Work residence permit and the right to work in Georgia

As of 11 October 2026, the rules for foreigners who work in Georgia changed on 1 March 2026. It retells two laws and a page of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is not legal advice. Whatever we could not confirm is marked "ask".

The work residence permit

It is a residence permit for a foreigner who obtained the right to labour activities. The law, in the edition from 1 March 2026, asks for two things.

• A document on business or labour activity in Georgia.
• A certificate that the monthly income is at least five times the subsistence minimum.

The annual turnover of the employer, or of your own enterprise, must also be at least GEL 50,000 per foreigner. For education and medical institutions the threshold is lower: GEL 35,000.

First term and extension

The law allows the first work residence permit to be issued for 6 months to one year. Temporary permits can be extended, but the total extension period is limited to 12 years.

The right to work from 1 March 2026

A foreigner without a permanent residence permit needs the right to work. The State Employment Support Agency grants it. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs says so on a page of 26 February 2026.

The law on labour migration lets you employ an alien who has a work residence permit or a D1 visa. Another residence permit works only together with the right to work. Check the article number in the law.

The pages we checked do not say:

• how much the right to work costs and for how long it is granted;
• who is exempt from this requirement. We did not confirm exemptions for holders of a permit based on property.

Ask the State Employment Support Agency.

What the work permit gives

It gives lawful residence in Georgia for the term of the permit, if you meet the conditions of the law. Years on a temporary permit count towards permanent residence: the law names 10 years of living on a temporary permit. Years of study and medical treatment do not count.

What is not stated

• The fee for the work residence permit. The Service Development Agency page names fees of GEL 300, 450 and 600 for the investment and the short-term permit. We did not confirm the amount for the work permit.
• Whether you can get a work residence permit on the basis of registering an IE or an LLC alone. Registration alone gives no permit. Income, turnover and the right to work are needed.
• Whether the work permit gives rights to family members.

Ask the Service Development Agency about all of this.

Read also

• Residence permit through property in Georgia: limits, fees
• Buying property through a company in Georgia
• Property taxes in Georgia for a foreign owner