LAW
OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
Adopted on 21 June 2014
ON PHYTOSANITARY
CHAPTER 1
GENERAL PROVISIONS
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Article 1. |
Subject matter of the Law |
1. This Law shall regulate relations pertaining to the implementation and management of the field of phytosanitary in the Republic of Armenia, shall establish mandatory phytosanitary requirements and the basic phytosanitary principles in the process of cultivation, storage, transportation or placing on the market of plants, plant products and other regulated items, as well as obligations of natural and legal persons engaged in soil cultivation.
2. This Law shall extend to all entities involved in relations having arisen in the field of phytosanitary, including persons performing activities in the field of phytosanitary.
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Article 2. |
Legislation on phytosanitary |
1. The relations having arisen in the field of phytosanitary shall be regulated by this Law, other laws, Civil Code of the Republic of Armenia and other legal acts.
2. Where provisions other than those provided for by this Law are prescribed by the international treaties of the Republic of Armenia, the norms of international treaties shall apply.
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Article 3. |
Basic concepts used in the Law |
1. The following main concepts shall be used in this Law:
(1) authorised body — Food Safety Inspection Body;
(2) plants — intact plants and separate parts thereof, including seeds, germs;
(3) phytosanitary — system of measures aimed at the production of healthy plants, plant products and other regulated items in a healthy environment;
(4) plant quarantine — complex of state measures for the protection of plants, the purpose whereof is to identify, isolate and eliminate the foci infested with quarantine pests for plants, plant products and other regulated items;
(5) plant product — raw material of plant origin, as well as processed products (except for those having undergone heat treatment) which may, by their nature or manner of processing, pose risk of penetration and (or) spread of pests;
(6) phytosanitary risk analysis — evaluation of biological and economic data in order to determine the need for regulation of pests, to implement phytosanitary measures for controlling them or strengthening phytosanitary measures;
(7) phytosanitary rules and norms — phytosanitary requirements prescribed by the international treaties of the Republic of Armenia, respective law of the Republic of Armenia and other regulatory legal acts;
(8) plant protection — use of chemical and biological means of pest control in places of cultivation, testing, storage and transportation of plants, plant products, as well as a complex of measures of pest control aimed at preserving the environment and protecting plants;
(9) phytosanitary inspection — visual inspection of plants, plant products and other regulated items in order to determine the presence or absence of pests;
(10) plant quarantine pest — pest of economic importance for the endangered zone, which is still absent or has limited presence in the given zone, is an object of control and is officially controlled;
(11) plant pest — any type of diseases, vermin and weeds for plants, plant products;
(12) plant quarantine zone — zone where quarantine pests exist, and for the purpose of preventing and eliminating the further spread thereof quarantine control was set and phytosanitary measures are being taken;
(13) regulated non-quarantine pest of plants — pest the presence whereof causes economic damage to the intended use of plants and is controlled by the importing country;
(14) plant pest control — mandatory application of phytosanitary rules for the purpose of suppressing the fertility, isolation and (or) destruction of quarantine pests, as well as for the purpose of managing regulated non-quarantine pests;
(15) regulated item (quarantine object) — any plant, plant product, reserve territory, packing material, vehicle, container, soil and any other object or material that may contain or spread plant pests, and in relation whereto it is necessary to apply phytosanitary measures;
(16) phytosanitary expert examination — laboratory examination of plants, plant products and other regulated items in order to determine the presence or absence of pests;
(17) phytosanitary record-registration — collection, classification, storage, update and use of data on natural and legal persons carrying out activities in the field of phytosanitary;
(18) certificate of phytosanitary record-registration — document issued to natural and legal persons as a result of phytosanitary record-registration;
(19) phytosanitary measure — official process aimed at limiting the economic damage expected from penetration and (or) spread of a quarantine pest or a regulated non-quarantine pest;
(20) phytosanitary passport — document accompanying plants, plant products and other regulated items produced in the Republic of Armenia, which certifies as to those having been inspected and being free from quarantine pest;
(21) batch — certain quantity of goods subject to phytosanitary control, of the same significance, produced (manufactured) by the same producer according to the same principle of operation, with the same composition and complying with the same established requirements characterising safety, which is accompanied by a product accompanying document;
(22) phytosanitary study — official measure implemented within the prescribed period in order to determine the characteristics of pest fertility or pest composition in the given zone;
(23) goods subject to phytosanitary control — plants, plant product and other regulated item;
(24) agrochemicals — fertilisers, chemical reclamators intended for plant nutrition, improvement of soil fertility;
(25) pesticide — means of plant protection, any material or mixture of materials, which is intended for the prevention of spread and progress of or destruction of plant diseases, certain pests (including human and animal disease carriers, pests hindering the processes of production, processing, transportation, sales of food, unprocessed agricultural products, timber, animal feed), unwanted species of plants and fungi. The main groups of pesticides include insecticides, acaricides, rodenticides, fungicides, bactericides, nematicides, herbicides, plant growth regulators, pheromones, defoliants, desiccants and fumigants;
