A Foreign Licence Carries Georgian Penalty Points and Can Be Driven to Zero - and the Period It Is Valid For Is Not in the Act
The Law of Georgia on Road Traffic applies to a citizen of Georgia, to a foreign citizen and to a stateless person taking part in road traffic in Georgia, unless an international treaty of Georgia provides otherwise. Article 15(17) obliges a driver to carry, and produce on demand, a document confirming the right to drive that has legal force in the territory of Georgia, together with a duly certified translation if the data in it are not written in Georgian or Latin letters. What the Act does not do is say for how long a foreign licence has legal force here. Article 58(7) delegates the rules and conditions for exchanging and recognising a foreign-issued driving document to this Law and to an order of the Minister of Internal Affairs, and the period lives in the order. Two consequences the Act does state are easy to miss. Article 56(13) applies the Georgian category equivalences to a foreign licence holder only if the law of the issuing country provides for them, so what you may drive here is read off your own country's rules. And article 59(2⁷) and (2⁸) put a foreign licence inside the Georgian penalty-point system: it is credited with 100 points once, from the day it acquires legal force in Georgia, articles 58 and 59 then apply to it, and when the points run out the holder is forbidden to drive a motor vehicle in Georgia until the right is restored under a procedure the Minister of Internal Affairs sets.
At a glance
- Who the Act applies to
- Georgian citizens, foreign citizens and stateless persons taking part in road traffic in Georgia
Article 1(2) of the Law of Georgia on Road Traffic, subject to any international treaty of Georgia.
- How long a foreign licence is valid in Georgia
- Not stated in the Act: article 58(7) delegates recognition and exchange to an order of the Minister of Internal Affairs
We have not read that order, so no period is published on this record.
- Translation
- Required where the data in the licence are not in Georgian or Latin letters
Article 15(17)(ბ) of the Act. It must be duly certified.
- Which categories a foreign licence carries
- The Georgian equivalences apply only if the law of the issuing country provides for them
Article 56(13) of the Act.
- Penalty points on a foreign licence
- 100, credited once from the day the licence acquires legal force in Georgia
Article 59(2⁷) of the Act.
- When the points run out
- The holder is forbidden to drive a motor vehicle in Georgia
Article 59(2⁸) of the Act; the right is restored under a procedure set by order of the Minister of Internal Affairs.
Requirements
- A driving document that has legal force in Georgia, carried and produced on demand
- A duly certified translation where the data in it are not in Georgian or Latin letters
- The vehicle's registration document, and proof of a right to use it where the owner is absent and the vehicle crosses the state border
Exceptions by origin
No exceptions recorded
Nothing we have read treats any nationality differently for this topic. The rule above applies to everyone.
What the law says
«2\. ამ კანონის მოქმედება ვრცელდება საქართველოს მოქალაქეზე, აგრეთვე უცხო ქვეყნის მოქალაქესა და მოქალაქეობის არმქონე პირზე, რომლებიც საქართველოს ტერიტორიაზე მონაწილეობენ საგზაო მოძრაობაში, აგრეთვე საქართველოს ტერიტორიაზე საერთაშორისო მოძრაობაში მყოფ სატრანსპორტო საშუალებაზე, თუ საქართველოს საერთაშორისო ხელშეკრულებით ან შეთანხმებით სხვა რამ არ არის გათვალისწინებული.»Our translation - not official
This Law applies to a citizen of Georgia, and also to a citizen of a foreign country and a stateless person, who take part in road traffic in the territory of Georgia, and to a vehicle in international traffic in the territory of Georgia, unless an international treaty or agreement of Georgia provides otherwise.
