Moving to Georgia, the country

Where these numbers come from

Verified on 24 August 2026 against the primary sources listed below. This is information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change and individual circumstances differ — confirm anything you intend to act on with the Revenue Service or a qualified adviser.

Important caveats

• The 1% and 3% rates apply to turnover (gross income), not profit. Business expenses are not deductible under this regime.
• Only income from a Georgian source is taxed under this regime, and salary income is excluded (Article 90(3)).
• Losses cannot be carried forward to the next year (Article 91(5)).
• The 20% standard rate applies to taxable income (after allowable deductions), whereas Small Business Status applies to gross turnover. A like-for-like comparison must account for that difference.
• The VAT threshold is measured over any 12 consecutive calendar months, not the calendar year used for the Small Business Status limit. The two can be crossed at different times.
• VAT registration does not by itself end Small Business Status; the 1% regime and VAT registration can coexist (Article 92).
• Exports and certain exempt supplies are treated specially when measuring the threshold (Article 165(7)).
• Amounts in the statute are set in USD and converted to GEL, so the GEL figure moves with the exchange rate.
• Property valuations for the investment and short-term permits must come from an assessor accredited by the Georgian Accreditation Centre.
• Meeting a threshold is necessary, not sufficient — the Agency decides each application.
• The operative rules live in Ordinance No 602, published in Georgian only; the English wording here follows the MFA consular portal’s own statement of the same rules.
• The insurance period is defined as entry until exit, capped at 1 year — a stay beyond a year is outside the tourist regime this requirement covers.
• Possession of a policy may be checked at border crossing points by the Patrol Police Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (Rule Article 3(3)).
• The minimum is set in GEL, so the equivalent in other currencies moves with the exchange rate.

Sources

• Tax Code of Georgia — Article 90, Taxable income of small business and tax rates — Article 90(1)-(3)
• Tax Code of Georgia — Article 88, Small business — Article 88(2)-(3)
• Tax Code of Georgia — Article 89, Granting the status of small business — Article 89(2)-(5)
• Tax Code of Georgia — Article 93, Filing micro and small business tax returns — Article 93(1^1)
• Tax Code of Georgia — Article 91, Principles of accounting for small business income and costs — Article 91(1), 91(5)
• Tax Code of Georgia — Article 81, Tax rate — Article 81(1)
• Tax Code of Georgia — Article 165, Registration as a VAT taxpayer — Article 165(1)
• Tax Code of Georgia — Article 166, VAT rate — Article 166
• Tax Code of Georgia — Article 92, Registration of a small business as a VAT payer — Article 92(1)
• Tax Code of Georgia — Article 84, Micro business — Article 84(1)
• Tax Code of Georgia — Article 86, Exemption of a micro business from tax — Article 86
• Tax Code of Georgia — Article 85, Granting the status of a micro business — Article 85(2)(b)-(c)
• Tax Code of Georgia — Article 93, Filing micro and small business tax returns — Article 93(1)
• Law of Georgia on the Legal Status of Aliens and Stateless Persons — Article 15, Types of residence permits — Article 15(a)-(l)
• Article 15(h) — investment residence permit threshold — Article 15(h)
• Article 15(j) — short-term residence permit, immovable property threshold — Article 15(j)
• Article 15(l) — IT residence permit, available to an IE with Small Business Status — Article 15(l)
• Amendments to Article 15(b), 15(g), 15(g¹) and 15(l), effective 1 September 2026 — Law of Georgia No 1803 of 25 June 2026 — Article 15(b), 15(g), 15(g¹), 15(l), as amended
• Law of Georgia No 1510 of 15 April 2026, Article 2 — commencement, the source of effectiveFrom (no English text published) — Article 2
• Law of Georgia on Tourism — Article 12, Mandatory insurance of tourists visiting Georgia — Article 12
• Law of Georgia on Tourism — Article 51, commencement and suspension of Article 12 — Article 51(3)-(3¹)
• Law of Georgia on Tourism — Article 50(1)(f), the mandate for the implementing ordinance — Article 50(1)(f)
• Ordinance No 602 of the Government of Georgia of 26 December 2025 on mandatory health and accident insurance of tourists entering Georgia (no English text published) — Rule Articles 1(3), 2-5; Ordinance Article 2
• Consular Department of the MFA of Georgia — Entering Georgia, mandatory tourist insurance (official English statement of Ordinance No 602) — Entering Georgia — insurance requirement