(26) seed material (planting material) — plant or a separate part thereof used for the reproduction of a variety;
(27) means of plant protection — chemical, biological means applied for the prevention of plant pests, their control and elimination;
(28) urgent case — a demand for pesticides and agrochemicals in the Republic of Armenia for the purpose of preventing the spread of plant quarantine and non-quarantine pests or the damage caused thereby, or for plant protection or improvement of soil fertility, which is aimed at the urgent control of plant pests and ensuring that plants are supplied with necessary nutrition elements;
(29) active substance — a biologically active component existing in the pesticide formulation, which ensures the effectiveness of intended use of pesticides;
(30) pheromone — a synthetic chemical preparation similar to the aromatic substances produced by the endocrine and excretory glands of living organisms, which is a pesticide and is used to control pests, to prevent and reduce their spread, development, as well as to monitor the development and flight activity of pests and to determine the timing of insecticide application against them. Instead of affecting the biochemical processes of pests, pheromones disrupt their natural mating cycle;
(31) defoliant — a chemical pesticide that causes artificial leaf fall in plants. When applied in a certain amount, the viability of the plants is not reduced and is used in agriculture to facilitate the harvesting process of certain crops;
(32) desiccant — a chemical pesticide that accelerates the ripening and drying of crops, and is used to facilitate the harvesting process of certain crops;
(33) fumigant — a chemical pesticide in a gaseous state that is used to control pests (insects), and it penetrates their bodies through the respiratory system;
(34) decontamination — a set of actions carried out on plants, plant products and other regulated items, aimed at the destruction of quarantine pests;
(35) producer — any natural or legal person or individual entrepreneur that produces plants, plant products and other regulated items, as well as pesticides and agrochemicals for the purpose of sales;
(36) production area — a production facility where pesticides or agrochemicals are produced directly by the producer or upon the order of the producer and in the appropriate composition specified thereby;
(37) trade name — name of a pesticide or agrochemical under which the pesticide or agrochemical is marked, registered, advertised and used in order to distinguish this product from other pesticides or agrochemicals containing similar active substance or nutrition element;
(38) authorised policy-making body — body of the state administration system developing a policy in the field of phytosanitary.
2. The policy of the Government in the field of phytosanitary shall be developed by relevant ministry.
(Article 3 supplemented by HO-240-N of 17 December 2014, edited, supplemented by HO-287-N of 23 March 2018, supplemented by HO-220-N of 15 June 2023, amended, edited, supplemented by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
CHAPTER 2
STATE REGULATION IN THE SPHERE OF PHYTOSANITARY
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Article 4. |
Objectives of phytosanitary |
The objectives of phytosanitary shall be as follows:
(1) identification of plant quarantine and regulated non-quarantine pests in the territory of the Republic of Armenia and supervision over the organisation of the destruction process thereof;
(2) prevention of penetration into and spread of plant quarantine pests in the territory of the Republic of Armenia, i.e. implementation of measures for the purpose of sampling for phytosanitary examination, expert examination of plants, plant products and other regulated items and protection of plants;
(3) observance of phytosanitary rules and norms during the import, export, re-export and transit of plants, plant products and other regulated items;
(4) observance of phytosanitary rules and norms during the production and processing of plants, plant products and other regulated items, as well as in sales points operating within the territory of the Republic of Armenia and supervision over the observance thereof;
(5) implementation of measures for the purpose of timely forecasting, diagnosis and prevention of mass reproduction and spread of plant pests;
(6) ensuring the improvement of the phytosanitary condition of agricultural, ornamental crops, forests, as well as the exclusion of harm posing danger to the environment, flora and fauna.
(Article 4 amended by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
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Article 5. |
Powers of the Government in the field of phytosanitary |
(Title amended by HO-287-N of 23 March 2018)
1. The powers of the Government in the field of phytosanitary shall be as follows:
(1) approving targeted programmes implemented in the particular field;
(2) approving state programmes for international co-operation in phytosanitary;
(3) establishing the procedure for state registration, re-registration and withdrawal from registration of pesticides and agrochemicals;
(4) (Point repealed by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(5) establishing the procedure for carrying out expert examination of pesticides and agrochemicals and the forms of opinions on import and export of pesticides and agrochemicals;
(6) establishing plant quarantine and lifting the quarantine;
(7) establishing the requirements for the production and circulation of pesticides and agrochemicals;
(8) establishing the requirements for packaging of pesticides and agrochemicals;
(8.1) establishing the procedure for taking a test specimen for phytosanitary expert examination;
(8.2) approving the work safety rules in the field of plant production;
(9) adopting other legal acts deriving from this Law.
