater than THC and a THC ceiling ofno more than 0.3% THC.[@hempact] The programme described in 2022 required corporate licences forOnly legal entities may hold a production licence, for up to ten years, with a minimum charter capital and processingnursery, greenhouse, warehouse and laboratory requirements; sixproduction must start within two years.[@hempact] Six companies held licences inby January that year2022.[@evn22] There is no medical or adult-use production route.[@list1129]
hempact, evn22, list1129
Hemp seed is a traditional food and seed powder was recorded on sale in Yerevan's markets in 2020. The government's list of controlled substances, in its 2019 consolidated text, puts every hemp species on List No. 1, of substances whose circulation is prohibited in Armenia, together with any preparation containing THC "regardless of the name under which they appear", cannabis extracts and tinctures, and all THC isomers.
balant25, list1129
No medical cannabis programme, registered cannabis medicine or patient supply was found.[@list1129] In February 2019 the health minister said there could be no initiative to free the use of narcotics and that he would veto one.[@arm19] No later medical-cannabis law was found.[@list1129] Cannabis and THC areremain on the listList No. 1 of substances whose circulation is prohibited, not on List No. 2, of substances whose circulation is only restricted substances.[@list1129] Medical status stays none.[@list1129]
arm19, list1129, arm19
An administrative offence is not a criminal record, but users are placed on a narcological register for observation, for at least a year.[@hca] The drug law lets the police order a drug test on suspicion of use, and a person diagnosed as dependent can be sent to compulsory treatment.[@upr09] A criminal conviction for sale or large-scale growing carries a record and prison.[@criminal]
hca, upr09, criminal
No figurespublished annual arrest count by drug werewas found. Drug crimesThe available figures are seizures and recorded by the police more than doubledoffences: 5,070 drug crimes in the first nine months of 2023, and a 83% rise officials put down to synthetic drugs sold online, andin drug-trafficking cases in the interior minister called for makingfirst half of 2025.[@azat23,azat25] In 2024 there were 252 drug addiction a crime again-trafficking cases involving information or communication technology.[@azat25]
azat23, azat25
No cannabis clubs are known, and the law leaves no room for them: growing psychoactive cannabis and supplying it to another person are both prohibited.[@criminal,list1129]
hcacriminal, iwprlist1129
There is no legal recreational supply for anyone. Since 2008 possessing a small amount for personal use without intent to sell is an administrative offence with a heavy fine and no prison.[@admin] The law makes no exception for visitors.[@admin]
hca, iwpradmin
Administrative Offences Code article 126(9) treats a driver as intoxicated when testing establishesshows narcotic or psychotropic substance content in blood or urine.[@trafficcode] A separate demonstration of impaired vehicle control is not stated inrequired by that definition.[@trafficcode] Article 126(3) provides two years' deprivation of driving rights for drug-related intoxication;, and avoiding the prescribed sobriety examination also results in two years under paragraph 4. Drug intoxication is determined by a medical expert examination under paragraph 10. Paragraph 9 also covers consuming a substance after a police stop or relevant crash but before the sobriety test. The ordinary monetary fine and five-point deduction in paragraph 1 are expressly alcohol-only and must not be substituted for the drug sanction. The official English consolidation includes the March 2025 amendment.[@trafficcode] No numerical THC allowance or prescribed-cannabis exception was verified in article 126; the statute's reference to drug content should not be expanded into an assertion that every inactive cannabis metabolite is independently sufficientfound.[@trafficcode]
Figures reported byIn 2024 the government to the UNauthorities seized about 426 kg of all drugs office record, roughly 200 kg more than in 2023.[@azat25] UNODC records 327 kg of herbal cannabis seized in 2024, against 13 kg in 2023. The UN publishes them as kilogram equivalents[@unodc_szr] Recorded drug crimes rose from 2, and countries count seizures differently266 in 2022 to 5, so070 in 2023, and drug-trafficking cases rose 83% in the figures are not comparable across bordersfirst half of 2025.[@azat23,azat25] No price or purity data were found.
