Georgia work permit: the right to work rules since March 2026

Who needs the right to work

The Law on Labour Migration covers every foreigner without a permanent residence permit who works for pay in Georgia (Art. 1(2)). It uses two terms:

• A labour immigrant is an employee. This includes someone who works remotely for an employer based in Georgia (Art. 3(c2)).
• A self-employed alien is anyone working for their own financial benefit: traders, service providers, partners in a company, independent contractors and people in any other entrepreneurial activity (Art. 3(h)).

To work or do business legally you need three things (Art. 13², 13³). Employees need a written fixed-term contract in Georgian and in a language they understand. Everyone needs the right to work. And everyone needs a work residence permit, a D1 visa or another residence permit. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs says the rule applies to "any foreign national" who wants to work or do business, including remotely.

Visa-free status does not give the right to work, and neither does a residence permit of another type. A holder of a property permit or a family reunification permit who starts working needs the work permit too, unless an exemption below applies.

Who is exempt

Article 1(4) of the Law on Labour Migration exempts these groups:

• refugees, people with supplementary or temporary protection, and registered asylum seekers;
• staff of diplomatic missions, consulates and international organisations;
• journalists accredited by a lawfully operating foreign media outlet;
• people covered by a different rule in an international treaty;
• holders of a valid investment residence permit;
• holders of a special residence permit issued on a Government member's initiative;
• people doing short-term professional activities listed by Government ordinance;
• people working for a public institution or a state-owned enterprise;
• people working fully remotely for a Georgian employer without entering Georgia;
• people working for, or providing services to, a non-resident person, where the work relates to that person's activity outside Georgia;
• managers and directors of category 1, 2 or 3 enterprises (sized under the Law on Accounting, Reporting and Audit), and audit committee members;
• conservation and restoration of cultural property;
• people with temporary stay rights under Art. 60 of the Aliens Law.

Permanent residents are outside the law altogether. An exempt person who wants a work residence permit files proof of the exempt activity in place of the right-to-work decision. A manager of a category 1 to 3 enterprise files a size-category certificate from reportal.ge (Ordinance No 317 of 9 July 2026).

How to apply

Employees

The Georgian employer applies to SESA after signing the contract (Art. 13⁴). Before that, the employer must post the vacancy on worknet.moh.gov.ge for 10 working days. It may hire a foreigner only if SESA finds no suitable local candidate (Decree 70 Art. 5). This labour-market test does not apply to companies with international company status under Tax Code Art. 23, innovative startups, international accreditation experts, or roles paying more than GEL 15,000 a month that need a relevant higher-education degree.

Self-employed people

You apply yourself at labourmigration.moh.gov.ge and complete a video interview with SESA (Decree 70 Art. 4 to 5). The permit is tied to the speciality and field you state. If you change field without renewing it, you face a fine.

Review time and fees

The fees are in Decree 70 Art. 11, and the law caps them at GEL 500. The rule on who pays comes from a Civil.ge report, not from the primary text. SESA must decide within 30 calendar days of a complete file (Art. 13⁴(5) to (6)).

After the permit is granted

If you are abroad, apply for a D1 visa within 30 days. If you are already in Georgia, apply for a work or IT residence permit within 10 days at a Public Service Hall (the state service centres where residence files are lodged). You can skip this step if you already hold any residence permit or if you work fully remotely from abroad (Art. 13⁵).

The right to work takes effect when you get the D1 visa or the work residence permit, or at once if you already hold a residence permit. It is issued for 6 months to 1 year. In the first 5 years you can extend it by up to 1 year at a time, and after that by 1 to 5 years. IT workers can get up to 3 years, extendable by up to 3 years (Decree 70 Art. 10). File an extension 30 days before expiry. A late filing is a ground to refuse it.

SESA can refuse a file that stays incomplete after 10 days, a profession that does not match labour-market needs or is on the restricted list, and anyone facing expulsion. The permit ends when the contract ends, when a self-employed alien leaves Georgia for more than 6 months, or when the visa or residence permit ends. You can reapply after 1 month. You can appeal to court within 1 month, but you may not work while the appeal runs.

Decree 70 also sets annual quotas: zero permits for courier services, passenger transport and tour guiding, and 200 for mountain, alpine and ski guides.

Deadlines and fines

• Working without the right to work: GEL 2,000 for the foreigner, and GEL 2,000 per foreigner for the employer or "service organiser". The fine doubles on a repeat and triples after that (Art. 16¹).
• Changing employer or field without renewing the permit: GEL 2,000, then double, then triple (Art. 16⁶).
• An employer that does not report the end of a contract, or changes to it, within 5 days: GEL 1,000, then GEL 2,000 (Art. 16⁵).

Working without the right to work, or breaking its conditions, is also a ground to end your stay in Georgia (Aliens Law Art. 21(1)(m) to (n)).

The C5 visa for work for non-resident clients

Law 1511 of 15 April 2026 created the C5 visa. It is a short-term tourist visa that also allows activity for a non-resident person, where that activity relates to the non-resident's business outside Georgia (Aliens Law Art. 7(3)). It can be issued to your spouse and minor children. A C5 visa can be multiple-entry for 5 years with the right to stay 1 year. A refusal on immigration-policy grounds cannot be appealed.

A C5 visa is not a residence permit. It does not count toward permanent residence, and most residence permits cannot be issued while you are in Georgia on a C visa. If your clients are all abroad, compare it with a work residence permit or the investment permit before you decide.