About this source
The official gazette and consolidated statute book of Georgia, a legal entity under public law under the Ministry of Justice. Every instrument lives at matsne.gov.ge/ka/document/view/<id>: laws, organic laws, Government resolutions, presidential decrees and ministerial orders, each page opening with a metadata block that gives the document number, the issuing body, the date of issue, the source and date of publication, the date of entry into force and the registration code, then listing every consolidated publication by date with its own publication index. Above the body of each page the site states which edition is being shown: კონსოლიდირებული ვერსია (საბოლოო) means the final consolidation, and a different line means it is not. Amending instruments are published separately and in full, each citing the registration code of the act it amends, so a schedule whose consolidation is paywalled can still be reconstructed from the original plus the amendments. Renders through Firecrawl without difficulty, including million-character statutes: the Georgian Tax Code comes back at 1,190,393 characters.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Three things it must not be cited for. First, it is not free for everything: for some Government resolutions - resolution No 255 of 5 June 2015 on visa-free entry, and resolution No 36 of 21 February 2013 on universal health care - the site serves only the text as originally published and prints დოკუმენტის კონსოლიდირებული ვარიანტის ნახვა ფასიანია, that viewing the consolidated version is a paid service requiring registration and the purchase of a viewing right. A reading of such a page is a reading of the original, however many consolidations have followed, and must be labelled as one. Second, it publishes the consolidated law and not the reasoning: no explanatory memorandum, no case law, no ministerial guidance, and a great deal of Georgian immigration and tax practice sits in orders of the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Internal Affairs which it holds but which are not linked from the parent act. Third, the Georgian pages are the law and the English pages at the matching address are not the same document - see ge-matsne-en. Pages render statutes inside HTML tables, so stored text carries table pipes and <br> markers around the publisher's own words.
We re-read it every 90 days. More about this source
«ბ) ამ პუნქტის „ა“ ქვეპუნქტით განსაზღვრული დოკუმენტის/დოკუმენტების სათანადოდ დამოწმებული თარგმანი, თუ აღნიშნულ დოკუმენტში/დოკუმენტებში ასახული მონაცემები შესრულებული არ არის ქართული ან ლათინური ასოებით;»Our translation - not official
(ბ) a duly certified translation of the document or documents specified in subparagraph (ა) of this paragraph, if the data recorded in that document or those documents are not executed in Georgian or Latin letters;
About this source
The official gazette and consolidated statute book of Georgia, a legal entity under public law under the Ministry of Justice. Every instrument lives at matsne.gov.ge/ka/document/view/<id>: laws, organic laws, Government resolutions, presidential decrees and ministerial orders, each page opening with a metadata block that gives the document number, the issuing body, the date of issue, the source and date of publication, the date of entry into force and the registration code, then listing every consolidated publication by date with its own publication index. Above the body of each page the site states which edition is being shown: კონსოლიდირებული ვერსია (საბოლოო) means the final consolidation, and a different line means it is not. Amending instruments are published separately and in full, each citing the registration code of the act it amends, so a schedule whose consolidation is paywalled can still be reconstructed from the original plus the amendments. Renders through Firecrawl without difficulty, including million-character statutes: the Georgian Tax Code comes back at 1,190,393 characters.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Three things it must not be cited for. First, it is not free for everything: for some Government resolutions - resolution No 255 of 5 June 2015 on visa-free entry, and resolution No 36 of 21 February 2013 on universal health care - the site serves only the text as originally published and prints დოკუმენტის კონსოლიდირებული ვარიანტის ნახვა ფასიანია, that viewing the consolidated version is a paid service requiring registration and the purchase of a viewing right. A reading of such a page is a reading of the original, however many consolidations have followed, and must be labelled as one. Second, it publishes the consolidated law and not the reasoning: no explanatory memorandum, no case law, no ministerial guidance, and a great deal of Georgian immigration and tax practice sits in orders of the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Internal Affairs which it holds but which are not linked from the parent act. Third, the Georgian pages are the law and the English pages at the matching address are not the same document - see ge-matsne-en. Pages render statutes inside HTML tables, so stored text carries table pipes and <br> markers around the publisher's own words.
