What does the Public Registry charge, and how long does it take?
Registration in the Public Registry is the step that makes you the owner, and it is one of the cheapest steps of a purchase in Georgia. The National Agency of Public Registry charges a flat fee for registering a change of ownership, whatever the price of the property, and lets you choose how fast you want it: four working days, one working day or the same day. Extracts, cadastral plans and mortgage certificates have their own small fees. This page brings all of them together, as published by the agency and checked on 13 October 2026, with examples of what a typical purchase pays in total and how long each step takes.
One correction is worth stating at the start, because it is widely repeated. The agency's fee table lists free registration of a preliminary ownership right only for property in the occupied territories. For an apartment under construction elsewhere in Georgia, registering a preliminary ownership right is charged like any other registration of a right.
The fee table
| Service | Term | Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Registering a change, creation or end of a right (a purchase, a preliminary ownership right, a gift) | 4 working days | GEL 150 |
| The same, faster | 1 working day | GEL 270 |
| The same, fastest | Same day | GEL 350 |
| Registering an obligation linked to ownership | 4 working days / 1 day / same day | GEL 150 / 270 / 350 |
| Mortgage on a superficies right | 4 working days / 1 day / same day | GEL 150 / 270 / 350 |
| Mortgage certificate | 3 working days | GEL 75 |
| Extract prepared by the agency | 1 working day / same day | GEL 20 / 75 |
| Extract ordered online | 1 working day / same day | GEL 13 / 52 |
| Cadastral plan | 1 working day / same day | GEL 7 / 26 |
| Correcting a technical error in registered data | 1 working day or same day | Free |
| Preliminary ownership right, occupied territories only | 4 working days | Free |
To be added by the team: the partner lawyer to confirm that a preliminary ownership right on an off-plan apartment outside the occupied territories is charged the standard registration fee, and whether any exemption applies to the developer's initial registration of units.
What a typical purchase pays
| Case | Registry steps | Registry total |
|---|---|---|
| Resale flat, no rush | Online extract before signing (GEL 13), registration of ownership in 4 working days (GEL 150), online extract after (GEL 13) | GEL 176 |
| Resale flat with a bank mortgage being cleared | Online extract (GEL 13), registration of ownership in 1 working day (GEL 270), extract after (GEL 13) | GEL 296 |
| Off-plan flat, later completed | Preliminary ownership right (GEL 150), later registration of ownership of the finished unit (GEL 150), two extracts (GEL 26) | GEL 326 |
These are registry fees only. Notary certification, translations, a lawyer and bank charges are separate and are set out in our guide to hidden costs. Who pays it is a contract question: the Civil Code's default, in Article 479, is the seller, and many contracts shift it to the buyer, so check the clause.
How long each step takes in practice
The terms in the table are the agency's terms for a complete application. In practice the calendar has four parts:
Preparing the documents
The contract, identity documents, translations and any power of attorney.
Filing the application
Through a Public Service Hall, an agency office or an authorised person such as the notary, with the fee paid.
The agency's term
Four working days, one working day or the same day, as paid for.
Checking the result
Order a new extract and confirm your name, the cadastral code and that no unexpected entry appears.
If something is missing, the agency suspends the procedure rather than refusing it: the applicant has 30 calendar days to cure the defect, or three working days when only the fee is unpaid, and once the defect is cured the term starts again. A suspended application therefore costs time, not a new fee, as long as it is put right within the deadline.
A worked example of the calendar
A buyer and seller sign a resale contract at a notary on a Monday morning, and the notary files the application the same day on the standard four-working-day service. If the documents are complete, the registration is made by Friday of the same week, and the buyer can order an online extract showing their name that afternoon. If a public holiday falls in that week, the term moves on by a day for each holiday. If the agency suspends the application because, for example, a translation is missing, the four days start again on the day the translation arrives, provided it arrives within 30 calendar days.
