Georgia’s $150,000 Residency Threshold, Explained

The figure is easy to find. Since 1 March 2026, a residence permit in Georgia based on property ownership requires a property valued above USD 150,000.

What that sentence leaves out is most of what a buyer needs: which number the Agency actually reads, when in the purchase the basis for an application comes into existence, what goes in the file, and what the permit does and does not give you once you hold it. That is what this article covers. Every rule below comes from the Law on the Legal Status of Aliens and Stateless Persons and the published requirements of the Public Service Development Agency at sda.gov.ge, so you can check each statement rather than take ours.

What the rule says

The short-term residence permit is issued to a foreign national who holds title to immovable property in Georgia — agricultural land excluded — with a market value exceeding USD 150,000 equivalent in GEL. It is issued to the owner, and to the owner's spouse and children. The market value is established by a certified assessor of a body accredited by the Accreditation Centre.

Two words in that provision carry most of the practical weight.

"Exceeding." The threshold is written as more than USD 150,000, not as at least. An appraisal that lands exactly on the figure, or a few hundred dollars under it after a currency conversion, is not a comfortable place to be. If residency is the purpose of the purchase, leave room above the line.

"Market value." Not the price in your contract. Not the price registered at the public registry. Not the developer's list price. The number the Agency reads is the one in the appraisal report.

The threshold was USD 100,000 from 2019 until 1 March 2026, and USD 35,000 before that. Guidance published earlier than March 2026 — including a great deal of it still online — states the old figure.

Which number counts, and how to be sure it is the right one

The appraisal is the entire basis of the application, so treat it as part of the purchase decision rather than paperwork at the end.

The assessor must belong to an accredited body. Not any valuer with a letterhead. The law requires a certified assessor of a body accredited by the LEPL Unified National Body of Accreditation — Accreditation Centre, which publishes its register of accredited bodies with active status at gac.gov.ge. Ask which body the assessor works for, and look it up in that register before you order the report.

Several properties can be combined. The threshold applies to the value you hold, not to a single purchase. Two apartments, or an apartment and a commercial unit, can be added together, provided each is registered in your name and appraised.

Purchase price and appraised value are different numbers, and they move independently. A property bought below market can appraise above the line. A property bought at a strong price can appraise below it. If the permit is the point of the transaction, find out where the appraisal is likely to land before you commit, not after the money has moved.

The permit attaches to registered title, not to a contract

The file requires a document of title. A preliminary purchase agreement, a payment schedule and a set of receipts are not that document.

For an off-plan purchase, this sets the order of events: the building is completed and handed over, your ownership is registered at the National Agency of Public Registry, the appraisal is carried out on the registered property, and only then does the application exist. If you are buying at an early construction stage with residency in mind, the honest planning question is not what the property costs — it is when title will be in your name.

What goes in the file

For the owner:

• the application form
• a copy of your travel document
• a copy of the document evidencing your lawful stay in Georgia
• the title document for the property, agricultural land excluded
• the appraisal report establishing market value
• a colour photograph, 3×4, in electronic form
• proof of payment of the fee

For a spouse or child, the same, with a copy of the principal holder's permit and proof of kinship in place of the title document and appraisal.

Worth noticing what is not on that list: no income requirement, no language test, no medical certificate, no sponsor, and no evidence of days spent in the country. The condition is ownership.

Fees and timing. The fee depends on the speed you choose: GEL 300 for a decision on the 30th calendar day, GEL 450 on the 20th, GEL 600 on the 10th. The governing regulation gives the Agency 30 days to decide once the complete set of documents has been submitted. An application is filed with the Agency in person or through an authorised representative. Once a permit is granted, you are required to obtain the residence card within one month. If an application is refused, you may apply again on the same ground after one month.

The condition that catches people out: how you are in Georgia on the day you apply

A residence permit is issued to a person who is lawfully in Georgia, and the legal basis of that stay matters as much as the property does.

• It is not issued on the basis of a category C ordinary visa.
• It is not issued to a person whose presence in Georgia rests on the visa or residence permit of another country, under Government Ordinance #256 of 5 June 2015.
• It is not issued to a person staying under a deferral of the obligation to leave Georgia.
• An asylum seeker is not treated as lawfully staying for these purposes.

Each of these is a documented refusal ground rather than a technicality, and each one is settled before you buy a ticket, not at the counter. If your nationality requires a visa to enter Georgia, there is a separate immigrant visa category for property owners, applied for at a Georgian consulate before travel.