(Article 5 amended by HO-240-N of 17 December 2014, HO-287-N of 23 March 2018, supplemented by HO-310-N of 7 July 2022, amended, supplemented by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
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Article 5.1. |
Powers of the authorised body |
1. The authorised body shall approve:
(1) the form of phytosanitary passport and procedure for the issuance thereof;
(2) the procedure for phytosanitary record-registration, repeated record-registration, suspension of record-registration, the forms of record-registration application, record-registration certificate and register.
2. The authorised body shall exercise also other powers in the cases prescribed by the legislation of the Republic of Armenia.
(Article 5.1 supplemented by HO-310-N of 7 July 2022)
(Law HO-310-N of 7 July 2022 contains a transitional provision)
CHAPTER 3
REQUIREMENTS TO PESTICIDES AND AGROCHEMICALS AND THE STATE REGISTRATION THEREOF
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Article 6. |
State registration and re-registration of pesticides |
(Title edited by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
1. Pesticides produced in the Republic of Armenia, imported into the Republic of Armenia and circulated in the Republic of Armenia shall be subject to mandatory state registration (hereinafter referred to as “the registration”), except for pesticides imported on the basis of a legal act adopted by the authorised policy-making body in urgent cases prescribed by this Law.
2. In the Republic of Armenia, pesticides shall be registered through general and simplified procedures. The Government shall establish the cases for carrying out registration of pesticides through simplified procedure.
3. Registration of pesticides shall be carried out by the authorised body.
4. The authorised body shall carry out the registration of pesticides through general procedure within 20 working days upon submission of the application, and through simplified procedure — within 7 working days upon the submission thereof.
5. In case of shortcomings (technical errors, inaccuracies, inconsistencies, arithmetic errors and other similar omissions) existing in the application or in the documents attached to the application and prescribed by parts 6 and 7 of this Article, as well as in case the documents are incomplete, the authorised body shall, within 2 working days upon detection thereof, recommend the applicant to eliminate the shortcomings within 10 working days, and the time limits referred to in part 4 of this Article shall be extended for a period of 10 working days.
6. Registration of pesticides produced in the Republic of Armenia shall be carried out through general procedure. Documents containing the following information shall be submitted to the authorised body for registration of pesticides:
(1) the trade name of pesticide, active substance, the percentage ratio or content of the substance in the unit volume and the permissible deviations, synergetic and auxiliary substances, the percentage ratio or content of each substance in the unit volume, the formulation, the name of producer, the address (in case of a legal person — the registered address and the country of production area introduced by the producer, and in case of a natural person or an individual entrepreneur — the name, surname, father’s name, address of record-registration and the country of the production area introduced by the producer);
(2) consumption rate of the pesticide, term, method and features of use of the pesticide, the object under treatment, pest, number of treatments, pending period, application restrictions, application safety requirements;
(3) hygienic norms on the pesticide (the marginal permissible daily dose in the human body, the marginal permissible quantity in soil, the marginal permissible quantity in reservoir waters, the marginal permissible quantity in the air of working zone, the permissible amount in atmospheric air, and the maximum permissible level in food products);
(4) methodologies for chemical expert examination of the pesticide, those for determining residual amounts, the crystalline prototype (standard) of the active substance of pesticides, if the crystalline prototype is required under the methodologies for expert examination of the material concerned;
(5) toxicity of the pesticide for non-targeted types (fish, birds, bees, soil microorganisms, etc.);
(6) impact of the pesticide on reproductivity;
(7) mutagenic, allergenic, cancerogenic and skin irritating, teratogenic, gonadotoxic, embryotoxic properties of the pesticide;
(8) document certifying the toxicological and hygienic assessment of the pesticide;
(9) description of the label of the pesticide, in compliance with the requirements of Article 9 of this Law;
(10) statement of information on the results of field-related and laboratory tests thereof in the Republic of Armenia for two consecutive years, which is issued by the scientific and educational institutions prescribed by the legal act adopted by the authorised policy-making body, in accordance with the form approved by the authorised policy-making body.
7. Pesticides produced in foreign States shall be registered through the following general and simplified procedures:
(1) the following shall be required for registration through general procedure:
a. the documents prescribed by points 1-9 of part 6 of this Article;
b. information on the registering country, the registration year and reference number, and that on including the particular pesticide in the current nomenclature of the registering country;
(2) the following shall be required for registration through simplified procedure:
a. the documents prescribed by points 1-4 and 9 of part 6 of this Article;
b. information on the registering country, the registration year and reference number, and that on including the particular pesticide in the current nomenclature of the registering country, except for the cases prescribed by the Government.
8. After examination of documents, the authorised body shall render a decision on registering the pesticide concerned and including it in the nomenclature of pesticides and agrochemicals permitted for use in the Republic of Armenia or on rejecting the registration thereof, and shall, within three working days, properly inform the applicant thereof in paper-based or electronic form.
