Georgia IE in 2026: Registration, 1% Tax & SBS

IE registration costs, separate SBS approval, 1% and 3% rates, monthly returns, VAT, tax residence and pausing or closing a business.

Five separate decisions

Treat Individual Entrepreneur registration, Small Business Status, VAT, tax residence and the right to work or reside as separate legal questions.
Registering as an IE does not automatically grant SBS, tax residence, a right to work or a residence permit. SBS is available only to a qualifying entrepreneur natural person and has activity and income exclusions.
The 1% rate is not universal for every freelancer, activity or receipt. Qualifying SBS taxable income is generally taxed at 1%; the rate becomes 3% from the start of the month in which gross income from economic activity exceeds GEL 500,000. A GEL 700,000 threshold applies to qualifying wine- and agro-tourism operators.

NAPR charges GEL 26 for registration within one working day, or GEL 75 on the day of application. These are registration fees; check document preparation and any additional services separately.
Prepare identity documents and address details, confirm the requirements for your circumstances with NAPR, and retain the registration extract. Then apply separately to Revenue Service for SBS and check the effective date on the certificate.

Revenue Service guidance excludes specified activities, including several licensed activities and medical, architectural, legal, notarial, audit and consulting activity. Confirm the current classification before applying.
Rent, interest, dividends, royalties, gifts and specified gains can fall outside the special regime and require general-rule treatment even when the person holds SBS.
File the SBS monthly return and pay by the 15th of the following month; keep the prescribed activity records and primary tax documents.

File the SBS return and pay by the 15th of the following month. Reconcile the activity journal, complete and submit the monthly return in your RS account, retain confirmation and check payment. Not filing is not equivalent to filing a zero return.
Example: GEL 10,000 of qualifying SBS taxable income at 1% produces GEL 100 of tax. This assumes eligibility and the applicable rate have already been confirmed; it is not a calculation on every bank receipt.

SBS does not remove VAT obligations. The general mandatory-registration test is GEL 100,000 of VAT-taxable transactions over any consecutive 12 calendar months, subject to the Tax Code’s exceptions and special cases.

IE or SBS registration does not make a person tax resident. The general individual test is at least 183 days of actual presence in any continuous 12-month period ending in the relevant tax year, with statutory special rules.
Check obligations in every country connected to your residence, clients, employer or business.

From 1 March 2026, covered self-employed aliens, including independent contractors and service providers working for financial benefit, use a separate right-to-work process. IE and SBS do not replace it.
The transition to 1 January 2027 is limited to eligible people who had active labour-migration database registration on 1 March 2026; merely having an older IE registration is not enough.
Later 2026 rules include nuanced exceptions for some services to non-residents connected with activity outside Georgia. A foreign client or remote contract alone does not prove an exemption; verify the current consolidated law and implementing rules for the actual facts.

Article 90(3) ties the SBS tax base to Georgian-source income and excludes salary. The location of a client’s bank does not by itself determine the source of income. Assess the actual contract and services, including whether they constitute employment, business services or an excluded activity.
Use this sequence: contract and activity review → SBS eligibility → income records and supporting documents → VAT assessment → monthly filing and payment. An IT label does not establish eligibility; distinguish software development from consulting based on the actual work.

A gap in orders does not close your IE or automatically remove filing obligations. For a temporary pause involving only SBS activity, RS describes filing the final monthly return and paying by the next month’s 15th, then marking the taxpayer card inactive.
Voluntary SBS cancellation takes effect on the first day of the month after the request. If NAPR cancels IE registration, SBS ends on that cancellation date. Keep the decisions and reconcile outstanding obligations. General-regime income or VAT requires a separate review of remaining returns and payments.

Tax content and NAPR fees were checked against official sources on 3 September 2026 and aligned with the Russian guide. The migration section retains the review of 2 September. Check the applicable consolidated law and your circumstances before acting.

Map tax residence, source of income, legal form and eligibility for any special status separately.
Confirm that the actual activity and income type are covered before relying on a preferential regime.
Check obligations in every country connected to your residence, clients, employer or company.

Keep contracts, invoices, bank evidence and activity records aligned.
Reconcile turnover and excluded income before filing, and retain submission and payment confirmations.
Re-check the official rules before changing activity, crossing a threshold, hiring or moving country.