Can I get a permit as soon as my company is registered?

You can apply in its first three months, if you move in the right order. The right to work under the Law on Labour Migration comes first, and you apply for the permit within 10 days of it. While the company is no more than three months old and employs no more than three foreigners, a first permit needs no turnover proof and is issued for six months; the renewal, and any first application after those three months, needs Revenue Service proof of annual turnover of at least GEL 50,000 for each foreigner applying. Monthly income of at least five times the subsistence minimum is asked in every case.

Do I need a permit to be in Georgia at all?

Many nationalities may stay visa-free for up to a year. A permit is about stability, a residence card, breaking the annual reset and a path to permanence, rather than lawful presence tomorrow. Working in Georgia is another matter: since 1 March 2026 it needs the right to work together with a residence permit, unless an exemption applies.

Yes, through family reunification against your permit, with legalised and translated proof of the relationship. Their permits match yours in validity.

Is the outcome guaranteed?

No. The Public Service Development Agency decides on the file. Anyone selling a guaranteed Georgian residence permit is selling something they do not have.

How long does it take?

The file build depends on how quickly your documents can be legalised and translated. Filing takes about a week, and the decision window depends on the regular or expedited track. On the work routes the right to work comes before that, decided within 30 calendar days of a complete application. Renewals start at least 40 days before expiry.

What does the pre-check give me?

A written route, the odds, the document list with the legalisation rule for your nationality, the timeline and the fees, from a lawyer, within two business days. It costs EUR 120 and is credited against the service if you proceed.

Residence in Georgia

A Georgian residence permit, on the route that actually fits you

The company takes a day; the right to reside is a separate application decided by the Public Service Development Agency on what the file proves. Answer ten questions and see which route fits, the documents your nationality needs and honest odds. A lawyer confirms it in writing for EUR 120, credited against the service, and says so plainly when the answer is wait.

Check my eligibility Book a 30-minute call

The routes, side by side

Thresholds are those in force at the time of writing; the official Georgian text governs and the written pre-check confirms the current ones. On the two work routes the right to work comes first: since 1 March 2026 the permit is issued to a foreigner who has obtained that right under the Law on Labour Migration (unless that Law exempts the person), and a person already in Georgia applies for the permit within 10 calendar days of obtaining that right unless they already hold a residence permit.

Route	Basis	Ordinary validity	The condition that decides it
Work residence permit through your own Georgian company	The right to work as the manager of your own Georgian company	6 to 12 months, renewable; 6 months for a first permit without turnover proof	The right to work first; then the company's annual turnover of at least GEL 50,000 for each foreigner applying. A company up to three months old with no more than three foreign staff can support a first permit without that proof
Work residence permit through a Georgian employer	The right to work, obtained by your Georgian employer	6 to 12 months, renewable	The right to work first; then the employer's annual turnover of at least GEL 50,000 for each foreigner applying, and the employment contract
Short-term permit on real property	Real property other than agricultural land, market value above USD 150,000	1 year, renewable	A certified appraiser's valuation and continued ownership
Investment residence permit	Investment of at least USD 300,000, or real property worth more than USD 300,000	5 years	Evidence of the investment, after legal review; then the yearly turnover the Law sets, or continued ownership of the property
Family reunification	Family member of a permit holder	Matches the principal	Legalised, translated proof of the relationship

The matter in five stages

Each stage names what we do, what you provide and what it produces. Your portal shows the stage you are at and the next thing that is yours to do.