9. In case of rendering a decision on rejecting the registration of pesticides, the authorised body shall return the package for registration of pesticides to the applicant. The registration shall be rejected, where:
(1) the active substance of the pesticide or any of the synergetic or auxiliary substances of the pesticide is included in the list of chemical substances and pesticides prohibited in the Republic of Armenia;
(2) the applicant failed to eliminate the detected shortcomings within the time limit prescribed by part 5 of this Article;
(3) the pesticide is not registered in the producing country, except for the pesticide registered through simplified procedure based on the case prescribed by the Government.
10. The decision on rejecting the registration of a pesticide may be appealed against through administrative or judicial procedure.
11. Pesticides shall be subject to re-registration, where a natural or legal person or an individual entrepreneur has submitted an application for re-registration at least 60 days before the expiry of the term of registration, and the composition and percentage ratios of active, synergetic, auxiliary substances of the pesticide did not change. In case of pesticides registered through simplified procedure, re-registration shall be carried out in compliance with the provisions for registration through simplified procedure established under this Article, and in case of pesticides registered through general procedure — in compliance with the provisions for registration through general procedure.
12. The re-registration prescribed by part 11 of this Article shall be conducted in the case where the pesticide is registered in the producing country at the time of re-registration, except for the pesticide registered through simplified procedure based on the case prescribed by the Government.
(Article 6 edited by HO-240-N of 17 December 2014, amended by HO-125-N of 4 March 2020, supplemented by HO-220-N of 15 June 2023, edited by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
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Article. 6.1. |
Registration and re-registration of agrochemicals |
1. Agrochemicals produced in the Republic of Armenia, imported into the Republic of Armenia and circulated in the Republic of Armenia shall be subject to mandatory registration, except for agrochemicals imported on the basis of a legal act adopted by the authorised policy-making body in urgent cases prescribed by this Law.
2. In the Republic of Armenia, agrochemicals shall be registered through general and simplified procedures. The Government shall establish the cases for carrying out registration of agrochemicals through the simplified procedure.
3. The registration of agrochemicals shall be carried out by the authorised body.
4. The authorised body shall carry out the registration of agrochemicals through general procedure within 20 working days upon submission of the application, and through simplified procedure — within 7 working days upon the submission thereof.
5. In case of shortcomings (technical errors, inaccuracies, inconsistencies, arithmetic errors and other similar omissions) existing in the application or in the documents attached to the application and prescribed by parts 6 and 7 of this Article, as well as in case the documents are incomplete, the authorised body shall, within 2 working days upon detection thereof, recommend the applicant to eliminate the shortcomings within 10 working days, and the time limits referred to in part 4 of this Article shall be extended for a period of 10 working days.
6. Registration of agrochemicals produced in the Republic of Armenia shall be carried out through general procedure. Documents containing the following information shall be submitted to the authorised body for the registration thereof:
(1) the trade name of agrochemical, nutrition elements, the percentage ratio or content thereof in the unit volume and the permissible deviations, the formulation, the name, address of producer (in case of a legal person — the registered address and the country of production area introduced by the producer, and in case of a natural person or an individual entrepreneur — the name, surname, father’s name, address of record-registration and the country of production area introduced by the producer);
(2) methods for use of the agrochemical, the application safety requirements;
(3) marginal permissible quantity of agrochemicals in the air of working zone;
(4) methodology for chemical expert examination of the nutrition elements of an agrochemical;
(5) the document certifying toxicological and hygienic assessment of the agrochemical, except for the case prescribed by part 3 of Article 8 of this Law;
(6) description of the label of an agrochemical, in compliance with the requirements of Article 9 of this Law.
7. Agrochemicals produced, tested and being used in foreign States shall be registered through the following general and simplified procedures:
(1) the following shall be required for registration through general procedure:
a. the documents prescribed by part 6 of this Article;
b. information on the registering country, registration year and reference number, and that on including the particular agrochemical in the current nomenclature of the registering country;
(2) the following shall be required for registration through simplified procedure:
a. the documents prescribed by points 1-3 and 6 of part 6 of this Article;
b. information on the registering country, registration year and reference number, that on including the particular agrochemical in the current nomenclature of the registering country, except for the cases prescribed by the Government.
8. After examination of documents, the authorised body shall render a decision on registering the agrochemical concerned and including it in the nomenclature of pesticides and agrochemicals permitted for use in the Republic of Armenia or on rejecting registration thereof, and shall, within the period prescribed by the legislation of the Republic of Armenia, properly inform the applicant thereof in paper-based or electronic form.
9. In case of rendering a decision on rejecting the registration of agrochemicals, the authorised body shall return the package for registration of agrochemicals to the applicant. The registration shall be rejected, where:
(1) any of the nutrition elements of the agrochemical is included in the list of chemical substances and pesticides prohibited in the Republic of Armenia;
(2) the applicant failed to eliminate the detected shortcomings within the time limit prescribed by part 5 of this Article․
10. The decision on rejecting the registration of an agrochemical may be appealed against through administrative or judicial procedure.
11. Agrochemicals shall be subject to re-registration, where a natural or legal person or an individual entrepreneur has submitted an application for re-registration at least 60 days before the expiry of the term of registration, and the composition of nutrition elements of the agrochemical, the percentage ratio of each of them did not change. In case of agrochemicals registered through simplified procedure, re-registration shall be carried out in compliance with the provisions for registration through simplified procedure established under this Article, and in case of agrochemicals registered through general procedure — in compliance with the provisions for registration through general procedure.
12. The re-registration prescribed by part 11 of this Article shall be conducted in the case where the agrochemical is registered in the producing country at the time of re-registration, except for the agrochemical registered through simplified procedure based on the case prescribed by the Government.
(Article 6.1 supplemented by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
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Article. 6.2. |
Issuance of documents required for registration of pesticides and agrochemicals, the testing, term of registration and withdrawal thereof from registration |
1. The documents required under parts 6 and 7 of Article 6 and parts 6 and 7 of Article 6.1 of this Law must be provided by the producer.
2. Testing of pesticides and agrochemicals produced in the Republic of Armenia shall be conducted at the expense of the funds of natural or legal persons or individual entrepreneurs submitting them for state registration.
3. In the Republic of Armenia, pesticides shall be registered for a term of 5 years, whereas agrochemicals — for a term of 10 years, and a registration certificate shall be issued to natural or legal persons or individual entrepreneurs submitting them for registration.
4. Pesticides and agrochemicals shall be withdrawn from registration, where:
(1) the term of registration has expired, however their sales or use or export is permitted until the end of the expiry date;
(2) the person having received a registration certificate has submitted an application for withdrawal from registration;
(3) any of the active or synergetic or auxiliary substances of a pesticide and that of the nutrition elements of an agrochemical is included in the list of chemical substances and pesticides prohibited in the Republic of Armenia;
(4) false information or inconsistencies with the requirements prescribed by the legislation were detected in the documents serving as a ground for registration;
(5) there are other grounds provided for by the Law “On fundamentals of administrative action and administrative proceedings” for declaring the registration of a pesticide or an agrochemical as invalid.
(Article 6.2 supplemented by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
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Article.7. |
Requirements to pesticides and agrochemicals produced in the Republic of Armenia and imported into the Republic of Armenia |
1. Pesticides and agrochemicals must comply with the requirements prescribed by the legislation of the Republic of Armenia during the stages of import and circulation.
2. Import, production, sales and use of pesticides and agrochemicals not registered in the Republic of Armenia shall be prohibited, except for the pesticides and agrochemicals imported on the basis of a legal act adopted by the authorised policy-making body in urgent cases prescribed by this Law.
3. Import of pesticides and agrochemicals, into the Republic of Armenia, with expiry date of less than one-third of the expiry date set by the producer shall be prohibited.
(Article 7 supplemented by HO-220-N of 15 June 2023, amended by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
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Article. 8. |
Toxicological and hygienic assessment of pesticides and agrochemicals |
1. Pesticides and agrochemicals submitted for registration in the Republic of Armenia shall be subject to mandatory toxicological and hygienic assessment, except for registration of pesticides and agrochemicals through the simplified procedure prescribed by this Law and the cases prescribed by part 3 of this Article.
2. Toxicological and hygienic assessment of pesticides and agrochemicals shall be carried out by organisations accredited to carry out toxicological and hygienic assessment as prescribed by the legislation of the Republic of Armenia.
3. Registration of manure, humus, poultry manure, biohumus, bioliquids, turf, composts and other agrochemicals of organic origin shall be carried out without toxicological and hygienic assessment.
4. In the Republic of Armenia, the toxicological and hygienic assessment of pesticides and agrochemicals shall be carried out on the basis of the results of document-based and laboratory studies. Moreover, the results of tests conducted in other countries may also be taken as a basis. The list of the countries shall be approved by the Government.
5. The procedure for carrying out toxicological and hygienic assessment of pesticides and agrochemicals shall be established by the Government.
6. The principles of toxicological and hygienic assessment shall be as follows:
(1) scientific justification of opinions on toxicological and hygienic assessment;
(2) independence of assessing experts when exercising the powers thereof;
(3) full implementation of toxicological and hygienic assessment;
(4) ensuring confidentiality of the substances being examined.
(Article 8 amended by HO-287-N of 23 March 2018, edited by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
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Article 9. |
Requirements to the packaging and marking of pesticides and agrochemicals |
1. Marking in Armenian on the pre-packaged pesticides and agrochemicals being circulated in the Republic of Armenia shall be mandatory.
