Georgia tax residency: how it works and what it covers
What Georgian tax residency is, the two ways to get it, what Georgia taxes, and why it is separate from a residence permit.
Last verified 2026-10-20Next review 2027-01-203 official sources
Whether Georgia works for you depends on how you earnTalk it through
You become a Georgian tax resident by spending 183 or more days in Georgia in any continuous 12-month period, or by qualifying as a high net worth individual. Residents pay no Georgian tax on income from foreign sources. Fees for services you provide from Georgia to foreign clients usually count as Georgian income, though.
Tax residency is a status under the Tax Code of Georgia. It is separate from a residence permit, which is a status under immigration law. Each one has its own rules, and neither gives you the other.
What Georgian tax residency is
Tax residency decides which income Georgia may tax. The rules are in Article 34 of the Tax Code of Georgia, the main tax law. The Revenue Service, the state tax office, applies them. Its website is rs.ge.
A resident is taxed in Georgia on Georgian-source income. Income from sources outside Georgia is exempt for resident individuals under Art. 82(1)(u). So most of the work is in deciding which income counts as Georgian-source. Art. 104 sets those rules, and they catch more freelance income than many remote workers expect. The section on taxes below explains why.
Tax residency and a residence permit are two different things
Many people mix these up. They come from different laws, and different offices handle them.
| Residence permit | Tax residency | |
|---|---|---|
| Legal basis | Law on the Legal Status of Aliens and Stateless Persons | Tax Code of Georgia, Art. 34 |
| Who decides | Public Service Development Agency (PSDA), through a Public Service Hall | Revenue Service |
| What it gives you | The right to stay in Georgia | A tax status for one tax year |
| How you get it | One of the permit types in Art. 15 of the Aliens Law | 183 days of presence, or the high net worth route |
A residence permit does not make you a tax resident. You can hold a permit and still be a non-resident for tax if you spend most of the year abroad. The opposite is also true. You can spend 183 days in Georgia without a permit, for example on a visa-free stay, and become a tax resident. Tax residency gives you no right to stay. For permit types, see our residency guide. For the visa-free rules, see visa-free stay in Georgia.
The high net worth route is the one place where the two meet. A residence permit is one of the alternative conditions for that route. The permit alone still does not make you resident.
Two routes to tax residency
The 183-day rule
Art. 34(2) makes you resident for the whole current tax year if you stayed in Georgia for 183 or more days in any continuous 12-calendar-month period that ends in that year. Any part of a day counts as a full day (Art. 34(5)). So arrival and departure days both count.
Some days are treated in special ways. Time abroad specifically for treatment, leisure, a business trip or education counts as time in Georgia (Art. 34(3)). Some time in Georgia does not count, including time in transit and time in Georgia "for treatment or leisure" (Art. 34(4)). The full counting rules are on the 183-day rule page.
The high net worth individual route
Art. 34(6) lets Georgia grant residency to a high net worth individual under conditions set by the Minister of Finance. The Law on Securities Market defines this person in Art. 2(58). It means proven property of more than GEL 3 million, or annual income of more than GEL 200,000 in each of the previous three years.
The detailed conditions come from a 2023 order. We have them only from secondary sources such as BDO and Andersen. They include property in Georgia worth at least USD 500,000. See the high net worth individual route for the details and what is still unclear.
What Georgia taxes
The standard personal income tax rate is 20% (Art. 81(1)). Several types of income have their own rates or exemptions.
| Income | Treatment | Tax Code |
|---|---|---|
| Income from foreign sources, for a resident | Exempt | Art. 82(1)(u) |
| Salary for work done in Georgia | 20% | Art. 81(1), 104(1)(a) |
| Fees from foreign clients for services a resident provides | Georgian-source, taxed | Art. 104(1)(c.g) |
| Same fees, through an individual entrepreneur with small business status | 1% up to GEL 500,000 a year, 3% above | Art. 90 |
| Dividends from a Georgian company | 5% at source | Art. 130(1) |
| Interest from a Georgian payer | 5% at source | Art. 131(1) |
| Interest from a licensed Georgian financial institution | Not taxed | Art. 131(5) |
| Rent of residential space for living | 5% of gross income | Art. 81(2) |
The row on service fees matters most for freelancers and remote workers. Under Art. 104(1)(c.g), a service counts as delivered in Georgia when the provider is a Georgian resident and the client is in another country. Those fees are Georgian-source income, so the foreign income exemption does not cover them. This is why many freelancers register as an individual entrepreneur and apply for small business status. Foreign income and Georgian tax explains the source rules in detail.
Guides in this section
- The 183-day ruleHow Georgia counts days, which days count and which do not.
- Foreign incomeThe Art. 82(1)(u) exemption, source rules, investment income and crypto.
- Individual entrepreneur and small business status1% on turnover up to GEL 500,000, filing, VAT and the limits.
- High net worth individual routeResidency without 183 days, and the conditions we could not confirm.
- Tax residency certificateHow to get proof of residency from the Revenue Service.
