How does Armenia probation work in 2026?

What probation modifies in the Armenian employment relationship:

• Shorter exit notice. During probation, either party can terminate with 3 days written notice. After probation, the employee must give 30 days and the employer must give at least 14 days (for service under one year), rising with tenure.
• A fixed assessment window. Labour Code Article 92 caps probation at 3 months, whatever the role. You cannot agree a longer one.
• Performance assessment. The employer uses the period to evaluate fit, skills, and role suitability. Criteria should be set in writing from day one.

What probation does not change:

• Unfair dismissal protection is immediate in Armenia. There is no qualifying service period before the protection applies.
• Anti-discrimination rights apply from day one. A dismissal on grounds of sex, race, disability, pregnancy, or trade union activity is unlawful at any point.
• Annual leave accrues from day one. Armenia's statutory minimum is 20 days of paid leave per year.
• The 40 hours statutory working week applies throughout.

Armenia's Labour Code Articles 92 and 93 govern probation. The 3 months cap is a hard legal limit, not a market convention. A clause written for longer than 3 months is void as to the excess. Article 92 does name a 12 months probation, but only for the cases that other Armenian legislation provides for. That is a statutory carve-out, not a term an employer and employee can agree between themselves.

The cap does not vary by role. A junior support hire and a head of department sit under the same 3 months ceiling. What does vary is where the end date lands, because Article 92 leaves absence out of the count.

What counts toward the 3 months, and what does not (Labour Code Article 92):

So probation measures 3 months of actual service, not 3 months on a calendar. A hire who takes two weeks of agreed leave and a week off sick finishes probation three weeks after the date in the offer letter. Diary the real end date, and work it out again after any absence.

Article 92 does name one longer period: a probation of 12 months, available only in the cases that Armenian legislation provides for. It is not a tier an employer can choose, and it does not attach to managers, directors or specialists as a class. For a commercial hire, plan on 3 months.

There is no pending legislative change to Armenia's probation rules that is currently in force or publicly scheduled. Unlike the UK, Armenia has no proposed reform to probation or to the qualifying period for unfair dismissal claims. The protection is already immediate.

Armenia's approach differs from many European jurisdictions. There is no qualifying service period before an employee can bring an unfair dismissal claim. That means even a dismissal in week one of probation could be challenged.

What fair procedure during Armenian probation looks like in practice:

1. Set written criteria at the start. Define what the employee needs to demonstrate and by when. Put this in the onboarding documentation.
2. Conduct regular check-ins. Brief written records of 1:1 meetings during probation provide evidence that performance was monitored and feedback was given.
3. Raise concerns early and in writing. If performance is not meeting the criteria, document this and give the employee a genuine opportunity to address it.
4. Give the required notice. Terminating during probation requires 3 days written notice. Verbal notice is not sufficient.
5. Document the decision. State the reason for the termination in writing. This record becomes important if a claim is filed.

The employee can challenge a dismissal in the Armenian courts within 2 months of the termination date. A well-documented probation process is the employer's primary defence. Skipping documentation creates unnecessary exposure even where the substantive decision to dismiss is sound.

1. Set criteria on day one

   Write down the specific performance criteria the employee must meet to pass probation. Share these with the employee in writing on or before their first day.

2. Hold mid-probation check-ins

   Run brief review meetings at the one-month mark and midway through the probation period. Record what was discussed and any feedback given.

3. Raise concerns in writing early

   If performance is not meeting the criteria, document the concern and give the employee a clear opportunity to improve before the final review.

4. Serve written notice if terminating

   Terminating during probation requires written notice. Verbal notice is not sufficient under the Armenian Labour Code.

5. Confirm the outcome in writing

   Whether the employee passes or the employment ends, confirm the outcome in writing with the date probation ends or the termination date and reason.

Armenia's Labour Code does not provide a mechanism to extend probation beyond 3 months. This is a material difference from countries such as the UK, where probation length is set by contract and can be extended by agreement.

In practice, this means:

• Whatever the seniority of the hire, you must plan the whole assessment inside the 3 months window from the start.
• If the 3 months period ends without a formal decision, the employee continues in employment. Article 93 treats them as having passed probation.
• The one thing that moves the end date is absence. Article 92 leaves out agreed leave, temporary inability to work, lawful strike, state or local self-government duties and military enlistment duties. The window picks up again when the employee returns.

What you can do within the probation window:

• Run structured review meetings at the one-month and two-month marks. Document outcomes.
• Issue written performance feedback early if concerns arise. This creates a clear record.
• If performance is borderline, use the remaining time constructively rather than deferring the decision.

What you cannot do: agree contractually to extend probation past 3 months, or relabel a role as managerial to buy a longer window. Neither is valid under Armenian law.

Day 90 is the end-of-probation decision point. The manager should come to that meeting with documented evidence of performance against the criteria set on day one.

Day 90 is only the right date if the employee worked through. Article 92 takes out any period of agreed leave, sickness, lawful strike, state duty or military service, so the real end date shifts out by the length of the absence. Work it out again rather than holding the review on the original date. Holding it late is the costlier mistake: once the period has run and the employee is still working, Article 93 deems them to have passed.

Armenia has 13 public holidays per year. Factor these into your onboarding calendar, particularly if your hire starts near the New Year block (1 to 9 January), Armenian Christmas (6 January), or other clustered holidays. A week lost to public holidays in month one can compress the orientation phase more than expected.

Real HR and legal experts handle your Armenia hires from the first offer letter through every review meeting and probation outcome. An actual person, not a chatbot or a pooled queue. There is no setup fee and no exit fee. Employer cost passes through at cost, itemised on every invoice.

Employees graduate from a compliant Armenian probation and into their confirmed role with a documented file behind them. One platform manages every stage, from the offer through the day they confirm or move on. Teamed handles the employment relationship in good months and until it isn't straightforward anymore. That means day-one unfair dismissal exposure in Armenia is covered, not left to chance.

Teamed's standard Armenia service for probation and onboarding:

• Armenian contract includes a compliant probation clause, capped at 3 months in line with Labour Code Article 92
• Written probation criteria template provided to client managers before day one
• Review-meeting templates provided at the one-month mark and before the probation end date
• Notice documentation handled centrally: the 3 days written notice requirement is built into the termination workflow
• If termination during probation: Teamed runs the procedure in line with the Armenian Labour Code. The client decides the substantive outcome.
• Documentation retained to support the employer's position if a claim is filed within the 2 months filing window

The split is clear. The client owns the relationship and the performance assessment. Teamed owns the procedure, documentation, and legal-employer mechanics. That combination keeps probation dismissals defensible without burdening the client with procedural admin in a market where day-one unfair dismissal protection makes that documentation genuinely important.

Key sources: Labour Code of the Republic of Armenia, Articles 92 and 93 via ARLIS (Armenian Legal Information System) and Armenian Labour Code termination guide (Vardanyan and Partners).