New Regulations in the Labor Migration Law for Self-Employed Foreign Nationals

15.08.2025

• Consequences of Revocation
• Key Requirements and Deadlines
• Additional Steps
• No Need to Apply for Visa or Residence Permit If
• Contact our lawyer for more details

A new term has been introduced for the purposes of the law: self-employed foreigner.

Definition: A self-employed foreigner is a person who does not hold permanent residency in Georgia and engages in independent labor or entrepreneurial activity (e.g., services, trade, contracting, etc.) for financial gain.

Under the new regulations, the term includes all individuals providing services or conducting business activities, including registered individual entrepreneurs.

Important!

• A self-employed foreigner must not remain outside the territory of Georgia for more than 6 consecutive months.

To reset this period, the person must enter Georgia at least once within each 6-month timeframe.

If a self-employed person stays outside Georgia for more than 6 months consecutively, their work permit will be revoked.

Consequences of Revocation

1. The individual will no longer be allowed to continue work activities.
2. The residence permit obtained based on employment will be canceled.
3. If there are no other legal grounds for staying in Georgia, deportation procedures will be initiated.
4. Although the law allows for appealing the revocation, the deportation process is not suspended during the appeal.
5. Continuing work without a valid permit will result in a fine of 2,000 GEL.
   • Second violation: 4,000 GEL
   • Third violation: 12,000 GEL
     (Each subsequent fine is multiplied: 2,000 → 4,000 → 12,000)

Note: Operating without a valid work permit does not automatically cancel the individual entrepreneur registration, but the person will be unable to continue working, which may lead to the need to leave Georgia.

Key Requirements and Deadlines

For those who registered as individual entrepreneurs before March 1, 2026

Must, by January 1, 2027:

• Apply for a work permit at the Ministry of Internally Displaced Persons from the Occupied Territories, Labor, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia.
  (Application reviewed within 30 calendar days.)
• Obtain a labor or IT residence permit within 10 calendar days after receiving the work permit.

For those who register as individual entrepreneurs after March 1, 2026

Two options are available:

1. Register as an individual entrepreneur, then apply for a work permit.
   (This path is considered more effective, as registration increases the chances of approval.)
2. Apply for a work permit, then register as an individual entrepreneur.

In both cases, the applicant must specify the exact field of activity.

Work permits are issued for specific individual cases.

Additional Steps

After obtaining the work permit:

• If outside Georgia: apply for a D1 visa within 30 calendar days.
• If inside Georgia: apply for a labor or IT residence permit within 10 calendar days.

No Need to Apply for Visa or Residence Permit If

• The person already holds a valid residence permit under Georgian law (on any basis).
• The person works remotely from outside Georgia.
  (In this case, entering Georgia during the period of work activity will result in cancellation of the work permit.)

 Author: Zautashvili Nino

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