- Companies in Georgia15% profit tax on distribution, 5% on dividends, and special statuses.
- What Georgian tax residency does not solveYour home country's rules, US citizens, treaties and reporting.
Who this fits and who it does not
Georgian tax residency can work well for someone whose income is mostly foreign investment income. Foreign dividends and gains on foreign assets are foreign-source, so they are exempt for a resident. It can also work for a freelancer who registers as an individual entrepreneur and stays under GEL 500,000 of turnover a year.
It fits less well in other cases:
- An employee who works from Georgia pays 20% on the salary, because work done in Georgia is Georgian-source income.
- A US citizen stays taxable in the United States on worldwide income, wherever they live.
- Someone who cannot leave the tax system of their home country gains little. Becoming resident in Georgia does not end residency elsewhere.
- Someone whose activity is on the excluded list for small business status cannot use the 1% rate. We could not confirm the current list.
These limits are covered on what Georgian tax residency does not solve.
Treaties
The Ministry of Finance lists 58 double tax avoidance agreements. The list includes the United Kingdom, Germany and the Netherlands. The United States is not on it. The US tax authority (IRS) treats the 1973 US-USSR income tax convention as applying to Georgia, and that convention is limited in scope.
What is not yet established. This section uses the English Tax Code consolidated to 15 October 2026 (matsne publication 246). A later amendment, Law No 1888-VIმს-XIმპ of 15 October 2026, was published on 16 October 2026. Its English consolidation was not available when we checked, so any change it makes is not reflected here. We also do not know how the Revenue Service applies the Art. 34(4)(d) rule on days spent in Georgia for leisure.
In this section
- The 183-day rule for Georgian tax residencyHow Georgia counts the 183 days under Tax Code Art. 34, including part days and the days that do not count.
- Foreign income and Georgian tax residencyWhat the Art. 82(1)(u) exemption covers, why service fees from foreign clients can still be taxed, and rates on investment income and crypto.
- Individual entrepreneur and small business status in GeorgiaThe 1% small business regime for individual entrepreneurs: limits, filing, VAT, and why it gives no residence permit.
- High net worth individual route to Georgian tax residencyTax residency without 183 days for people with more than GEL 3 million in property or GEL 200,000 a year in income, and what remains unconfirmed.
- Georgian tax residency certificateHow to get proof of Georgian tax residency from the Revenue Service, and what is not confirmed about fees and documents.
- Company taxation in Georgia: LLC, International Company and special zonesThe 15% tax on distributed profit, 5% on dividends, and the International Company, Virtual Zone and Free Industrial Zone regimes.
- What Georgian tax residency does not solveYour home country's rules, US citizens, treaties, information exchange and pensions: the limits of Georgian tax residency.
- Georgia small business status: the 1% rate and its limitsThe 1% regime for an individual entrepreneur: the GEL 500,000 limit, what counts as Georgian-source income, and the VAT threshold underneath it.
Common questions
- Does a Georgian residence permit make me a Georgian tax resident?
- No. Tax residency comes from the Tax Code of Georgia, mainly the 183-day test in Art. 34(2) or the high net worth route in Art. 34(6). A residence permit comes from immigration law and does not make anyone a tax resident. Tax residency also gives no right to stay in Georgia.
- How many days do I need to spend in Georgia to become tax resident?
- Under Art. 34(2) of the Tax Code you become resident for the whole tax year if you were in Georgia for 183 or more days in any continuous 12-calendar-month period ending in that year. Any part of a day in Georgia counts as a full day (Art. 34(5)).
- Is foreign income tax free for Georgian tax residents?
- Income that is not Georgian-source is exempt for resident individuals under Art. 82(1)(u). But fees for services that a Georgian resident provides to clients abroad count as Georgian-source under Art. 104(1)(c.g), so they are taxed in Georgia.
- What is the personal income tax rate in Georgia?
- The standard rate is 20% (Art. 81(1)). Dividends and interest from Georgian payers are taxed at 5% at source, residential rent at 5% of gross income, and an individual entrepreneur with small business status pays 1% on turnover up to GEL 500,000.
Whether Georgia works for you depends on how you earn
Where you live is only half of it. We can walk through your position with you, including the cases where Georgian tax residency does not give the result people expect. This is general information, not tax advice for your circumstances.
Sources
Every legal, fee and procedural statement on this page is taken from the sources below and was checked on 2026-10-20. Where they change, this page changes.
- Tax Code of Georgia (Legislative Herald of Georgia) — Tax residency, income tax, exemptions and small business status
- Law of Georgia on Securities Market (Legislative Herald of Georgia) — Definition of a high net worth individual, Art. 2(58)
- Ministry of Finance of Georgia: Double Taxation Avoidance Treaties — List of 58 double tax avoidance agreements
Related
This page is general information about Georgian rules as published by the authorities named above. It is not legal or tax advice for your circumstances, and immigration outcomes depend on your nationality, documents and individual case. See our legal and tax information disclaimer.