We re-read it every 90 days. More about this source
«13\. უცხო ქვეყნის მიერ გაცემული მართვის მოწმობის მფლობელზე ამ მუხლის პირველი−მე-11 პუნქტებით განსაზღვრული უფლებები ვრცელდება მხოლოდ იმ შემთხვევაში, თუ ამას ითვალისწინებს მართვის მოწმობის გამცემი ქვეყნის კანონმდებლობა.»Our translation - not official
The rights determined by paragraphs 1 to 11 of this article extend to the holder of a driving licence issued by a foreign country only if the legislation of the country that issued the driving licence provides for this.
About this source
The official gazette and consolidated statute book of Georgia, a legal entity under public law under the Ministry of Justice. Every instrument lives at matsne.gov.ge/ka/document/view/<id>: laws, organic laws, Government resolutions, presidential decrees and ministerial orders, each page opening with a metadata block that gives the document number, the issuing body, the date of issue, the source and date of publication, the date of entry into force and the registration code, then listing every consolidated publication by date with its own publication index. Above the body of each page the site states which edition is being shown: კონსოლიდირებული ვერსია (საბოლოო) means the final consolidation, and a different line means it is not. Amending instruments are published separately and in full, each citing the registration code of the act it amends, so a schedule whose consolidation is paywalled can still be reconstructed from the original plus the amendments. Renders through Firecrawl without difficulty, including million-character statutes: the Georgian Tax Code comes back at 1,190,393 characters.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Three things it must not be cited for. First, it is not free for everything: for some Government resolutions - resolution No 255 of 5 June 2015 on visa-free entry, and resolution No 36 of 21 February 2013 on universal health care - the site serves only the text as originally published and prints დოკუმენტის კონსოლიდირებული ვარიანტის ნახვა ფასიანია, that viewing the consolidated version is a paid service requiring registration and the purchase of a viewing right. A reading of such a page is a reading of the original, however many consolidations have followed, and must be labelled as one. Second, it publishes the consolidated law and not the reasoning: no explanatory memorandum, no case law, no ministerial guidance, and a great deal of Georgian immigration and tax practice sits in orders of the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Internal Affairs which it holds but which are not linked from the parent act. Third, the Georgian pages are the law and the English pages at the matching address are not the same document - see ge-matsne-en. Pages render statutes inside HTML tables, so stored text carries table pipes and <br> markers around the publisher's own words.
We re-read it every 90 days. More about this source
«7\. ამ კანონის 54-ე მუხლით განსაზღვრული კატეგორიებისა და ქვეკატეგორიების სატრანსპორტო საშუალებათა მართვის უფლების მისაღები გამოცდის ჩატარების, მართვის უფლების მინიჭების, გაუქმების, შეჩერებული, ჩამორთმეული ან შეწყვეტილი (გაუქმებული) მართვის უფლების აღდგენის, მართვის მოწმობის, ტრამვაის მართვის მოწმობისა და საერთაშორისო მართვის მოწმობის გაცემის (მათ შორის, შეცვლისა და აღდგენის) და გაუქმების, მართვის მოწმობათა გაცემის რეესტრის წარმოების, აგრეთვე უცხო ქვეყნის მიერ გაცემული სატრანსპორტო საშუალებათა მართვის უფლების დამადასტურებელი დოკუმენტის შეცვლისა და აღიარების წესი და პირობები განისაზღვრება ამ კანონითა და საქართველოს შინაგან საქმეთა მინისტრის ბრძანებით.»Our translation - not official
The rules and conditions for holding the examination for the right to drive vehicles of the categories and subcategories determined by article 54 of this Law, for granting and cancelling the right to drive, for restoring a suspended, withdrawn or terminated (cancelled) right to drive, for issuing (including replacing and restoring) and cancelling a driving licence, a tram driving licence and an international driving licence, for keeping the register of issued driving licences, and also for the replacement and recognition of a document issued by a foreign country confirming the right to drive vehicles, are determined by this Law and by an order of the Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia.
