EY Georgia Tax & Law Brief for January–March 2026

• Pursuant to the Decree No. 503 of the Government of Georgia, sale of plastic products intended to come into contact with food, including plastic forks, knives, spoons, chopsticks, plates, straws, beverage stirrers, as well as food containers, cups, and their lids made of expanded polystyrene (EPS) is prohibited as of April 1, 2026, while their import and production have been prohibited since January 1, 2026.
• Violation of the requirements stipulated by the Decree No. 503 will result in a fine of GEL 1,000, while a repeated violation will result in a fine of GEL 2,000.
• Pursuant to the Decree No. 106 of Government of Georgia, the provision of drinks to customers by food establishments in plastic bottles will be prohibited from July 1, 2026.
• According to the Decree No. 106, the production (except for export purposes), import, and placement on the market of drinks bottled in plastic will be prohibited as of February 1, 2027; however, according to a statement by the Prime Minister of Georgia made on April 8, 2026, this prohibition may be postponed for four years.
• The Decree No. 106 also determines exceptions. 

The source and date of publication:
Website of the Legislative Herald of Georgia. 14/11/2025
Website of the Parliament of Georgia. 02/12/2025
Website of the Legislative Herald of Georgia. 13/03/2026

• From March 1, 2026, amendments to the Law on Labor Migration came into force, and the Decree No. 70 on Procedure for Granting the Right to Labor Activities to Labor Immigrants and Self-Employed Foreign Individuals came into effect.
• According to the amendments, in order to carry out labor/entrepreneurial activities in Georgia, the foreign individuals are obliged to obtain:  
  • The Work Authorization; and
  • D1 category visa or work/IT residence permit.
• A foreign individual will not need a D1 category visa or a work or IT permit if they perform their work activities entirely remotely and do not require entry into the territory of Georgia.
• The application for the Work Authorization is reviewed by the LEPL State Employment Support Agency.
• The application for granting the Work Authorization for an employee is submitted by the local employer, while in the case of a self-employed foreign individual, it is submitted by the self-employed foreign individuals themselves.
• The application is reviewed within 30 calendar days for a fee of 200 GEL, and in case of expedited processing - within 10 business days, for a fee of 400 GEL.
• A local employer is obliged to post a vacancy on the website of LEPL State Employment Support Agency 10 business days prior to submitting the application. A local employer shall have the right to submit the application for the Work Authorization only if the Agency fails to find a suitable local candidate within this period.
• The Decree defines exceptions, in which a local employer is exempt from the procedure for posting a vacancy and selecting local candidates.
• For foreign employees who were registered in the Labor Immigrant Database (www.labormigration.moh.gov.ge) as of March 1, 2026, the deadline for compliance with the amendments is January 1, 2027. For self-employed foreigners who were already engaged in labor/entrepreneurial activities in Georgia as of March 1, 2026, the deadline is May 1, 2026.
• The amendments also determined the grounds for refusing to grant the Work Authorization, its termination, as well as other procedural matters.
• On April 1, 2026, draft law No. 283/3-XImp was published, which, if adopted, will clarify issues related to the rules and conditions of labor migration in Georgia.
• According to the draft law, foreign individuals engaged in professional activities within the framework of a temporary visit to Georgia, whose activities are related to a specific short-term project, will not require the Work Authorization. The list, duration, and criteria of such short-term professional activities will be determined by the decree of the Government of Georgia.
• According to the draft law, it will be clarified that a foreign individual does not need the Work Authorization if they perform labor activities or provide services in Georgia on behalf of a non-resident employer or service recipient, and their activities are related to the non-resident's activities outside the territory of Georgia.
• The draft law defines that foreign persons engaged in the management of companies in Georgia (or the audit committee) will not require the Work Authorization if the respective company meets the established criteria for assets, income, and number of employees and is classified as a first, second, or third category enterprise under the Law of Georgia on Accounting, Reporting, and Auditing.
• If adopted, the amendments will come into force immediately upon publication.

The source and date of publication:
Website of the Legislative Herald of Georgia. 26/06/2025
Website of the Legislative Herald of Georgia. 20/02/2026
Website of the Parliament of Georgia. 01/04/2026

• On March 4, 2026, the Parliament of Georgia adopted amendments to the Law on Grants. The respective amendments were also made to other laws.
• The amendments expanded the definition of a grant, which also includes:
  • Funds transferred by another state, a citizen of another state, or a legal person to a citizen, a person with residency rights, or a legal person of Georgia, with the purpose of exerting political influence on the government of Georgia, state institutions, or any segment of society.
  • Funds transferred by a legal person of another state to its representative office/branch registered in Georgia, except for funds transferred for the purpose of conducting business activities.
• According to the amendments, the issuance of such grants is permitted only on the basis of a written agreement and with the consent of the Government of Georgia or an authorized person designated by the Government of Georgia.
• Under amendments criminal liability has been established for violations of the Law on Grants of Georgia:
  • Natural person may be punished by a fine, community service ranging from three hundred to five hundred hours, or imprisonment for up to six years.
  • A legal person may be punished by a fine and/or liquidation.
• The amendments came into force on 4 March 2026. 

The source and date of publication:
Website of the Legislative Herald of Georgia. 04/03/2026

• On March 4, 2026, following the adoption of the amendments to the Law on Grants, amendments were also made to the Administrative Offenses Code of Georgia.
• Entrepreneurial legal entities that publicly engage in political activities unrelated to their core business activities will be fined in the amount of GEL 20,000.
• Political activity is deemed any activity aimed at influencing the government of Georgia, state institutions, or any segment of society with the purpose of forming or changing Georgia’s domestic or foreign policy.
• The authority empowered to impose fines on legal entities is the State Audit Office.
• The amendments came into force on 4 March 2026. 

