What a non-resident owner actually pays

First, a warning about search results

A large share of what ranks for “Georgia property tax” describes the US state of Georgia — a 3% non-resident withholding under O.C.G.A. § 48-7-128, a flat state income tax, FIRPTA. None of it applies to the Republic of Georgia. Check that any source you read mentions GEL, Tbilisi or the Revenue Service before trusting a number.

Buying

There is no stamp duty, no transfer tax and no purchase tax. Registration fees are nominal. Foreign buyers face the same treatment as Georgian citizens on residential and commercial property, and registration is a matter of days.

Holding: the annual property tax

This is the point most often got wrong. The tax is not a flat percentage of the property's value. It is banded by the household incomeof the owner, and it only engages above a threshold.

Hence the apparent contradiction between sources. One set of guides says non-residents pay the same rate as residents — true, the rate table does not distinguish them. Another says non-residents generally pay nothing — also true in practice, because a non-resident's Georgian-source household income is often below the 40,000 GEL threshold, or zero. Both statements describe the same rule from different ends.

Declaration is due by 1 November, payment by 15 November, for the preceding tax year. Compliance from abroad is usually handled by power of attorney or a local representative.

Renting: 5% or 20%

The second contradiction resolves the same way. The rate depends on what you let and to whom, not on your residence status.

The 5% is the headline figure quoted by most agencies, and it is real — but it applies to residential letting to individuals, and it is charged ongross rent with no deduction for management, maintenance or vacancy. The 20% applies to net income after those costs. On a short-let unit with a 20% management fee, the two are closer than the headline suggests.

Selling

Capital gains are taxed at 5% if the property is sold within two years of purchase, and are exempt after two years. A non-resident seller who has never been resident faces a 3% withholding on the sale price rather than on the gain, unless the correct affidavit is filed.

What this does not cover

Your own country's treatment of foreign rental income and foreign property is a separate question, and usually the larger one. Georgia has an extensive double-taxation treaty network, but whether you can rely on it depends on your residence. This page describes Georgian tax only, and it is not tax advice.