Birth and citizenship of a child in Georgia

How birth registration works

Birth is subject to mandatory registration, which is carried out by the Public Service Development Agency. The Agency registers the birth of every child born in Georgia regardless of the parents’ citizenship, including when the family is in Georgia without a lawful basis.

If the child was born in a medical facility (for example, a maternity hospital), the facility sends the medical certificate of birth to the Agency electronically within 5 business days of the birth. The Agency registers the birth, after which a birth certificate is issued.

If the child was born outside a medical facility or in another country, or the facility did not report the birth, the parent applies to the Agency directly. The statutory deadline for this is 1 month from the birth. The application may be filed by either parent or a person authorized by a parent, by the medical facility or by the guardianship and custody authority, and, if the birth took place outside a medical facility without medical assistance, also by the representative of the mayor’s office.

Apply to a territorial office of the Agency, a Public Service Hall or a mobile Public Service Hall. You can also submit the application electronically through the Agency’s remote service.

Required documents and the birth certificate

Documents are submitted on paper. If the relevant information is already held in the Agency’s electronic database, you do not need to submit the document.

Married parents: the marriage certificate and identity documents (if one parent applies, the other parent’s document is not required);
Unmarried parents: a joint application and both parents’ identity documents;
An unmarried mother: her identity document;
If a parent is a minor: that parent’s birth certificate and their legal representative’s written consent to the father being recorded.

A document issued abroad (for example, a marriage certificate) is accepted only once it has been legalized or apostilled, together with a notarized translation. This requirement does not apply to identity documents, such as a foreign passport.

The birth is registered no later than the business day after the documents are submitted, and the birth certificate is free. The certificate is an electronic document. On request, a certified paper copy is issued, which has the same legal force. The certificate is completed in Georgian and, on request, is also printed in English. A repeat certificate costs 5 GEL on the 5th business day and 50 GEL on the same day.

The child’s first name, surname and recording the father

Under Order No. 18 of the Minister of Justice, the parents choose the child’s first name and surname by mutual agreement. If the parents share a surname, the child is given that surname; if their surnames differ, the child is given one parent’s surname or the two surnames combined. A combined surname is not allowed if one of the parents already has a double surname. The child of an unmarried mother is given the mother’s surname if the father has not been recorded.

If the parents disagree, a court decides the matter, and until then the child is recorded under the combined surname (or under the mother’s surname, if one parent has a double surname);
If you do not give a first name, the Agency’s software assigns the child a name matching the child’s sex at random, and the mother’s surname is recorded as the surname;
A first name may not contain numbers, punctuation marks, symbols or offensive words, and a child may not be given more than two first names;
At your request, the form of the surname that corresponds to the child’s sex is used.

If the parents are not married, the father’s details are entered in the record only on the parents’ joint application or by court decision. The joint application can also be filed during pregnancy. If paternity is established later, the certificate of paternity is free and is issued within 1 business day.

The first name or surname of a child who is a Georgian citizen can also be changed later: for a child under 16, one parent files the application with the other parent’s consent, and from the age of 10 the child’s consent is also required. You may also choose a surname given by another state as the new surname. The service takes 60 calendar days and the fee is 75 GEL.

Apostille and translation for use abroad

A document issued in Georgia must be apostilled or legalized for use abroad (for example, to submit it to the embassy of a parent’s country). The apostille is valid in countries party to the 1961 Hague Convention. It can also be attached to a certified printout of an electronic certificate. Applications are accepted by the Agency’s territorial offices and by Public Service Halls. Fees:

on the 8th business day: 30 GEL;
on the 4th business day: 60 GEL;
on the 2nd business day: 120 GEL;
on the same day: 150 GEL.

The Agency translates documents and certifies translations into English, Italian, French, Spanish, Greek, Russian, German and Turkish (30 GEL per page). For a country that is not party to the Convention, legalization is required: the document is certified first by the Agency, then by the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia and finally by the embassy or consulate of that country. Check in advance with the receiving party what form of certification and what kind of translation it requires.

If one parent is Georgian

Under Article 10 of the Organic Law of Georgia on Georgian Citizenship, a child acquires Georgian citizenship by birth if one of the parents is a Georgian citizen at the time of the child’s birth. In that case, the place of birth does not matter. The parents’ divorce, or a change of citizenship by one or both parents, does not change the child’s citizenship.

The child of a mixed couple often also acquires the citizenship of the other parent’s country by birth. In this case, Article 21¹ of the Organic Law sets an important condition: the child retains Georgian citizenship until the age of 18, but if no application for retention of citizenship is filed within that period, the child’s Georgian citizenship is terminated. How to apply for retention:

the application is filed by the parents or a legal representative; if one parent applies, the other parent’s consent is required;
the required documents are the application, a photograph, a document proving the other country’s citizenship, the birth certificate and, if the child has reached the age of 14, the child’s consent;
the application is submitted to the Agency or a Public Service Hall, or abroad to a diplomatic mission or consular post of Georgia; you can also apply remotely;
fees according to the Agency’s website: 500 GEL (80th day), 700 GEL (60th day) or 1,000 GEL (30th day).

If a parent acquired Georgian citizenship after the child’s birth, the child may be granted citizenship under the ordinary procedure (Article 13), on the basis of a document proving the parent’s citizenship. A minor does not take the test. Fees: 65 GEL (80th day), 130 GEL (60th day), 260 GEL (40th day) or 390 GEL (20th day).

Note: if the child is a citizen of another country, the decree granting citizenship takes effect only after a document is submitted confirming the child’s renunciation of the other country’s citizenship (Article 15). The final decision is made by the President of Georgia, and the review should not take longer than 3 months.