1
Pre-check and route
2 business days
We do
We read your answers against the conditions in force, confirm the legalisation rule for your nationality and write the route, the odds, the document list and the timeline.
You provide
The questionnaire, and the answers to anything we ask back.
Outcome
A written pre-check you can rely on, or an honest wait.
2
File build
2 to 6 weeks, mostly your documents
We do
We issue the engagement letter, check passport margins, collect the route evidence, organise legalisation and certified translations and assemble the file the Agency expects.
You provide
Passport, route evidence (on the work routes the right-to-work decision and the turnover proof; title and appraisal, investment evidence or relationship proof), criminal-record certificate where required, an address in Georgia.
Outcome
A complete, consistent file.
3
Filing at the Agency
1 week to file
We do
We choose the track with you (regular or expedited), pay the state fee, file the application and answer any request for more documents.
You provide
Presence or authorisation as the Agency requires for your route; the state fee.
Outcome
A filed application with a known decision window.
4
Decision and card
Decision window by track
We do
We track the decision, collect the residence card and record its number and validity on your case.
You provide
Collection of the card, in person where required.
Outcome
Residence card in hand.
5
Renewal and family
Ongoing
We do
We put the renewal on the deadline board 40 days before expiry, open family reunification files for dependants and keep the two questions of residence and tax residency separate.
You provide
Current evidence at renewal; relationship documents for family members.
Outcome
No gap in status; family members joined.

Why applications fail

A company past its first three months with no turnover to show: from then on the turnover level is the test, not the certificate of incorporation.
Documents that are not legalised or not translated by a certified translator.
Applying on the wrong basis, from the wrong immigration status, without the right to work, or more than 10 days after it was granted.
Passport validity margins that do not cover the permit period requested.
Renewals started too late: a renewal is an application, not a formality.

What Trustlex charges

Eligibility pre-check EUR 120, written route and odds, credited against the full service. Founder or work route from EUR 650: file build, filing and follow-up to decision. Property route from EUR 650 on the same basis. Family members from EUR 350 each. Renewal from EUR 300, started at least 40 days before expiry and tracked on the deadline board. Investment-route advisory is quoted after legal review.

State fees of the Public Service Development Agency are passed through at cost and depend on the track: at the time of writing GEL 300 for a decision on the 30th day, GEL 450 on the 20th and GEL 600 on the 10th. VAT applies to Trustlex professional fees only. Where we assess your odds as poor, we say so in the pre-check and decline to invoice the full service.

A residence permit is not tax residency

A permit is an immigration status. Georgian tax residency ordinarily follows from presence for 183 days or more in any twelve months, with a separate high-net-worth route. You can hold a permit and stay tax-resident elsewhere, or become tax-resident with no permit at all. Model the two questions separately.

Read the full guide to residence routes All guides to living in Georgia: visas, property, family, tax

Questions founders ask

Can I get a permit as soon as my company is registered?: You can apply in its first three months, if you move in the right order. The right to work under the Law on Labour Migration comes first, and you apply for the permit within 10 days of it. While the company is no more than three months old and employs no more than three foreigners, a first permit needs no turnover proof and is issued for six months; the renewal, and any first application after those three months, needs Revenue Service proof of annual turnover of at least GEL 50,000 for each foreigner applying. Monthly income of at least five times the subsistence minimum is asked in every case.
Do I need a permit to be in Georgia at all?: Many nationalities may stay visa-free for up to a year. A permit is about stability, a residence card, breaking the annual reset and a path to permanence, rather than lawful presence tomorrow. Working in Georgia is another matter: since 1 March 2026 it needs the right to work together with a residence permit, unless an exemption applies.
Can my family come?: Yes, through family reunification against your permit, with legalised and translated proof of the relationship. Their permits match yours in validity.
Is the outcome guaranteed?: No. The Public Service Development Agency decides on the file. Anyone selling a guaranteed Georgian residence permit is selling something they do not have.
How long does it take?: The file build depends on how quickly your documents can be legalised and translated. Filing takes about a week, and the decision window depends on the regular or expedited track. On the work routes the right to work comes before that, decided within 30 calendar days of a complete application. Renewals start at least 40 days before expiry.
What does the pre-check give me?: A written route, the odds, the document list with the legalisation rule for your nationality, the timeline and the fees, from a lawyer, within two business days. It costs EUR 120 and is credited against the service if you proceed.

Find out which route fits before you pay any state fee

Ten questions, a preliminary answer now, a lawyer's written pre-check within two business days.

Check my eligibility Book a 30-minute call