What is a Public Registry extract?
An extract is the official statement of what the Public Registry records about one property. It is the document behind almost every step of a purchase: the seller proves ownership with it, your lawyer checks it for burdens, a bank lends against it, and after the sale an updated extract in your name is your proof of ownership. Under the Law on the Public Registry, an extract is given to any person who asks and pays the fee (Article 10(3)); you do not need the owner's permission to obtain one.
Its content is set by the Minister of Justice's Instruction on the Public Registry, Order No 487. Article 6(4) of that instruction lists what an extract from the Registry of Immovable Property shows: the cadastral code; the address; the purpose and category of the land and the form of ownership; the area and the number of buildings; the owner, which for an individual means name, surname and personal number; and the registered rights and obligations, with the basis on which each was registered. This guide takes those items one at a time and says what each tells a buyer and what to check.
How much can you rely on it?
A great deal, with one limit. Under Article 5 of the Law on the Public Registry, what is registered counts as correct until it is declared invalid, and the Civil Code protects a buyer who did not know otherwise: the registered owner is treated as the owner (Article 185), and the register entries as correct and complete for a good-faith acquirer (Article 312). The limit is in Article 3(6): the registry takes no responsibility for whether the documents submitted to it are genuine, so the extract tells you what was registered, not whether the person in front of you is the person named in it. Electronic extracts are issued through the registry's website, and every copy of an electronic document the agency issues is an original, under Article 6(7) of the instruction.
The extract, line by line
| Item | What it means | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Cadastral code | The unique identifier of this immovable thing in the register | It matches the code in the contract, the valuation report and any power of attorney |
| Address | The registered address | It is the building and flat you viewed, on the floor you saw |
| Purpose and category of land | What the land is registered for, including whether it is agricultural | For a house or plot, that it is not agricultural land if you are a foreigner or need a residence permit |
| Form of ownership | Whether the property is owned by one person or in common | If owned in common, every co-owner's position is settled before you pay |
| Area and buildings | The registered area and the number of buildings on the land | The area matches the contract and what you saw; a large difference needs an explanation |
| Owner | The registered owner, with personal number for an individual | The person selling, or the person who gave the power of attorney, is this person |
| Registered rights and obligations | Burdens on the property and other rights over it | Each one is understood and either accepted or removed at the sale |
| Basis of registration | The document on which each right was registered | The seller's own acquisition makes sense: a purchase, an inheritance, a gift |
Which burdens can appear, and what does each mean for you?
The "registered rights and obligations" part of the extract is where most purchases are won or lost. A burden registered against the property stays with the property unless it is removed, so a buyer who ignores it buys it.
- Mortgage. A lender's right to be paid out of the property ahead of other creditors, by sale or transfer of the property (Civil Code, Article 286), registered in the Public Registry (Article 289). Agree how it is paid off from the price at the moment of sale, with the lender's release.
- Seizure. A restriction placed on the property, for example by a court or in enforcement or criminal proceedings. A property under seizure cannot be freely sold; find out why it exists before going further.
- Tax lien. A charge registered for tax debts. It has to be cleared, and the seller should show how.
- Lease. A registered tenancy. Under the Civil Code, a buyer of a rented flat takes the place of the landlord (Article 209), so the tenancy continues after your purchase.
- Superficies, usufruct or easement. Rights of others over the property: to build on the land, to use it and take its fruits, or to pass across it (Articles 233 to 253). They limit what you can do with the property.
- Preliminary rights and pending applications. A preliminary ownership right registered for someone else, or another application in progress, means another person has a claim that may rank ahead of yours.
An illustrative extract, read aloud
The layout below is an illustration of how the items fit together, with invented placeholders, not a real property or a real person.
| Item | Shown | How a buyer reads it |
|---|---|---|
| Cadastral code | [code of the flat] | Copy it into every document of the deal |
| Address | [street, building, flat number] | The flat I viewed, on the floor I saw |
| Category | Non-agricultural | No restriction for a foreign buyer |
| Area | [registered area] | Matches the contract within the agreed tolerance |
| Owner | [name, personal number] | The seller's passport shows the same name and number |
| Burdens | Mortgage in favour of [bank] | The contract says the price clears it at signing, with the bank's release |
| Basis | Sale contract, [year] | The seller bought it; ask to see that contract if anything is unclear |
Read this way, the extract answers four questions in a few minutes: is this the property, is this the owner, what stands against it, and how did the owner get it. Any "I don't know" among the answers is a reason to stop and ask before paying.
When should you get an extract?
When you first become serious about a property
To decide whether to spend more time and money on it. The cadastral code is all you need to order it.
On the day of signing
A mortgage, a seizure or another buyer's application may have been registered since your first look.
When registration completes
The new extract should name you as owner, with any burden meant to be cleared no longer shown.
Red flags on an extract
- The owner is not the person selling, and no power of attorney is offered.
- A seizure, or a burden nobody mentioned.
- An area very different from the one in the contract or the listing.
- Several owners, when only one is negotiating.
- A recent change of owner just before a quick resale, without an explanation.
- Agricultural land under a house you are told you can buy.
What changes when the extract is for a house with land?
For a flat, the extract is mostly about the owner and the burdens. For a house with land, two more items carry weight. The first is the land's purpose and category: agricultural land, including the homestead category, is reserved for Georgian citizens except by inheritance, and it does not count towards a residence permit. The second is the area and the number of buildings registered on the plot. Compare them with what stands on the ground: an extension, a guest house or a garage that you can see but the extract does not show may not be registered, and what is not registered is not part of what the register says you bought. For any property with land, order the cadastral plan as well and compare its boundary with the fences.
Risks and exceptions
- An old extract. It shows the past, not today.
- Reading only the owner line. The burdens and the basis are where the problems are.
- Trusting a copy sent by the seller. Order your own extract with the code, directly from the registry.
- Assuming the registry checked identity. It registers documents; identifying the seller is your job and the notary's.
Frequently asked questions
Can I get an extract without the owner's consent?
Yes. The law gives an extract to any person who asks and pays the fee.
Is an electronic extract valid?
Yes. Under the instruction on the Public Registry, every copy of an electronic document issued by the agency is an original.
Does the extract show the price the owner paid?
The extract lists the basis of registration, such as a sale contract. The price is in that contract, not on the extract itself.
Does the extract show unpaid utility bills or building charges?
No. Those are not registered rights. Ask the seller for recent bills and the building's statement.
What if the area on the extract differs from the real flat?
Ask why before signing. Agree in the contract which area the price is based on, and have your lawyer look at the cadastral plan.
Do I need a translation of the extract?
If you do not read Georgian, have your lawyer or a certified translator go through it with you. The items are the same on every extract, so after the first one it becomes easy to follow.
The code that opens every extract is explained in the cadastral code; the rules behind the register are in property law in Georgia.
Sources
- Instruction on the Public Registry, Minister of Justice Order No 487 (Articles 6 and 9), consolidated 31 May 2026, Legislative Herald of Georgia (accessed 12 October 2026)
- Law of Georgia on the Public Registry (Articles 3, 5 and 10), consolidated 1 April 2026, Legislative Herald of Georgia (accessed 12 October 2026)
- Civil Code of Georgia (Articles 185, 209, 233 to 253, 286, 289 and 312), consolidated 25 June 2026, Legislative Herald of Georgia (accessed 12 October 2026)
- Immovable property registration: fees and terms, National Agency of Public Registry (accessed 11 October 2026)
Change log
- - Explainer published from the Instruction on the Public Registry, the Law on the Public Registry and the Civil Code; being reviewed by the partner lawyer.