Is there a business residence permit in Georgia?
Not under that name. Georgian law has no single "business visa" or "company residence permit". A person who runs or owns a business in Georgia reaches residence through one of four existing grounds: the work residence permit, which since 2026 rests on a right to work and covers people carrying out entrepreneurial activity; the investment residence permit, for an investment of at least $300,000; the IT residence permit, which includes IT entrepreneurs; and the property permit, which has nothing to do with business but is often combined with it.
Which one fits depends on three questions: how much you are investing, whether you will work in the business yourself, and whether the business or the property is the stronger basis. This page compares the four and explains the conditions that founders and company owners most often misjudge.
The four routes side by side
| Route | Main condition | First term | Lets you work? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work residence permit (entrepreneur) | Right to work; income and company turnover tests | 6 months to 1 year | Yes, on the right-to-work basis |
| Investment residence permit | Investment of at least $300,000, or property above $300,000 | 5 years | Yes; holders are exempt from the right-to-work requirement |
| IT residence permit | IT entrepreneur with small business status, 2 years in IT, USD 25,000 a year | 3 years, up to 12 | Yes, on the right-to-work basis |
| Property permit | Property in your own name worth more than $150,000 | 1 year, renewed yearly | Not by itself |
The work residence permit for entrepreneurs
Article 15(a) of the law gives the work residence permit to an alien who has obtained the right to labour activities, and the agency's own description covers both labour immigrants and aliens carrying out entrepreneurial activity in Georgia. A founder who runs a Georgian company, or a sole trader registered as an individual entrepreneur, uses this route. The agency sets two financial tests:
- Personal income of at least five times the subsistence minimum for the average consumer, as published by Geostat, every month.
- Business turnover of at least GEL 50,000 a year for each foreigner in the business, or GEL 35,000 for educational and medical institutions, shown by a Revenue Service certificate.
The documents include the approved form, the passport, proof of lawful stay, the document showing employment or entrepreneurial activity, proof of income or a bank statement, the turnover certificate, a certificate of the number of foreign employees, a photograph and the fee of GEL 300, 450 or 600 depending on speed. The first permit runs for six months to one year. Owners who direct their own company are also expected to show an employment contract with them as director; PB Services notes at least six months remaining.
Since 1 March 2026 this route begins with the right to work, which is decided separately through the labour migration system. Our page on the work permit from 2026 explains that first step.
To be added by the team: the partner lawyer to confirm whether the GEL 50,000 turnover test now sits in a Government ordinance under the 2026 labour migration rules, and how a newly founded company with no twelve-month turnover yet can qualify.
The investment permit through a business
Article 15(h) offers a five-year permit to an alien who has made an investment in Georgia of at least $300,000 under the law on investment activity, as well as to owners of property worth more than that. For the business version, the agency asks for an audit report by a certified auditor confirming the investment, and a written reference from a member of the Government or from three Georgian citizens authorised to represent a Georgian business. The business must then show its growth: each year the holder files Revenue Service information on annual turnover, and the permit can be terminated if turnover stays below USD 50,000 in the first year, USD 100,000 in the second and USD 120,000 in years three to five. After five years, with turnover of at least USD 120,000 in the fifth year, the holder can apply for a permit for indefinite stay. Our page on the investment residence permit covers both versions.
Property owned by your company
Many buyers plan to hold an apartment through a company, for tax or management reasons, and still use it for a residence permit. The property route does not work that way. Article 15(j) requires the alien to hold the property right personally, and a registry extract that names a company as owner does not show that. If the apartment is meant to support your permit, register it in your own name; if it belongs in the company, look to the work or investment routes for residence.
To be added by the team: the partner lawyer to confirm whether property owned by a company in which the applicant is the sole shareholder can count towards the $300,000 investment test, and which documents the agency then expects.