What the permit gives you for a year — and what it does not

What it gives you. Lawful residence for one year, renewable each year for as long as you hold qualifying property. A Georgian residence card. The same status for your spouse and children, each on their own application. A settled legal footing for the ordinary business of living somewhere — a bank, a lease, a school, a car.

What it does not give you.

It is not tax residency. Tax residency in Georgia turns on days: 183 or more within a continuous twelve-month period. Holding a residence permit does not create it, and does not by itself change where you are taxed.

It is not a permanent status on a timer. A permanent residence permit is granted to a person who has lived in Georgia for the last 10 years on the basis of a temporary residence permit, excluding time spent studying or receiving medical treatment. Holding a permit while living elsewhere is not the same thing as living here, and the ten-year clock is written around residence, not ownership.

It is not citizenship. Naturalisation is a separate procedure with its own requirements.

The other route, in one paragraph

The investment residence permit sits at USD 300,000 and works differently. It is issued for five years rather than one, and the law provides a defined next step: a residence permit for indefinite stay, for the holder who has kept ownership of that property for five years after the investment permit was granted. It is the route with permanence written into it. The property-based permit at USD 150,000 is not a shorter version of it.

If you bought under the $100,000 rule

The change is not retroactive. A permit obtained while the USD 100,000 threshold was in force is not re-valued against USD 150,000 at renewal, provided the property that supports it stays in your name.

Sell that property and buy another, and the next application is a new application, assessed against the threshold in force at that time. The legislation does not spell out the position of a holder who allows a permit to lapse after March 2026 and then applies again. If that describes your situation, put the dates in front of an immigration lawyer before the current permit expires rather than after.

Where these applications go wrong

The appraisal comes in under the line. Almost always because the purchase price was treated as the qualifying number.

The land is agricultural. Excluded outright. Check the designated use of the plot on the property extract.

Title is not registered yet. Common with off-plan purchases, and it is a timing problem rather than a refusal.

Ownership is split. Where a property is registered to two owners, what each of them holds is a share, and each application stands on the value of that share.

The stay is on the wrong basis. See the refusal grounds above.

The information is out of date. A large share of the guidance online still quotes USD 100,000, sometimes without a date on the page.

What we do here, and what we do not

We are not immigration lawyers, and no agency issues permits.

What we do is earlier and narrower. Before you commit to a property with residency in mind, we check the things that decide whether the plan works at all: the category of the land, whether title is registrable and when, and where an appraisal is realistically likely to land against the threshold. If a property looks like it will appraise below the line, you will hear that from us before you pay a deposit, including when it is a property we would otherwise be glad to sell you.

Then we introduce you to a lawyer and an accredited assessor, and stay in the conversation while the file is put together — because the sequencing of registration, appraisal and application is where the delays actually happen.

Frequently asked questions

Does the price in my contract qualify me? No. The qualifying figure is the market value in the report of a certified assessor from an accredited body. The contract price and the appraised value are separate numbers.

Can I reach the threshold with two properties? Yes. The threshold applies to the property you hold, and several properties registered in your name can be added together.

Do I have to live in Georgia to keep the permit? The condition for this permit is ownership, and days in the country are not part of the file. Days do decide two other things: tax residency at 183 days in a continuous twelve-month period, and the ten-year residence requirement for a permanent permit.

Can I apply while the building is still under construction? No. The application requires a title document, so the basis exists once your ownership is registered — after handover, not at signing.

Who else is covered by my permit? The provision covers the owner's spouse and children. Each of them files a separate application with proof of kinship and a copy of your permit, and each pays the fee.

What does the process cost in state fees? GEL 300 for a decision on the 30th day, GEL 450 on the 20th, GEL 600 on the 10th, per applicant. The appraisal and any legal help are separate.

I already hold a permit granted under the $100,000 rule. Do I need to buy more? Not while you keep the same property. The threshold that applied when the permit was granted continues to apply at renewal. Replacing the property puts you under the current rule.

How long does a decision take? The Agency has 30 days from the submission of a complete file, and shorter periods are available at the higher fee tiers.

If you are choosing a property with residency in mind, tell us the threshold you need to clear and send us the cadastral code. We will tell you what the land category and the likely appraisal range mean for the plan — before you commit to anything.