2. The marking shall be placed directly on the container and (or) the label attached to the packaging material ensuring the safety of the container.
3. The marking of pesticides and agrochemicals must include:
(1) name and significance of the pesticide or agrochemical;
(2) name, content of the active substance;
(3) name and location of the producer (country, registered office);
(4) formulation;
(5) volume and (or) net weight of the container;
(6) safety information;
(7) manipulation signs;
(8) application information (cultivated crops or object, consumption rates, maximum number, periodicity of treatments, pest, “pending periods”);
(9) reference number of the registration certificate, except for import of pesticides and agrochemicals based on a legal act adopted by the authorised policy-making body in urgent cases prescribed by this Law.
(10) production date (month, year);
(11) storage conditions;
(12) expiry date;
(13) identification code (bar);
(14) application restrictions (compatibility with other pesticides and agrochemicals, plant toxicity (phytotoxicity);
(15) safety rules while working, transporting and storing;
(16) methods of decontamination of spilled pesticides and agrochemicals;
(17) methods of decontamination and (or) destruction of empty containers;
(18) clinical description of acute poisoning (in case of available data), advice to the doctor, including the name of the antidote (if available);
(19) first aid in case of poisoning.
4. The marking of railway tanks and road tanks shall be placed in accordance with the rules of carriage of cargo by rail and road transport.
5. Information on the packaging, consumer container, label, additional label or insert of pesticides and agrochemicals must be legible, comprehensive and reliable.
6. The marking must be resistant to the impact of chemical substances, climatic factors, and remain intact during the warranty period of the pesticide and agrochemical.
(Article 9 supplemented by HO-220-N of 15 June 2023, amended by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
CHAPTER 4
OBLIGATIONS OF NATURAL AND LEGAL PERSONS ENGAGED IN AGRICULTURAL ACTIVITIES IN THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
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Article. 10. |
Soil cultivation, use of pesticides and agrochemicals, fight against weed vegetation |
1. Natural and legal persons engaged in cultivation of agricultural soil shall be obliged to carry out:
(1) complex measures of basic, pre-sowing, post-sowing and inter-row soil cultivation;
(2) complex measures for prevention of soil erosion;
(3) complex measures for prevention of secondary soil salinisation and swamping;
(4) maintenance of the permissible level of deep soil waters, as well as the prevention of overwetting during crop irrigation;
(5) complex measures for preservation of useful characteristics of the soil;
(6) measures for protecting the soil from pollution with harmful residuals from pesticides, agrochemicals and biopharmaceuticals;
(7) complex measures for filling the lack of the main land nutrition elements (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium);
(8) ensuring the phytosanitary security while conducting complex fertilisation measures.
1.1. In the Republic of Armenia, the production and sales of pesticides and agrochemicals shall constitute types of activities subject to notification.
1.2. The authorised policy-making body shall establish action plans and rules for good agricultural practices for nitrate-vulnerable zones.
2. The following shall be prohibited:
(1) import, sales and use of pesticides and agrochemicals not included in the nomenclature of pesticides and agrochemicals permitted for use in the Republic of Armenia, except for pesticides and agrochemicals imported on the basis of a legal act adopted by the authorised policy-making body in urgent cases prescribed by this Law, as well as those of pesticides and agrochemicals included in the nomenclature however expired and with poor quality;
(2) storage of pesticides and agrochemicals in warehouses and constructions not complying with phytosanitary norms;
(3) joint storage of pesticides and agrochemicals and food in warehouses, their simultaneous transportation by vehicles;
(4) sales of crop products exceeding the maximum residual amount of pesticides and agrochemicals;
(5) exceeding the permissible amounts for the use of pesticides and agrochemicals.
(Article 10 supplemented by HO-220-N of 15 June 2023, amended, supplemented by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024, supplemented by HO-74-N of 4 March 2026)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
(Article shall, in respect of the amendment under point 1 of Article 1 of the Law HO-74-N of 4 March 2026, enter into force on 1 January 2027)
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Article 11. |
Production, import, sales of seed materials and planting materials and quality maintenance thereof |
1. Natural and legal persons engaged in the cultivation of agricultural soil shall be obliged to ensure:
(1) selection of soil location for the production of seed materials and planting materials;
(2) shift of crops;
(3) availability of relevant class and quality certificate for the variety (variety, hybrid, reproduction) of seed material and planting material;
(4) pre-sowing cultivation of seed material and planting material: filtering, sorting, disinfection;
(5) carrying out special measures for evaluation (approbation) of seed fields and nurseries, mainly field researches, i.e. measures for determining the species-based and varietal purity and homogeneity of seed fields and nurseries, the contamination with pests;
(6) carrying out complex measures for the import, transportation, storage, sales and use of seed material and planting material.
