AGREEMENT
between the Government of the Republic of Armenia and the Government of the Kingdom of Norway on exemption from visa requirements for holders of diplomatic passports
The Government of the Republic of Armenia and the Government of the Kingdom of Norway, hereinafter referred to as the "Contracting Parties";
desirous of promoting their bilateral relations;
considering their interest in strengthening their existing friendly relations and with a view to facilitating the travel of nationals of the State of one of the Contracting Parties to the territory of the State of the other Contracting Party;
having regard to the Agreement of 18 May 1999 between the Council of the European Union and the Kingdom of Norway and the Republic of Iceland concerning the latters' Association with the Implementation, Application and Development of the Schengen Acquis;
having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 539/2001 of 15 March 2001 listing the third countries whose nationals must be in possession of visas when crossing the external borders and those whose nationals are exempt from that requirement, and Article 4 (1) stating that Member States may provide for exceptions from the visa requirement for holders of diplomatic passports;
have agreed as follows:
Article 1
1. Nationals of the States of one of the Contracting Parties holding a valid diplomatic passport, and not accredited to the territory of the State of the other Contracting Party, shall, when travelling in an official capacity, be exempt from visa requirements to enter, transit through, stay in or leave the territory of the State of the other Contracting Party for a period not exceeding three months during a six-month period following the date of first entry into the territory of the State of the other Contracting Party. The maximum period of three months during a six-month period may be construed as either a continuous visit or several consecutive visits.
2. For the purpose of determining the period of stay for nationals of the Republic of Armenia, any period of stay in any other state applying the Schengen acquis in full shall be taken into account.
3. Undertaking paid employment for which a work permit is required under the national legislation of the State of the Contracting Parties is not permitted.
Article 2
1. This Agreement does not exempt holders of valid diplomatic passports who are members of diplomatic or consular missions or representatives assigned to international organisations or treaty bodies located in the territory of the State of the other Contracting Party, or their family members, from the requirement to obtain a visa for accreditation by the receiving State prior to arrival.
2. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as affecting the rights and obligations set out in the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 18 April 1961 or the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations of 24 April 1963.
Article 3
This Agreement shall not affect the right of the competent authorities of either of the Contracting Parties to refuse entry to or prohibit the stay of persons declared undesirable or persons who fail to meet the conditions for entry and residence under national legislation of the States of the Contracting Parties or international law.
Article 4
The Contracting Parties may amend this Agreement by mutual consent through additional Protocols, which shall be considered as integral parts of this Agreement and shall enter into force in a manner as provided for in Article 6, paragraph 1 of this Agreement.
Article 5
Any differences or disputes arising out of the interpretation or implementation of the provisions of this Agreement shall be settled amicably by consultation or negotiation between the Contracting Parties.
Article 6
1. This Agreement shall enter into force thirty (30) days from the date of the receipt of the last written notification in which the Contracting Parties inform each other through diplomatic channels that their respective internal legal procedures for the entering into force of the Agreement have been completed.
2. Each Contracting Party may suspend in whole or in part this Agreement, in particular, for reasons of public order, protection of national security or public health, illegal immigration.
The decision on suspension shall be notified to the other Contracting Party no later than seventy-two (72) hours before the entry into force of such decision.The Contracting Party that has suspended the application of this Agreement shall immediately inform the other Contracting Party once the reason for suspension no longer exists.
A suspension shall not affect the rights of individuals mentioned in Articles 1 and 2 of this Agreement who have already entered or are residing in the territory of the State of the other Contracting Party.
3. The present Agreement is concluded for indefinite period of time. Each Contracting Party may terminate this Agreement by giving written notice to the other Contracting Party through diplomatic channels. This Agreement shall cease to be in force 90 days after the date of such notification.
Done at Yerevan on this 9th day of November in the year 2011 in duplicate, each in the Armenian, Norwegian and English languages, all texts being equally authentic. In case of divergence of interpretation, the English text shall prevail.
The Agreement has entered into force on 15.03.2012.