About this source
The official gazette and consolidated statute book of Georgia, a legal entity under public law under the Ministry of Justice. Every instrument lives at matsne.gov.ge/ka/document/view/<id>: laws, organic laws, Government resolutions, presidential decrees and ministerial orders, each page opening with a metadata block that gives the document number, the issuing body, the date of issue, the source and date of publication, the date of entry into force and the registration code, then listing every consolidated publication by date with its own publication index. Above the body of each page the site states which edition is being shown: კონსოლიდირებული ვერსია (საბოლოო) means the final consolidation, and a different line means it is not. Amending instruments are published separately and in full, each citing the registration code of the act it amends, so a schedule whose consolidation is paywalled can still be reconstructed from the original plus the amendments. Renders through Firecrawl without difficulty, including million-character statutes: the Georgian Tax Code comes back at 1,190,393 characters.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Three things it must not be cited for. First, it is not free for everything: for some Government resolutions - resolution No 255 of 5 June 2015 on visa-free entry, and resolution No 36 of 21 February 2013 on universal health care - the site serves only the text as originally published and prints დოკუმენტის კონსოლიდირებული ვარიანტის ნახვა ფასიანია, that viewing the consolidated version is a paid service requiring registration and the purchase of a viewing right. A reading of such a page is a reading of the original, however many consolidations have followed, and must be labelled as one. Second, it publishes the consolidated law and not the reasoning: no explanatory memorandum, no case law, no ministerial guidance, and a great deal of Georgian immigration and tax practice sits in orders of the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Internal Affairs which it holds but which are not linked from the parent act. Third, the Georgian pages are the law and the English pages at the matching address are not the same document - see ge-matsne-en. Pages render statutes inside HTML tables, so stored text carries table pipes and <br> markers around the publisher's own words.
We re-read it every 90 days. More about this source
«27. უცხო ქვეყნის მიერ გაცემულ მართვის მოწმობას საქართველოს ტერიტორიაზე ერთჯერადად ენიჭება 100 ქულა: ა) საქართველოს ტერიტორიაზე იურიდიული ძალის წარმოშობის დღიდან; ბ) ამ მუხლის 22 პუნქტის „ა“ და „გ“ ქვეპუნქტებით გათვალისწინებულ შემთხვევებში. 28. ამ მუხლის 27 პუნქტით განსაზღვრულ მართვის მოწმობაზე ვრცელდება ამ კანონის 58-ე და 59-ე მუხლებით დადგენილი წესები. უცხო ქვეყნის მიერ გაცემული მართვის მოწმობისთვის მინიჭებული ქულების რაოდენობის ამოწურვის შემთხვევაში ამ მართვის მოწმობის მფლობელს ეკრძალება საქართველოში მექანიკური სატრანსპორტო საშუალების მართვა. ამ შემთხვევაში საქართველოს ტერიტორიაზე მართვის უფლების აღდგენა ხდება საქართველოს შინაგან საქმეთა მინისტრის ბრძანებით დადგენილი წესით.»Our translation - not official
2⁷. A driving licence issued by a foreign country is credited on the territory of Georgia, once, with 100 points: (ა) from the day on which it acquires legal force on the territory of Georgia; (ბ) in the cases provided for in subparagraphs (ა) and (გ) of paragraph 2² of this article. 2⁸. The rules established by articles 58 and 59 of this Law apply to the driving licence specified in paragraph 2⁷ of this article. If the number of points credited to a driving licence issued by a foreign country is exhausted, the holder of that driving licence is forbidden to drive a motor vehicle in Georgia. In that case the right to drive on the territory of Georgia is restored under the procedure established by an order of the Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia.
