A residence permit in Georgia: the three routes
Georgia grants residence permits to property owners among others. Which route pays off depends less on your budget than on your schedule — and on whether you want to be on the ground anyway.
Why Georgia is of interest at all
Georgia permits one hundred per cent foreign ownership of residential property, with no local partner and no restriction by nationality. Rental income is taxed at one per cent, and capital gains are untaxed after a two-year holding period. That combination is unusual in a European context, and it is the real reason the country shows up on the radar of investors and of people whose income is not tied to a place.
The residence permit is not the same thing as tax residency. It permits you to stay and is a precondition for some other things — where you pay tax is decided by different rules.
Route 1: through property ownership
The main requirement is buying a property worth at least €138,000. The decisive advantage over the company route: no work permit is needed, which saves at least ten working days. Preparing the documents takes one working day; processing takes ten, twenty or thirty days depending on the speed you choose.
The valuation requires an official report from a certified surveyor — that report serves both the residence procedure and tax purposes.
Route 2: through an investment
From an investment of €276,000 in real estate the residence permit is granted for five years initially, with a claim to permanent residence on renewal. The official valuation report normally takes three working days here. In addition, three letters of recommendation from Georgian bodies and supporting documents in Georgian are required, including a letter of motivation.
Route 3: through forming a company
If you do not want to buy property at that scale, you can register as a sole trader. A minimum annual turnover of around €17,000 is expected. The route is cheaper but longer: first registration, then a bank account, then the work permit, and only then the residence permit — and the application has to be filed within ten days of receiving the work permit.
Registration and opening the account can be done remotely. The remaining steps are completed on arrival in Georgia.
What you need in every case
The application has to be filed while you are physically in Georgia — applying from abroad is not possible. Once it is submitted you can leave the country again; processing continues.
You also need a personal account with a Georgian bank holding a minimum balance of around €5,800. Opening the account normally takes one working day.
At a glance
The three routes compared
| Route | Threshold | Work permit needed | Notable point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property ownership | from €138,000 | no | fastest route, saves approx. 10 working days |
| Investment | from €276,000 | no | 5 years initially, then permanent residence possible |
| Company formation | approx. €17,000 turnover | yes | can be started remotely, several stages |
In practice
Government fees by processing time
- Processed in 10 days — around €205 (600 GEL)
- Processed in 20 days — around €135 (400 GEL)
- Processed in 30 days — around €100 (300 GEL)
- AIXCO support on the property route — €630 plus fees
- Support on the investment route — €1,500 plus fees
- Opening an account — €400 to €500 on site, €900 remotely
To take away
Residence permit Georgia — a guide
Everything on this page as a PDF — to print, to forward and to have beside you when you talk to your adviser.
- The three routes side by side: requirement, duration, validity
- Government fees by processing time, six levels
- Five chapters and the five questions that come up most
Images
Related.
Common questions
What people ask most about this.
How long does a Georgian residence permit take?
Ten, twenty or thirty days from submission, depending on the processing speed you choose. On the property route the preceding work permit falls away, which saves at least ten working days. On the company route, registration, opening an account and the work permit come first.
How much do I have to invest?
At least €138,000 in property value for the ownership route, at least €276,000 for the investment route. The value is established by an official report from a certified surveyor.
Do I have to travel to Georgia?
Yes, at least once. The application has to be filed in person in Georgia. You can leave afterwards while the authority continues processing. Registering as a sole trader and opening an account can be done remotely beforehand.
Does this automatically make me liable for tax in Georgia?
No. The residence permit and tax residency are two different things. Tax residency has criteria of its own — there is a separate regime for high-net-worth individuals.
Do I get the residence permit for a single apartment?
Only if its value reaches at least €138,000. Smaller units fall below that; several apartments together can reach the threshold.
Read on
Related reading.
Tax residency in Georgia
Georgia operates a dedicated regime for high-net-worth individuals. It is comparatively clearly regulated — the real hurdle is not in Georgia but in l…
Read →
Medical treatment in Georgia
Georgia has a largely privatised health system with short waiting times and prices well below Western European levels. The price difference comes from…
Read →
Living in Batumi
Batumi is one of the fastest-growing coastal cities on the Black Sea. What makes it unusual is how close the sea and the high mountains are — subtropi…
Read →
Why this page exists
Apartments in Batumi, from 51,520 €.
If you want to take the property route: the availability list for Reverance Living shows which units and combinations reach the €138,000 threshold.