Later registrations on the same property
The fee table applies every time a right is created, changed or ended, not only at the purchase. A bank mortgage registered against the flat, its removal when the loan is repaid, a later gift to a family member and the final sale all pass through the registry at the same rates of GEL 150, 270 or 350. A mortgage certificate, which some buyers and banks ask for, costs GEL 75 and takes three working days. Mistakes the registry made in your data are corrected free, so it is worth reporting them as soon as you notice them.
Where to file and pay
Applications can be filed at any territorial registration office of the agency, at a Public Service Hall, or through an authorised person, which in a purchase is often the notary who certified the contract. The fee is paid with the application; the law allows the agency to suspend an application for an unpaid fee for three working days before it goes further. A buyer abroad can let a representative with a power of attorney file and pay on their behalf.
When is the faster option worth paying for?
Priority in the register follows the time the application is filed, not the speed option chosen, so a faster service does not move you ahead of an earlier application. What it shortens is the period during which the seller's ownership still appears on the extract. That matters in three situations:
- The seller's mortgage is being paid off with your money, and the bank, the seller and you all want the new owner and the cleared mortgage on record quickly.
- You need the extract for another procedure, such as a residence permit application with a deadline.
- You are leaving Georgia and want to see the registered extract before you fly.
In other cases the four-day service is enough, and the difference of GEL 120 or 200 is better kept for a lawyer's review.
Registry fees in context
Next to the other costs of a purchase, the registry fee is small. If the contract is certified by a notary, the notary's tariff under Government Resolution No 507 is set by the value of the deal: for a flat worth GEL 262,400, about $100,000 at 2.624 lari to the dollar, it comes to roughly GEL 687, more than four times the standard registry fee. Translations, a lawyer and bank transfer charges add more. The registry is rarely where a budget goes wrong; the bigger items are covered in our buying cost calculator.
Extracts: the cheapest protection
An extract shows the owner, the cadastral code, the area and every registered right or encumbrance. The agency issues it to anyone, and an electronic copy issued by the agency counts as an original. At GEL 13 online, it is worth ordering one when you first consider a property, one on the day of signing and one after registration. Our guide to reading the extract explains each line.
Risks and exceptions
- Believing preliminary registration is free. Outside the occupied territories it is charged like any registration.
- Paying for speed without a reason. The same-day option does not change your priority.
- A suspended application left too long. The cure period is 30 calendar days, three working days for an unpaid fee.
- Not checking the final extract. Errors are corrected free, but only if someone notices them.
Frequently asked questions
Does the registry fee depend on the price of the flat?
No. It is a flat fee per registration, chosen by speed: GEL 150, 270 or 350.
Is registering an off-plan flat free?
No. The free entry in the agency's table covers only property in the occupied territories; elsewhere the standard fee applies.
How much is an extract?
GEL 13 online within one working day, GEL 52 the same day; GEL 20 or 75 when prepared by the agency.
Who pays the registry fee, buyer or seller?
Article 479 makes it the seller's cost by default; contracts often say otherwise, so read yours.
Do the fees change often?
They change from time to time, so check the agency's fee page in the week you file; this page records the figures checked on 13 October 2026.
Do I pay again to register a mortgage?
Yes. Registering a mortgage, and removing it later, are registrations of a right and cost GEL 150, 270 or 350 by speed.
Can a foreigner pay the fees from abroad?
The fees are paid as part of the application, which a representative with a power of attorney can file for you.
The registration procedure itself, from filing to the final extract, is explained in our guide to registration step by step.
Sources
- Immovable property registration fees and terms, National Agency of Public Registry (accessed 13 October 2026)
- Law of Georgia on the Public Registry (Articles 13 and 21), Legislative Herald of Georgia (accessed 13 October 2026)
- Instruction on the Public Registry, Order No 487 (Article 6), Legislative Herald of Georgia, consolidated 31 May 2026 (accessed 13 October 2026)
- Civil Code of Georgia (Article 479), Legislative Herald of Georgia (accessed 13 October 2026)
Change log
- - Data page published from the National Agency of Public Registry fee table (checked 13 October 2026) and the Law on the Public Registry; corrects the earlier statement that off-plan preliminary registration is free.