Setting up the business
A foreigner can register as an individual entrepreneur or found a limited liability company in Georgia. Registration itself is not residence, and since 2026 running the business is an activity that needs a right to work unless you hold an exempt status, such as the investment permit. Many small businesses use small business status: a 1% tax on turnover, rising to 3% once turnover passes GEL 500,000, for activities the Government has not excluded. The order matters: decide the residence route first, then choose the business form that supports it.
Individual entrepreneur or company?
The two forms differ in ways that matter for residence. An individual entrepreneur is you, registered for business: the turnover is yours, and small business status, with its 1% or 3% tax on turnover, is available only to an entrepreneur who is a natural person. A limited liability company is a separate legal person: the turnover test is applied to the company for each foreigner it employs, including you as director, and the company pays profit tax under its own rules. A consultant working alone often starts as an individual entrepreneur; a business with partners, staff or outside investors is usually a company. In both cases the turnover certificate comes from the Revenue Service, so keep the books in order from the first month.
Your family on a business route
How the family joins depends on the route. The investment permit is issued to the investor and family members together. On the work residence permit, the spouse and children apply for family reunification permits on the ground of your permit, and the agency asks for proof that the family has income of at least twice the subsistence minimum each month, or equivalent funds in a bank account. Each family member pays the state fee and receives a residence card of their own. Our page on family members explains the applications.
A founder's first year, in order
Arrive and plan
Use the visa-free stay, if your nationality has one, to decide the business form and the residence route together.
Register the business
Register as an individual entrepreneur or found the company, and open its bank account.
Obtain the right to work
Apply through the labour migration system before you start running the business, unless you hold an exempt status.
Apply for the residence permit
File the work residence permit within the deadlines that follow the right-to-work decision, with the income and turnover evidence.
Keep the evidence growing
Each extension looks at turnover and income again, so keep monthly records from the start.
Which route fits?
- You will run a small company yourself: the work residence permit, after the right to work.
- You invest $300,000 or more: the investment permit, which also exempts you from the right-to-work requirement.
- You work in IT with your own small business: the IT residence permit, three years at a time.
- You want residence that does not depend on the business: property in your own name worth more than $150,000, alongside whatever work route the business needs.
Risks and exceptions
- Property in the company's name. It does not support the property permit.
- Turnover below the test. Each foreigner in the business needs GEL 50,000 of turnover behind them.
- Working before the right to work. Since 2026, registering a business is not permission to run it.
- Investment-permit turnover targets. Missing the yearly figures can end the permit.
Frequently asked questions
Does registering a company give me a residence permit?
No. Registration creates the business; residence still needs one of the grounds in Article 15, such as the work or investment permit.
Can my company employ me so that I get a work permit?
Yes, if the company meets the turnover test and you meet the income test, and after you obtain the right to work.
Do investment permit holders need the right to work?
No. Holders of the investment residence permit are among those exempt.
Can I combine the property permit with running a business?
Yes, but the property permit does not let you work. The business side needs a right to work unless you hold an exempt status.
Can my spouse work in my company?
A family permit lets your spouse live in Georgia; working in the company is a separate question under the 2026 rules, with its own right to work unless an exemption applies.
How long does the work residence permit last?
The first permit runs for six months to one year and is then extended while the conditions continue to be met.
Sources
- Law of Georgia on the Legal Status of Aliens and Stateless Persons (Articles 15, 16 and 21), Legislative Herald of Georgia, consolidated 25 June 2026 (accessed 13 October 2026)
- Migration and residence permits: work and investment residence permits, Public Service Development Agency (accessed 13 October 2026)
- Residency rules: work residence permit in Georgia, PB Services, 23 January 2026 (accessed 13 October 2026)
- Subsistence minimum, National Statistics Office of Georgia (accessed 13 October 2026)
- Tax Code of Georgia (Articles 88-90, small business status), Legislative Herald of Georgia (accessed 13 October 2026)
Change log
- - Comparison published from Articles 15, 16 and 21 of the Aliens Law, the agency's work and investment permit lists and PB Services; being reviewed by the partner lawyer.