Tax residency in Georgia without living there
Georgia lets wealthy individuals become tax resident without spending 183 days a year in the country. The route is real, but it changed in 2023, most guides still describe the old version, and it does less than many buyers assume.
The standard rule
Under the Georgian Tax Code, you become tax resident by spending at least 183 days in the country within any continuous twelve-month period. Citizens and foreigners are treated alike.
The high-net-worth alternative
Since April 2023, an applicant must meet three conditions at once — not two, as older guides still say.
| Condition | What is required |
|---|---|
| Wealth or income | Assets worldwide above 3,000,000 GEL, or income above 200,000 GEL in each of the last three calendar years |
| Assets in Georgia | At least USD 500,000 held in Georgia |
| A Georgian connection | A Georgian residence permit, or at least 25,000 GEL of Georgian-source income in the previous year |
Dollar equivalents vary between sources because the lari moves. As an order of magnitude, 3,000,000 GEL is roughly USD 1.1 million and 200,000 GEL roughly USD 75,000.
Why the guides disagree
Before 15 April 2023, two conditions were enough; the in-country asset test was added by order of the Ministry of Finance. Pages written before that date are still ranking. At least one current guide also describes the wealth test as USD 500,000 worldwide, confusing the two thresholds. Check the date on anything you read, including this page.
What the status gives you
Georgian tax residency, certified by the Revenue Service. Georgia taxes residents mainly on Georgian-source income, and most passive income earned abroad is not taxed in Georgia. Georgian-source personal income is taxed at a flat 20%.
What it does not do
This is the part brochures leave out. A Georgian certificate does not, by itself, end your tax residency anywhere else. Your home country applies its own tests — days spent there, where your family lives, where your economic interests sit — and a French or Swiss resident who keeps a home and income there can remain taxable there whatever their Georgian status.
Where both countries claim you, the double-tax treaty between them decides, if one exists. The high-net-worth route is useful to someone genuinely moving their life to Georgia. It is not a way to stop being taxed at home while still living there.
Where property fits
In practice, the USD 500,000 in-country test is most often met through real estate. That makes the route a property decision as much as a tax one: a buyer is committing half a million dollars to the Georgian market at a time when Batumi yields have fallen for two years running. The residency is a benefit of the purchase, not a reason to overpay for it.
Questions for your adviser before you apply
- Do my home country's rules let me cease tax residency, and what does leaving cost?
- Is there a tax treaty between my country and Georgia, and which tie-breaker applies to my situation?
- Which Georgian assets count toward the USD 500,000, and how are they valued?
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Sources
- Andersen Georgia — HNWI tax residency
- Andersen Georgia — Georgian tax residency rules
- TP Solution — HNWI rule changes since April 2023
- Georgiafy — HNWI tax residency 2025–26
- Expat Hub — High Net Worth programme
Last reviewed September 2026. Rules and thresholds change; this page describes Georgian law only and is not tax advice.