The source and date of publication:
Website of the Legislative Herald of Georgia. 04/03/2026

• On 31 March 2026, the Parliament of Georgia adopted amendments to the Law of Georgia on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
• The amendments determine administrative bodies and private legal entities, including educational and medical institutions, insurance companies, commercial banks and microbanks, business operators, pharmacies, and others, which are obliged to ensure the accessibility of their websites and mobile applications for persons with disabilities.
• The obligation to ensure the accessibility of websites and mobile applications stipulated under the amendments does not apply to audiovisual media service providers and broadcasting transmission services.
• According to the amendments, the Government of Georgia is obliged to adopt the relevant technical regulation by 1 March 2027 and to define the website and mobile application content to which the new requirements shall not apply.
• The amendments will come into full force from 1 September 2027. 

The source and date of publication: 
Website of the Parliament of Georgia. 10/12/2025

• On March 17, 2026, the Parliament of Georgia adopted amendments to the Law of Georgia on Vine and Wine.
• From May 1, 2026, to establish the commercial vineyard it will be mandatory to obtain consent from the National Wine Agency.
• The procedure for obtaining consent from the National Wine Agency for establishing a commercial vineyard shall be determined by the Minister of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia by May 1, 2026.
• The amendments will come into full force on 1 May 2026.

The source and date of publication: 
Website of the Legislative Herald of Georgia. 24/03/2026

• On March 6, 2026, the National Bank of Georgia adopted the Rule for the Initial Offering of Stable Virtual Asset by Virtual Asset Service Provider.
• Under the Rule, the types of stable virtual assets and their main criteria, as well as corporate governance standards, and the obligation to submit documentation to the National Bank of Georgia were defined.
• According to the Rule, the initial offering of stable virtual asset is allowed only with the prior written consent of the National Bank of Georgia.
• According to the Rule, only registered virtual asset service providers are permitted to carry out the offering.
• The Rule additionally defines other criteria for virtual assets and issuer’s obligations.
• The amendments came into force on 9 March 2026. 

The source and date of publication: 
Website of the Legislative Herald of Georgia. 09/03/2026

• On March 5, 2026, the National Bank of Georgia published a draft rule concerning the determination, imposition, and enforcement of monetary fines for violations of securities legislation and the Law of Georgia on Accounting, Reporting, and Auditing.
• According to the draft rule, a monetary fine may be imposed simultaneously for the same violation on both the legal entity and its governing body members, partners (shareholders), or employees. Furthermore, if a person commits the same violation within one year, the National Bank is authorized to double the fine for each repeated offense.
• According to the draft rule, the fines were defined within the range of GEL 2,000 to GEL 200,000 for specific violations.

The source and date of publication: 
Webiste of the National Bank of Georgia. 05/03/2026

• On February 3, 2026, the National Bank of Georgia adopted amendments to the Information Disclosure Rule under Pillar 3 by Commercial Banks and Microbanks.
• According to the amendments, the list of data that microbanks and commercial banks are required to present in Pillar 3 reports has been expanded.
• According to the amendments, microbanks and commercial banks are obliged to include information on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) matters, as well as qualitative information disaggregated by gender, in the annual Pillar 3 reports.
• According to the amendments, microbanks and commercial banks are also required to present gender-disaggregated data in their quarterly Pillar 3 reports.
• The amendments came into force on 5 February 2026. 

The source and date of publication: 
Website of the Legislative Herald of Georgia. 05/02/2026
Website of the Legislative Herald of Georgia.

• On February 6, 2026, amendments to the Order No. 999 of the Minister of Finance of Georgia on the Application of Special Taxation Regimes came into force.
• The amendments affected the rules for granting and administering the special tax regimes of taxpayers holding Micro Business, Small Business, and Fixed Taxpayer statuses.
• The amendments clarified specific cases of termination of the Micro Business Status and transition to the Small Business Status
• The amendments determined various scenarios, based on the time of submission of the relevant request to the tax authority and abiding by the annual income threshold.
• The amendment prescribes a new rule for granting the Small Business Status. In particular, the status will be considered active from the date of granting, in contrast to the previous version, according to which the status came into force from the beginning of the month following the month of granting.
• Other technical and editorial amendments were made to the Order.
• The amendments came into force on 6 March 2026. 

The source and date of publication: 
Website of the Legislative Herald of Georgia. 06/02/2026

• On February 24, 2026, the Minister of Finance of Georgia adopted the Order №52 prescribing amendments to Order №996 of the Minister of Finance of Georgia on Tax Administration.
• The amendment establishes a new rule for reflecting information on internationally controlled transactions. As a result of the amendments, new annexes have been added to the annual profit tax return and the monthly profit tax return for the month of March, which reflects data on internationally controlled transactions carried out during the reporting period (year).
• These annexes are filled in by entities which have internationally controlled transactions carried out during the relevant period exceeding the value of GEL 500,000.
• The data to be reflected in the said annexes include the data of the associated persons/entities, the form of interdependence, the type of controlled transaction, the volume of the transaction, the balance of credit/receivables and other information.
• As a result of the amendment, illustrative examples of filling in the mentioned annexes have also been added to Order №996.
• The amendments came into force on 25 February 2026. 

The source and date of publication: 
Website of the Legislative Herald of Georgia. 25/02/2026