How can an individual entrepreneur obtain a business residence permit in Georgia?

An individual entrepreneur (IE) can apply for a business residence permit in Georgia after their income from entrepreneurial activities in the country reaches 50,000 GEL. This amount must be earned within 12 consecutive months (not to be confused with a calendar year). If your turnover (income from the sale of goods, provision of services, or completion of work) reaches the specified amount in, for example, four months, there is no need to wait—you can apply for residency immediately. The income must be confirmed by a bank statement or documents from the Revenue Service.

If your IE employs foreign workers, then at the time of applying for residency, the turnover must be 50,000 GEL per employed foreign worker (including the IE themselves). In this case, the employees may also be eligible for a residence permit (under a different basis—employment in a Georgian company).

The law does not specify a minimum period for generating income or a required length of stay in the country before applying for residency. However, legislators place importance on confirming the applicant's intention to live and work in Georgia on a permanent or regular basis.

To obtain a residence permit, you must submit an application to the Agency for the Development of Public Services (the authorized body, hereinafter referred to as the Agency) and attach the following documents:

• Passport;
• Proof of income — a bank statement or a certificate from the tax office;
• A statement from a personal account in a Georgian bank confirming the availability of funds for living in Georgia (the required amount may change monthly; as of June 2022, the minimum amount was approximately 16,500 GEL);
• Photo;
• Certificate indicating the number of employed foreigners;
• Receipt for the payment of the state fee.

To expedite the review process, an increased fee can be paid: 30 days — 300 GEL, 20 days — 450 GEL, 10 days — 600 GEL.

An application to the Agency for a residence permit must be submitted no later than 40 calendar days before the expiration of the legal stay in Georgia (the same rule applies to residence permit extensions, but with exceptions). There are also nuances here: legal stay includes visa-free stay, a visa, and a residence permit. This means, for instance, that if the residence permit expires earlier than the visa-free stay period, the legal stay is counted according to the visa-free regime.

After a positive decision regarding the granting of temporary residency in Georgia, the applicant must contact the Agency for an ID card (the so-called “Binadroba”). The application must include consent for registration from the owner of Georgian real estate (if the applicant does not own property). The Binadroba will be issued within 10 days, and the process can be considered completed.

For the first time, temporary residency is granted for a period of 6 months to one year, and in the future, it can be extended if there are grounds, and for a longer period: the maximum extension period in our practice is 11 years!

Unlike the initial application, for the extension, the applicant does not need to be in Georgia: they can submit the documents remotely or issue a power of attorney.

The grounds for denial of a residence permit are listed in Article 18 of the Law of Georgia "On the Legal Status of Foreigners and Stateless Persons." There are many reasons, but the most common one is the wording: "if there is a conclusion from the authorized body regarding the inexpediency of residence in Georgia due to the protection of state interests or (and) public security.

The conclusion of the authorized body (Security Service) is a document marked "classified." Even in the case of appealing a refusal to grant a residence permit, only a judge has the right to access the conclusion; lawyers do not have access to it. To avoid complications with the refusal decision, it is better to prepare as thoroughly as possible and consider all possible nuances.

A decision by the Agency to refuse a residence permit can be appealed in court within one month. The applicant may try to apply for a residence permit again, including on another basis, but not earlier than one month after the decision has been made.

It is possible to apply for a residence permit on your own and even receive it. However, there may be many “hidden pitfalls”. To save your resources, it makes sense to turn to lawyers who have established practices and an individual approach.

The migration lawyers at JUST Advisors literally take the client by the hand and walk with them to obtain the residence permit. They analyze the situation, advise on the sufficiency of grounds and documents, form a case for the residence permit application in just 3 working days, and accompany the process from submission to receiving the certificate, including through a power of attorney.