Getting Started with Business in (Country)

Are you interested in exporting to or investing in Armenia? Here are a few steps to get started:

Review the Country Commercial Guide and Investment Climate Statement for Armenia to get an overview of economic conditions and opportunities.
Contact your local U.S. Export Assistance Center for advice and support on exporting to Armenia. To find the center near you, visit https://www.export.gov/locations.
Contact in-country business support organizations such as the American Chamber of Commerce in Armenia.
Follow the U.S. Embassy’s Facebook page.

FCPA

The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) is an important anti-corruption tool designed to discourage corrupt business practices in favor of free and fair markets. The FCPA prohibits promising, offering, giving or authorizing giving anything of value to a foreign government official where the purpose is to obtain or retain business. These prohibitions apply to U.S. persons, both individuals and companies, and companies that are listed on U.S. exchanges. The statute also requires companies publicly traded in the U.S. to keep accurate books and records and implement appropriate internal controls. More information on the FCPA can be found here.

A party to a transaction seeking to know whether a proposed course of conduct would violate the FCPA can take advantage of the opinion procedure established by the statue. Within 30 days of receiving a description of a proposed course of conduct in writing, the Attorney General will provide the party with a written opinion on whether the proposed conduct would violate the FCPA. Not only do opinions provide the requesting party with a rebuttable presumption that the conduct does not violate the FCPA, but the Department of Justice publishes past opinions which can provide guidance for other companies facing similar situations.

1992 Bilateral Investment Treaty

The U.S.–Armenia Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT), signed by the United States and Armenia in 1992 and in force since 1996, protects U.S. investment in Armenia. The BIT aims to protect investment abroad, encourage the adoption of market-oriented domestic policies that treat private investment in an open, transparent, and non-discriminatory way, and support the development of international law standards consistent with these objectives. The BIT also provides avenues for the resolution of investment disputes.

1992 Bilateral Investment Treaty signed by the United States and Armenia

Basic provisions regulating American investments are set by the Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) signed by the United States and Armenia in 1992 and in force since 1996, and by the 1994 Law on Foreign Investment. In addition to providing for national treatment and most-favored nation treatment, the BIT sets out guidelines for the settlement of disputes involving the governments of either party. As an international treaty, the BIT supersedes Armenian law, a point which Armenia’s constitution acknowledges and which holds in actual practice.

Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) signed by the United States and Armenia is available at http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/43477.pdf (PDF 147 KB)

Armenia’s Membership in International Organizations

Armenia is a member of the following major international organizations: IMF, World Bank/IDA, IFC, WTO, OSCE, Council of Europe, UN/UNCTAD/UNESCO, MIGA, ILO, WHO, WIPO, INTERPOL, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), IAEA, World Tourism Organization, World Customs Organization, International Telecommunications Union and the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC). Armenia became the 145^th member of the WTO in February 2003.