azat25, azat23, unodc_szr
Licensed industrial hemp must have CBD content greater than THC and no more than 0.3% THC in the sampled material.[@hempact] Companies may apply for industrial-hemp production and processing licences; this agricultural category is separate from psychoactive cannabis, which remains on List No. 1.[@hempact,list1129] Hemp seed is a traditional food, and seed powder was recorded on sale in Yerevan markets in 2020.[@balant25]
hempact, list1129, balant25
Armenia — Administrative Offences Code, Articles 44.1, 44.2 and 110.2 (ARLIS)
Armenia — Law HO-197-N of 21 May 2026 amending the Administrative Offences Code
Armenia — Criminal Code 2021, Articles 393, 396 and 404 (ARLIS)
Armenia — Government Decision No. 707-N of 27 June 2018 on amounts of narcotic drugs
Armenia — Government Decision No. 1129-N of 21 August 2003, list of controlled narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances (consolidated text)
Armenia — Government Decision No. 736-L of 5 June 2025 on the 2025–2027 drug strategy
Azatutyun (RFE/RL) — report on 2024 seizures, prison and 2025 trends (September 2025)
Armenia — Government Decision N 1129-N of 15 September 2003, list of controlled narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances (consolidated English translation, 2019)
11 unchanged
AMD
upto 2.5 g · treatment civil · term Small amount, Article 44.1 · fine min 400000 · fine 800000 · note Repeat within a year 800,000–1,100,000 drams; voluntary surrender exempts, over 2.5 g · upto 12.5 g · treatment criminal · term Article 396(1) · prison 2 years · note Fine, community work, restriction of liberty or short-term imprisonment also available, over 12.5 g · upto 62.5 g · treatment criminal · term Large amount, Article 396(2) · prison min 1 year · prison 4 years, over 62.5 g · treatment criminal · term Especially large amount, Article 396(3) · prison min 3 years · prison 6 years
AMD
upto 500 g · treatment civil · term Small amount, Article 110.2(1) · fine min 80000 · fine 100000, over 500 g · upto 2.5 kg · treatment civil · term Significant amount, Article 110.2(2) · fine min 100000 · fine 120000, over 2.5 kg · upto 12.5 kg · treatment criminal · term Article 404(1) · prison 2 years · note Fine, community work, restriction of liberty or short-term imprisonment also available, over 12.5 kg · treatment criminal · term Especially large amount, Article 404(2) · prison min 2 years · prison 5 years, label Organised group or involving minors · treatment criminal · term Article 404(3) · prison min 4 years · prison 8 years
label Sale or distribution, Article 393(1) · treatment criminal · term Sale · prison min 3 years · prison 6 years, label Group, large amount, online, school or prison, Article 393(2) · treatment criminal · term Sale · prison min 5 years · prison 10 years, label Organised group, especially large amount or minors, Article 393(3) · treatment criminal · term Sale · prison min 8 years · prison 15 years
AMD
label Use without a prescription, Article 44.2 · treatment civil · term Use · fine min 200000 · fine 400000 · note Repeat 400,000–800,000 drams; voluntary treatment exempts
Small possession and use are administrative offences with heavy fines; there is no legal way to buy cannabis.[@admin] Sale and larger growing are criminal.[@criminal] The fines were doubled in May 2026, and the government adopted a 2025–2027 drug strategy in June 2025.[@admin2026,strategy2025] No legalisation bill was advancing in 2026.
admin, criminal, admin2026, strategy2025
licensed
regulated
licensed
regulated
Industrial-hemp seed and planting material are available only within the licensed producer system; the law requires approved seed and nursery facilities.[@hempact] Psychoactive cannabis is on List No. 1, and its seeds and clones fall under the general prohibition.[@list1129] No open seed or clone market was found.
hempact, list1129
Hemp seed has been part of Armenian fasting food since at least the nineteenth century, when a folklorist recorded it on the Lenten table; a 1930 Soviet survey found Armenians grew little hemp for fibre.[@balant25] The plant's name reached Armenian through the Greek [cannabis](/culture/language/cannabis/) word, and the atlas entry traces that etymology.[@balant25]
balant25