Georgia · Guide
Owning a Georgian company from abroad has always been simple, and it still is. One foreign shareholder, one foreign director, no local partner, no capital.
What changed in 2026 is the other half of the plan most foreigners have: living in Georgia and working there. Since 1 March 2026, that runs through a right to work. Since April, a list of exemptions decides who needs it. This guide separates the two, using the text of the law.
Four situations, four rules
Most confusion comes from mixing up situations that the law treats separately.
| Your situation | Right to work needed? | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| You own the company and live abroad | No | Ownership is not labour in Georgia |
| You direct the company from abroad, without working in Georgia | No | No activity in Georgian territory |
| You live in Georgia and serve foreign clients for their business abroad | No | Excluded, Article 1(4)(k) |
| You live in Georgia and direct a small Georgian company | Yes, as a rule | Directors are excluded only in categories 1 to 3 |
| You live in Georgia and sell to Georgian customers as an individual entrepreneur | Yes | Self-employed alien, Article 3(c2) |
| You hold an investment residence permit | No | Excluded, Article 1(4)(f) |
The rest of this page explains each line.
Owning and directing from abroad
Georgian company law does not ask where the owner or the director lives.
- Shareholder. One is enough, and it can be a foreign person or a foreign company.
- Director. One is enough, and formation practice confirms no residence requirement.
- Filings. A representative can file with a notarised power of attorney, as set out in how to register a company in Georgia.
- Visits. None required by the registry. The bank may ask for one, as covered in the business bank account guide.
What remote management does not settle is tax. A company directed day to day from another country may be treated as resident there under that country's rules. That question belongs to your home country, and the tax guide for non-residents covers how Georgia sees it.
3 questions
Which jurisdiction fits you?Answer three questions and get the three jurisdictions that match your situation.
Working in Georgia: the 2026 rules
The Law on Labour Migration was amended in June 2025, put into operation on 1 March 2026 by Government Ordinance No 70, and amended again by Law No 1509 of 15 April 2026 and Law No 1815 of 25 June 2026.
- Jun 2025Laws No 862 and 873 reshape labour migration
- 20 Feb 2026Ordinance No 70 sets the procedure
- 1 Mar 2026Right to work becomes mandatory
- 15 Apr 2026Law No 1509 widens the exemptions
- 9 Jul 2026Ordinance amended: quotas and turnover tests
- 1 Jan 2027Deadline for workers registered before March
Who the law covers
A self-employed alien is a foreigner without permanent residence who carries out paid activity in Georgia for financial benefit: trade, services, independent contracting and, in the English consolidated text, being "a partner" (Article 3(c2)). Employees of Georgian employers are covered too.
Who it excludes
Article 1(4) lists the situations to which the law does not apply. The ones that matter to founders are these:
- (f) Holders of an investment residence permit.
- (h) Short-term professional activity during a temporary visit, tied to a specific project, event or service, on a list the Government sets.
- (j) Fully remote work for a Georgian employer, when the work does not require entering Georgia.
- (k) Work or services for a non-resident, related to that non-resident's activity outside Georgia.
- (l) Managerial or governing functions in a category 1, 2 or 3 enterprise under the Law on Accounting, Reporting and Audit, or on an audit committee.
The small company trap
Exclusion (l) is the one most founders misread. Georgian accounting law sorts enterprises into four categories by assets, revenue and staff. The exemption for directors covers the first three. A newly registered company almost always starts in category 4, the smallest.
So a foreign director who lives in Tbilisi and runs a new Georgian company from there is, as a rule, inside the law and needs the right to work. Once the company grows into category 3, the director's functions fall outside it.
Where the guides disagree
Two readings of the April 2026 reform circulate.
- "Founders and directors no longer need a permit." Some agency headlines put it that way after the 16 April vote, adding that "partner" was removed from the definition.
- "Directors and partners are covered." AmCham's Investor.ge, writing in April 2026, reported clarifications that included them, with authorities keeping discretion.
- What the consolidated law shows. Directors are excluded only in categories 1 to 3. The English text on matsne, which cites Law No 1509, still lists "a partner" in the definition; the translation may lag the Georgian original. Confirm on the Georgian text before relying on either reading.
The routes to living there
| Route | For whom | What it requires |
|---|---|---|
| Right to work, then work residence permit | A foreign director or employee of a small Georgian company | Application to the Employment Support State Agency, then the residence permit |
| Investment residence permit | An investor | At least USD 300,000 invested, or real estate worth more than USD 300,000 other than farmland, valued by an accredited assessor |
| IT residence permit | IT employees and small business IT entrepreneurs with the right to work, managers of IT international companies | Activities listed by ordinance; lost after 183 days abroad in 12 months |
| Exempt activity | Remote work for foreign clients | No right to work; a work residence permit may be available by ordinance |
The investment route has a side effect worth noting: its holders fall outside the Law on Labour Migration entirely, under Article 1(4)(f).
- 1Will you work physically in Georgia?If not, the law does not apply
- 2Do you hold an investment residence permit?If yes, you are outside the law
- 3Are you serving a non-resident for its business abroad?If yes, excluded under Article 1(4)(k)
- 4Are you only directing a category 1 to 3 enterprise?If yes, excluded under Article 1(4)(l)
- 5OtherwiseApply for the right to work before you start
What the 2026 rules cost if ignored
- Fines of GEL 2,000 for working without the right to work, and GEL 2,000 for the employer, per case, higher on repeat, as reported by Georgia Today with JUST Advisors.
- Quotas for employers hiring more than five foreigners in a year or above 5% of staff, under the July 2026 ordinance changes, with a turnover test of GEL 50,000 per foreigner.
- A transition deadline: workers registered before 1 March 2026 must hold the right to work and a residence permit by 1 January 2027.
Practical set-ups that work
- Owner abroad, director abroad. No labour issue in Georgia. Watch where the company is really managed for tax.
- Owner abroad, local director. A Georgian resident director avoids the right-to-work question, but you give that person real powers. Use a clear service agreement and limited banking mandates.
- Founder in Tbilisi serving foreign clients. Exempt under (k) for that work. If you also direct a small Georgian company from Tbilisi, plan the right to work for that role.
- Founder relocating with capital. Consider the investment residence permit if the USD 300,000 threshold is within reach.
The bottom line
A non-resident can own and direct a Georgian company without setting foot in the country. The 2026 rules only start to matter when the founder lives and works in Georgia, and even then the exemptions are wide: foreign clients, remote work, larger companies, investors. The gap is the founder who moves to Tbilisi to run a new, small Georgian company: that person needs the right to work.
corpsec registers the company with a foreign shareholder and director and provides the registered office. Immigration filings are outside a formation mandate. See the Georgia formation service, or read how Georgian company profit is taxed.
Frequently asked questions
Can a non-resident own 100% of a Georgian company?
Yes. A limited liability company can have a single foreign shareholder, individual or corporate, with no Georgian partner and no minimum capital.
Can the director of a Georgian LLC live abroad?
Yes. Company law sets no residence requirement for the director, and filings can be made by a representative under a notarised power of attorney.
Do I need a work permit to run my own Georgian company from Georgia?
As a rule, yes, if the company is small. Since 2026, managerial functions are outside the labour migration law only in category 1, 2 or 3 enterprises. A new company usually starts in category 4.
Do I need the right to work if I live in Georgia and work for foreign clients?
No, for that work. The law excludes labour or services provided to a non-resident and related to its activities outside Georgia.
Did Georgia cancel the labour permit for foreigners in April 2026?
No. Law No 1509 of 15 April 2026 widened the exemptions, notably for remote work and services to foreign clients, but the right to work still applies to many situations, including directors of small Georgian companies working in Georgia.
What is the investment residence permit in Georgia?
A residence permit for a foreigner who has invested at least USD 300,000 in Georgia, or owns real estate other than farmland worth more than USD 300,000. Its holders fall outside the labour migration law.
Does a Georgian company give me Georgian tax residence?
No. Tax residence for individuals depends on your own presence and circumstances, not on owning a company. The tax guide for non-residents covers this.
Sources
- Law of Georgia on Labour Migration, consolidated with Law No 1509 of 15 April 2026 and Law No 1815 of 25 June 2026: definition of a self-employed alien (Article 3(c2)), activities outside the law's scope (Article 1(4)), short-term professional activity (Article 139)
- Law of Georgia on the Legal Status of Aliens and Stateless Persons, Article 15: work residence permit, investment residence permit from USD 300,000, IT residence permit
- Law of Georgia on Entrepreneurs No 875: single shareholder and director, notarised power of attorney for filings
- Expathub, Georgia has canceled labour permit requirement for expats: reading of the amendments voted on 16 April 2026 and of Ordinance No 70 as amended on 9 July 2026
- Investor.ge (AmCham Georgia), Georgia's labor migration reform moves into implementation, 20 April 2026: Ordinance No 70 of 20 February 2026 and the application process
Official, read on 26 October 2026 in the English versions on matsne.gov.ge: the Law on Labour Migration as amended by Law No 1509 of 15 April 2026 and Law No 1815 of 25 June 2026, and the Law on the Legal Status of Aliens, Article 15. Secondary: the reading of the April 2026 amendments and of the July 2026 changes to Government Ordinance No 70 by Expathub; the application process described by Investor.ge. Where they differ, the article follows the law. Two points to confirm on the Georgian text before acting: whether 'partner' has been removed from the definition of a self-employed alien (the English consolidation still shows it), and the asset, revenue and staff thresholds of the enterprise categories under the Law on Accounting, Reporting and Audit, on which secondary sources disagree. This is not legal or tax advice.