About this source
The official gazette and consolidated statute book of Georgia, a legal entity under public law under the Ministry of Justice. Every instrument lives at matsne.gov.ge/ka/document/view/<id>: laws, organic laws, Government resolutions, presidential decrees and ministerial orders, each page opening with a metadata block that gives the document number, the issuing body, the date of issue, the source and date of publication, the date of entry into force and the registration code, then listing every consolidated publication by date with its own publication index. Above the body of each page the site states which edition is being shown: კონსოლიდირებული ვერსია (საბოლოო) means the final consolidation, and a different line means it is not. Amending instruments are published separately and in full, each citing the registration code of the act it amends, so a schedule whose consolidation is paywalled can still be reconstructed from the original plus the amendments. Renders through Firecrawl without difficulty, including million-character statutes: the Georgian Tax Code comes back at 1,190,393 characters.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Three things it must not be cited for. First, it is not free for everything: for some Government resolutions - resolution No 255 of 5 June 2015 on visa-free entry, and resolution No 36 of 21 February 2013 on universal health care - the site serves only the text as originally published and prints დოკუმენტის კონსოლიდირებული ვარიანტის ნახვა ფასიანია, that viewing the consolidated version is a paid service requiring registration and the purchase of a viewing right. A reading of such a page is a reading of the original, however many consolidations have followed, and must be labelled as one. Second, it publishes the consolidated law and not the reasoning: no explanatory memorandum, no case law, no ministerial guidance, and a great deal of Georgian immigration and tax practice sits in orders of the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Internal Affairs which it holds but which are not linked from the parent act. Third, the Georgian pages are the law and the English pages at the matching address are not the same document - see ge-matsne-en. Pages render statutes inside HTML tables, so stored text carries table pipes and <br> markers around the publisher's own words.
We re-read it every 90 days. More about this source
Practical notes
The period for which a foreign licence has legal force in Georgia, and the conditions for exchanging one, are in an order of the Minister of Internal Affairs that we did not read. Any figure for that period circulating elsewhere does not come from the Act.
The Law of Georgia on Road Traffic is published at matsne in Georgian in the consolidation of 25 June 2026. We did not find an English text of it at the matching English address and did not look further.
- consolidatesსაგზაო მოძრაობის შესახებ საქართველოს კანონი
საქართველოს საკანონმდებლო მაცნე (Legislative Herald of Georgia) · consolidated to 2026-06-25
About this source
The official gazette and consolidated statute book of Georgia, a legal entity under public law under the Ministry of Justice. Every instrument lives at matsne.gov.ge/ka/document/view/<id>: laws, organic laws, Government resolutions, presidential decrees and ministerial orders, each page opening with a metadata block that gives the document number, the issuing body, the date of issue, the source and date of publication, the date of entry into force and the registration code, then listing every consolidated publication by date with its own publication index. Above the body of each page the site states which edition is being shown: კონსოლიდირებული ვერსია (საბოლოო) means the final consolidation, and a different line means it is not. Amending instruments are published separately and in full, each citing the registration code of the act it amends, so a schedule whose consolidation is paywalled can still be reconstructed from the original plus the amendments. Renders through Firecrawl without difficulty, including million-character statutes: the Georgian Tax Code comes back at 1,190,393 characters.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Three things it must not be cited for. First, it is not free for everything: for some Government resolutions - resolution No 255 of 5 June 2015 on visa-free entry, and resolution No 36 of 21 February 2013 on universal health care - the site serves only the text as originally published and prints დოკუმენტის კონსოლიდირებული ვარიანტის ნახვა ფასიანია, that viewing the consolidated version is a paid service requiring registration and the purchase of a viewing right. A reading of such a page is a reading of the original, however many consolidations have followed, and must be labelled as one. Second, it publishes the consolidated law and not the reasoning: no explanatory memorandum, no case law, no ministerial guidance, and a great deal of Georgian immigration and tax practice sits in orders of the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Internal Affairs which it holds but which are not linked from the parent act. Third, the Georgian pages are the law and the English pages at the matching address are not the same document - see ge-matsne-en. Pages render statutes inside HTML tables, so stored text carries table pipes and <br> markers around the publisher's own words.
We re-read it every 90 days. More about this source