An ordinary Artsakhi passport was dark red, with the Republic of Artsakh's coat of arms emblazoned in gold in the center of the front cover.

Due to the status of the state, the passport was not legally recognized by the international community and it was used only within the borders of Artsakh and three other post-Soviet disputed states; Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Transnistria as all members of the Community for Democracy and Rights of Nations had agreed to abolish visa requirements for their citizens.

In addition, citizens of Artsakh could travel visa-free to neighboring Armenia.

A number of Syrian Armenian refugees were granted Artsakh passports when they immigrated in 2012.

[2] Since the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War there have been difficulties using the document to establish rights to state assistance in Armenia.