Armenia
Armenia adopted full freedom of panorama in 2013, including commercial use, but a border-photography ban makes filming near the Azerbaijan frontier without an NSS permit illegal.
Guidance, not legal advice
Drone Authority
Check the flight side
Photography access and drone permission are separate questions. Drone Authority covers the flight-law side for this country.
Permit
Conditional
Issuer: Municipality or site manager for commercial productions; National Security Service permit for any photography of border infrastructure
Cost: No permit for personal photography; commercial crews need location clearances
Personal photography needs no permit in cities and at monasteries. Commercial productions coordinate with municipalities and site managers; monastery complexes (Tatev, Geghard, Khor Virap) are generally open to photography with interior rules set by the church.
Drone / airspace
National rules via the Civil Aviation Committee: regulation applies to drones of 250 g and up, with low altitude ceilings, daylight VLOS operation, and permits for commercial use; border areas are closed to drones without National Security Service clearance
The regulatory framework is newer and still developing; verify current requirements with the Committee before travel. For detail, see Drone Authority.
Street / public space
Yes to photograph; publishing a recognizable person, especially commercially, generally needs consent under civil-law personality rights
Street photography for personal and editorial use is low-risk; commercial use of a likeness needs consent.
Freedom of panorama
Yes, including commercial use
A 2013 amendment to the copyright law permits reproducing, distributing, and communicating works located on streets, parks, squares, and other places open to the public, in any medium and without payment, with no non-commercial restriction. This covers buildings, sculptures, and works of fine and applied art.
Practical notes
- Photographing border-guard infrastructure, or the territory of the bordering country from the border zone, is prohibited without a National Security Service permit; this applies along the Azerbaijan frontier (including Syunik) and is enforced.
- Khor Virap's classic Ararat backdrop sits close to the closed Turkish border; the monastery itself is fine, but stay clear of border engineering works.
- Yerevan's Cascade complex and Republic Square are unrestricted; military facilities and checkpoints are not.
Sources
Keep shooting
Knowing the rules is half the job. The craft side: