Armenian ministry explains 'Azerbaijan' birthplace entry in passports

PanARMENIAN.Net - The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Armenia has clarified why the birthplace field in passports issued to forcibly displaced persons from Nagorno-Karabakh, who have acquired Armenian citizenship, is recorded as "Azerbaijan."

As reported by Armenpress, the ministry presented the "legal and technical grounds for this practice."

It explained that personal identification documents must align with international standards. Specifically, the issuance of machine-readable identification and travel documents is governed by ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) standard 9303. This standard states that the designation of the birthplace field must comply with ISO 3166, which lists the acceptable geographic entities for passport documentation based on recognized states.

Accordingly, any designation that is not validated within this international framework may cause complications at border crossings. Therefore, Armenia’s Migration and Citizenship Service, as the authorized agency under the Ministry of Internal Affairs, adheres strictly to these norms when issuing documents.

The ministry also noted that border control authorities in various countries have raised repeated concerns over this issue with Armenia’s Migration and Citizenship Service.

“In daily operations, these matters are addressed through partner-level coordination. To ensure legal compliance, the service strictly follows international standards when issuing new documents,” the ministry's statement read.