The property route to a Georgian residence permit now starts at USD 150,000 — and the appraisal is the gate, not the price you paid

From 1 March 2026 the minimum certified value of property supporting an investment-based residence permit is USD 150,000. The previous figure was USD 100,000 and had stood since July 2019, so this is the first move in roughly six and a half years, and it is a fifty percent increase in one step. The change came through amendments to the law on the legal status of aliens and stateless persons, passed in parliament in mid-2025, with the commencement date set for the following March. Buyers who were mid-purchase had to complete and pay in full before that date to be assessed on the old number.

The threshold is tested against a market valuation produced by an assessor accredited through Georgia's national accreditation body, not against the figure written into the sale contract. In a market where contract prices and real prices diverge for all sorts of reasons, that distinction decides applications. A flat bought at a discount from a developer clearing stock may appraise above what was paid; a unit bought at an inflated off-plan price may appraise below it. Anyone buying with a permit in mind should treat an accredited appraisal as part of the due diligence rather than a formality to arrange afterwards.

The threshold does not require a single asset. Multiple properties can be combined to reach the certified total, which opens the route to buyers who would rather hold two smaller rental units in different buildings than one large flat — a materially different risk profile for anyone intending to let. Spouses and children can be covered under the same investment rather than each needing their own qualifying purchase. The permit itself is renewable annually, which means the holder keeps having to demonstrate that the basis for it still exists.

Permits granted on the USD 100,000 basis are not retroactively invalidated. Holders may renew without producing a fresh appraisal at the higher level, provided they continue to own the property the permit rests on. That provision is the one most worth reading carefully before selling: a holder who disposes of the qualifying asset is unlikely to be able to re-enter the scheme on the old terms, and would face the current threshold on any replacement purchase. For owners weighing a sale this year, the permit is part of what is being sold.