Armenian Parliament ends free state land grants to Armenian Apostolic Church

(Horizon Weekly / YEREVAN) – In a significant legislative shift, Armenia’s National Assembly has approved amendments to the Land Code that effectively end the long-standing practice of granting state- and community-owned land to the Armenian Apostolic Church free of charge. The new regulations, adopted in their second and final reading on March 25, 2026, stipulate that such plots can no longer be transferred into the Church’s ownership for the construction or maintenance of religious structures. Instead, authorities will only be permitted to grant land on the basis of perpetual use, ensuring that the state retains ultimate ownership.

The draft law, introduced by the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure, passed with 67 votes in favour, 26 against, and 3 abstentions. During the parliamentary sessions, Vahe Ghalumyan, head of the Standing Committee on Territorial Administration, defended the initiative as a regulatory necessity rather than an attack on the Church. The government has maintained that the policy is designed to ensure the “targeted and efficient” use of public property. However, critics view the move within the broader context of escalating tensions between the administration and the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin.

The legislative change follows a series of unprecedented steps by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who recently used a Facebook live broadcast to read a statement calling for systemic reforms within the Armenian Apostolic Church. That statement, which urged the resignation of the Catholicos of All Armenians, Karekin II, was signed by several participating bishops and archbishops. The Prime Minister also announced the formation of a coordinating council to oversee these reforms, a move that the Mother See has previously condemned as a gross violation of the Church’s constitutional autonomy and internal affairs.