Buy Property in Armenia Remotely with a Power of Attorney

The short answer

You can buy an apartment in Armenia without flying there. The steps that need a person in Armenia are signing the contract and filing the registration with the Cadastre Committee, and a representative can do both with your power of attorney. From the US you can make that power of attorney in two ways: at an Armenian consulate, or before a US notary with an apostille.

Before you commit

• Ask the developer’s sales office for a live video walk-through of the site and, if it is built, the apartment.
• Ask for dated photos and compare them with the stage shown on the project page.
• Compare the apartment you are offered with the floor plan attached to the contract.
• Read stages and delivery risk for the documents to ask for.

Choose a representative

A trusted relative or a lawyer in Yerevan is the usual choice. Keep the power of attorney as narrow as you can:

• Name the exact apartment, project and developer.
• List what the representative may do: sign the contract, file for registration, obtain certificates and collect documents.
• Say whether they may pay on your behalf, or whether you pay directly from the US (safer).
• Set an end date.

Practical tip: ask the Armenian notary who will certify the sale to approve the draft wording before you sign it. A vague power of attorney, or one missing a power the notary needs, can mean starting again.

Option 1: at an Armenian consulate

Armenia’s Embassy in Washington, DC and the Consulate General in Los Angeles provide consular services. The Los Angeles consulate lists notarial certification of a power of attorney for real estate at $78 (fees valid from January 1, 2026). Other consulates, including the embassy in Washington, DC: check their fee schedule. The embassy asks you to book in advance through Armenia’s electronic consular system, with reception Monday to Thursday mornings.

Because the document is certified by Armenia’s own consular officer, it typically needs no apostille. Ask the consulate whether it can be drawn up in Armenian, which would also save the translation step.

Option 2: US notary and apostille

1. Sign the power of attorney before a US notary public.
2. Get an apostille from the competent authority of the state where the notary is commissioned, usually the Secretary of State (for example, California’s Secretary of State). Both the US and Armenia belong to the Hague Apostille Convention, so no embassy legalization is needed.
3. Send the original to your representative.
4. Have it translated into Armenian in Armenia. Expect the notary to ask for a notarized translation, as the government portal requires for foreign passports.

Option 2 can be quicker if you live far from Washington or Los Angeles; option 1 can avoid the apostille and, often, the translation. Either way, your representative will also need a copy of your passport; ask the notary what form it must take.

Signing and registration

Your representative signs the contract at the Armenian notary and files it with the Cadastre Committee. The government portal lists a standard registration result in 4 working days. Ownership passes when the purchase is registered, not when the contract is signed. Ask your representative for scans of the signed contract, every receipt and the registration record.

Paying safely from the US

• Wire money from your US account to the developer’s company account named in the contract. That keeps a clean record in your own name.
• Keep every transfer confirmation; the notary and the Cadastre will want proof of payment.
• Agree the currency and the exchange rate in writing. See how to buy from the US for the dram rules.
• Ask your US bank about wire fees, limits and timing to Armenia before the payment date.

Warning Never pay a deposit to a personal card or to a third party, and never before you have the permit and the contract in writing.

If you can travel once

A single short trip lets you sign in person and see the building, and you need no power of attorney. Compare the cost of the trip with the cost of the document, translation and a representative’s time. Check taxes and fees for the other closing costs, and browse new builds in Yerevan or developers to start your shortlist.

Sources

• Consulate General of Armenia in Los Angeles: consular fees
• Embassy of Armenia in the USA: consular reception
• HCCH: Apostille Convention status table
• Caltech Registrar: apostilles through the California Secretary of State
• Hartak: Register home ownership with the State Cadastre Committee
• Hartak: How to sell a house in Armenia