2. Sales and use of seed material and planting material of unknown origin shall be prohibited.
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Article 12. |
Control of plant quarantine and regulated non-quarantine pests |
1. In the field of phytosanitary, natural and legal persons shall be obliged to ensure:
(1) implementation of complex measures for control of quarantine and regulated non-quarantine pests of agricultural plots, sowing and plantations;
(2) that the maximum permissible residual amount of pesticides and agrochemicals is not exceeded in soil and plant products;
(3) phytosanitary examination, inspection and expert examination of plants, plant products and other regulated items subject to phytosanitary supervision.
2. The following shall be prohibited:
(1) use of pesticides and agrochemicals having not undergone state registration in the Republic of Armenia, except for those imported on the basis of a legal act adopted by the authorised policy-making body in urgent cases prescribed by this Law, as well as those withdrawn from use, expired, with poor quality and prohibited, those dangerous for the health of the population and the environment;
(2) involvement of persons under the age of 18, who have not undergone mandatory preliminary and periodic medical examination, as well as pregnant women and women taking care of a child under the age of one year, in the activities dealing with pesticides;
(3) use of disinfected seeds as food, fodder;
(4) export of plants, plant products and other regulated items subject to phytosanitary supervision from quarantined territories without a phytosanitary passport.
3. In order to determine the need for regulation of plant pests, to implement, where necessary, measures to control them, the authorised policy-making body shall conduct a phytosanitary study.
(Article 12 supplemented by HO-220-N of 15 June 2023, amended by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024, HO-74-N of 4 March 2026)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
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Article 13. |
Phytosanitary record-registration of natural and legal persons producing, exercising the sales of, transporting, importing, exporting, processing, storing plants, plant products, and other regulated items, pesticides, agrochemicals in the field of phytosanitary |
(Title amended by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
1. In the field of phytosanitary, natural and legal persons producing, exercising the sales of, transporting, importing, exporting, processing, storing plants, plant products, and other regulated items, pesticides and agrochemicals shall be record-registered by the authorised body by means of being registered in the electronic record-registration system and being issued a phytosanitary record-registration certificate.
2. Each producer, the products whereof are intended for sales, shall be record-registered by the authorised body and the data thereof shall be registered in the official register and shall be granted a non-repeating record-registration number.
3. The provisions prescribed by this Article shall not apply to small quantities of plants, plant products and other regulated items intended for non-industrial and non-commercial consumption by the owner or recipient of the latter, or for consumption during transportation, unless there is a risk of spread of pests.
4. (Part repealed by HO-310-N of 7 July 2022)
(Article 13 amended by HO-310-N of 7 July 2022, HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
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Article 14. |
Phytosanitary passport |
1. Phytosanitary passport shall be issued only for plants, plant products and other regulated items owned by record-registered natural and legal persons as a result of phytosanitary examination or expert examination and in case of observing phytosanitary rules and norms.
2. Plants, plant products and other regulated items subject to phytosanitary control shall be prohibited from being imported into or transported through a pest-free zone, except for the cases where there is a phytosanitary passport for this zone.
(Article 14 amended by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
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Article 15. |
Notification on detection of pests |
1. The authorised body shall notify, in writing, the International Plant Protection Organisation and the European Plant Protection Organisation of a detected pest, the entry whereof into the territory of the Republic of Armenia is prohibited.
2. The notification shall also indicate the measures taken or to be taken.
3. The authorised body shall take measures for eliminating pests, whereas in case of its impossibility — for preventing the spread thereof.
4. In the case prescribed by part 1 of this Article, the authorised body shall perform risk analysis of the detected pest for the given area, in order to find out the need to continue, terminate or alter the measures taken.
CHAPTER 5
MEASURES FOR ESTABLISHING AND LIFTING PLANT QUARANTINE
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Article 16. |
Establishing plant quarantine |
1. Based on the opinion on phytosanitary monitoring and laboratory expert examination carried out for the purpose of detection, isolation, elimination and prevention of the spread of plant quarantine pests in the territory of the Republic of Armenia, in case of detection of contamination with quarantine pest in the quarantine pest-free zone:
(1) an ad hoc working group shall be created upon the decision of the authorised body, which shall include representatives from the authorised body, state administration and local self-government bodies, and those from scientific organisations in the field of phytosanitary;
(2) the ad hoc working group shall submit recommendations to the authorised body regarding the measures being implemented in the quarantine zone;
(3) the authorised body shall certify the name of the detected pest, the boundaries of their spread (areals), the assessment of potential damage, the borders of quarantine and adjacent areas, the list of proposed measures, as well as shall submit to the Government a proposal on establishing quarantine, by simultaneously submitting the documents provided for by this point;
(4) the quarantine of plants shall be established in the territory of the Republic, marz, community, settlements or in the territory owned by natural and legal persons or in a part thereof;
(5) for the purpose of preventing the spread of quarantine pests in the territory of the Republic of Armenia, the authorised body shall exercise supervision over the destruction of quarantine pests and the conduct of phytosanitary measures for disinfection of regulated items in the quarantine zone.
2. The removal of plants and plant products, seeds and planting materials from the zones of established plant quarantine shall be carried out in case of a phytosanitary passport issued by the authorised body. The products removed without a phytosanitary passport shall be subject to disinfection and, where necessary— to destruction.
3. The establishment of a nursery in areas adjacent to perennial plantations infected with quarantine pests and the procurement and use of rootstocks and grafts from non-examined areas shall be prohibited.
4. Each economic entity engaged in the production of planting materials must have a quarantine control log for registering the results of quarantine studies of grown and sold planting materials, as well as the information on the absence of quarantine pests and on phytosanitary measures.
5. Natural and legal persons engaged in the production, procurement, transportation, storage and (or) sales of plants, plant products, seeds and planting materials subject to phytosanitary control in the quarantined zone shall organise and implement measures for control of the quarantine pests under the direct control of the body exercising supervision.
6. Where the phytosanitary examination and (or) expert examination in the quarantined zone shows that certain batch of plants, plant products and other regulated items produced, used or stored by the producer is healthy and poses no risk of spreading pests, the phytosanitary passport shall be filled in only for the given batch.
(Article 16 amended by HO-287-N of 23 March 2018, HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
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Article 17. |
Control measures taken in the plant quarantine zone, lifting the quarantine regime |
1. Compulsory disinfection (decontamination) or destruction of plants, plant products and other regulated items shall be carried out in the plant quarantine zone.
The export of plants, plant products and other regulated items, as well as the exit and entry of vehicles related thereto, shall be restricted or prohibited in the plant quarantine zone.
2. The official entitled to exercise phytosanitary supervision shall be obliged to give assignments to natural and legal persons in the quarantine zone regarding the fulfilment of the requirements of this Law, and to exercise oversight over the fulfilment thereof.
3. The quarantine of plants shall be lifted upon the recommendation of the authorised body in case of implementation of appropriate measures and destruction of foci of the pest, as well as in other cases established by the Government.
4. The information on establishing quarantine of plants and lifting the quarantine regime shall be provided by mass media.
(Article 17 amended by HO-287-N of 23 March 2018, HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
CHAPTER 6
DECONTAMINATION AND DESTRUCTION OF PLANTS, PLANT PRODUCTS AND OTHER REGULATED ITEMS
(Title amended by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
(Chapter shall, in respect of the amendment under the Law HO-74-N of 4 March 2026, enter into force on 1 January 2027)
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Article 18. |
Decontamination and destruction of plants, plant products and other regulated items |
(Title amended by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
1. Based on the opinion rendered by the official entitled to exercise phytosanitary supervision as a result of phytosanitary expert examination in order to prevent the entry, the spread of plant quarantine pests and to eliminate the foci of infection, the infected plants, plant products and other regulated items or those suspected in causing disease shall be decontaminated or destructed in accordance with phytosanitary rules and under the control of the official entitled to exercise phytosanitary supervision.
2. The necessity, place and method of decontamination of plants, plant products and other regulated items shall be decided by the official of the authorised phytosanitary body.
3. The expenses related to decontamination and destruction of plants, plant products and other regulated items shall be incurred as prescribed by the legislation of the Republic of Armenia.
(Article 18 amended by HO-460-N of 15 November 2024)
(Law HO-460-N of 15 November 2024 contains a transitional provision)
CHAPTER 7
LIABILITY FOR VIOLATION OF THIS LAW
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Article 19. |
Liability for violation of this Law |
1. Natural and legal persons violating this Law shall be subject to liability as prescribed by law.
CHAPTER 8
FINAL PROVISIONS
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Article 20. |
Entry into force of the Law |
1. This Law shall enter into force on the tenth day following the date of its official promulgation.
2. The restrictions on agrochemicals prescribed by part 2 of Article 7 of this Law shall enter into force on 1 January 2015.
3. Prior to the entry into force of this Law, the pesticides registered, for an indefinite time period, as prescribed by the legislation of the Republic of Armenia and included in the nomenclature of chemical and biological means of plant protection, as well as permitted for use in the Republic of Armenia shall be deemed to be registered for a period of 5 years from the date of entry into force of this Law.
4. The Law of the Republic of Armenia “On phytosanitary” No HO-209-N of 16 December 2006 must be repealed upon the entry into force of this Law.
5. The legal acts adopted pursuant to the Law of the Republic of Armenia “On phytosanitary” No HO-209-N of 16 December 2006 shall have effect in so far as they do not contradict the requirements of this Law.
(Article 20 amended by HO-240-N of 17 December 2014)
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President of the Republic of Armenia |
S. Sargsyan |
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22 July 2014 Yerevan |
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Translation published on a joint site 7 October 2026.