If both parents are foreign citizens

Being born in Georgia does not automatically give the child of two foreign parents Georgian citizenship. Whether the child acquires the citizenship of the parents’ country is determined by that country’s laws, so check this with that country’s embassy or consulate.

When the birth is registered, the child is, as a rule, assigned a personal number, but this is only an identification detail and does not confirm citizenship. The child is considered a foreigner, and their stay in Georgia is governed by the visa and residence rules.

The exception is a child born on the territory of Georgia as a result of in vitro fertilization (through surrogacy): the child acquires Georgian citizenship by birth if neither parent’s country recognizes the child as its citizen. If one of the parents later becomes a Georgian citizen, Article 13, described above, applies to the child.

Stateless parents and foundlings

A child born in Georgia acquires Georgian citizenship by birth if the parents are stateless persons with status in Georgia, or if one parent is such a person and the other is unknown. This rule applies only when the parent’s stateless status has been officially determined in Georgia.

Anyone in Georgia may apply for determination of stateless status, whether or not they are lawfully present in the country. The child’s legal representative files the application on the child’s behalf. A decision is made within 6 months, and the service is free. A minor refugee born in Georgia is granted Georgian citizenship under the ordinary procedure. The same rule applies to a minor with stateless status if they have lived in Georgia for 5 years.

A minor living in Georgia whose parents are both unknown is considered a Georgian citizen unless proven otherwise (Article 11). The birth of a foundling is registered on the basis of a referral from the guardianship and custody authority and a medical report determining the child’s age.

A child born abroad

The child of a Georgian citizen born in another country acquires Georgian citizenship by birth, but to obtain Georgian documents, the birth must also be registered in Georgia. If the birth has already been registered by an authority of that country, it is re-registered in Georgia on the basis of a certified copy of the foreign certificate, extract or record (Articles 83 and 85 of the Law of Georgia on Civil Acts). The steps are:

Obtain the local birth certificate or a certified extract from the birth record;
Have the document apostilled or legalized in the country where it was issued;
Have the document translated into Georgian and the translation notarized;
Apply to the Agency or a Public Service Hall in Georgia, or to a Georgian consular post abroad.

A parent who is abroad can contact the Agency by live video link if their identity can be confirmed through the Agency’s database. Even in this case, you must submit the original foreign document on paper if the authenticity of the apostille or legalization cannot be checked in an electronic register. The original must be submitted within 60 calendar days at most. After registration, you can obtain a Georgian passport for the child.

Documents for a child who is a Georgian citizen

A child who is a Georgian citizen may have an ID card before the age of 14, and getting one within 6 months of turning 14 is mandatory (this obligation does not apply to citizens who are abroad). Under 18, an ID card is issued for 4 years and a biometric passport for 3 years.

for a first ID card, you need the birth certificate and a photograph; fees: 60 GEL (10th business day), 80 GEL (5th day), 100 GEL (3rd day), 120 GEL (2nd day) or 150 GEL (same day);
for the passport of a child under 16, you need the birth certificate, both parents’ consent (given before an Agency employee or a notary), both parents’ ID cards, a photograph and, from age 14, the child’s ID card as well;
for the passport of a child aged 16 to 18, one parent’s consent is enough;
fee for a minor’s biometric passport: 75 GEL (10th business day), 105 GEL (5th day), 150 GEL (3rd day), 225 GEL (within 24 hours) or 275 GEL (same day).

Having your photo taken at the Agency costs 5 GEL. If one parent is a foreigner, check with the Agency in advance which document is accepted to confirm their identity and how their consent must be executed.

A foreign child: the embassy and the residence permit

A foreign child’s passport is issued by the child’s country of citizenship, so once you have the birth certificate, contact that country’s embassy or consulate. Which documents, apostille and translation the embassy requires, and the deadline for registering the child, are determined by that country’s laws.

In Georgia, the child is subject to the same rules as other citizens of their country: a foreigner under the visa-free regime can, as a rule, stay for up to 90 days in any 180-day period, while citizens of the countries specified by resolution of the Government of Georgia can stay for 1 full year. A longer stay requires a residence permit. The child’s legal representative files the application on the child’s behalf. According to the Agency, the application must be filed at least 40 calendar days before the lawful period of stay expires. The type of permit depends on the parents’ status:

Residence permit for family reunification: for the minor child of a foreigner who holds a residence permit;
Investment residence permit, short-term residence permit (based on real estate) and temporary residence permit for a person employed in information technology (IT): may also be issued to the permit holder’s child;
Permanent residence permit: for the minor child of a Georgian citizen if the child is a foreigner, and also for the foreign parent of a minor Georgian citizen.

For a family reunification residence permit, you need the application, a copy of the child’s travel document, documents proving lawful stay, the family relationship and the family’s lawful income, an electronic photograph and the fee payment receipt. Fees: 300 GEL (30th calendar day), 450 GEL (20th day) or 600 GEL (10th day). The first permit is issued for 6 months to 1 year and can be extended. Within 1 month of the permit being granted, you must obtain a residence card for the child, whatever the child’s age.

Frequently asked questions

Does being born in Georgia give a child Georgian citizenship?

Not by itself. A child acquires Georgian citizenship by birth if one of the parents is a Georgian citizen at the time of the child’s birth. Birth in Georgia matters only in cases provided for by law, for example when the parents are stateless persons with status in Georgia, or when the child was born through surrogacy and neither parent’s country recognizes the child as its citizen.

Can a child have two citizenships?

Yes, if the child acquired another country’s citizenship by birth together with Georgian citizenship. In that case, the child retains Georgian citizenship until the age of 18. Within that period you must file an application for retention of citizenship; otherwise the child’s Georgian citizenship is terminated.

Can a birth be registered if the family is in Georgia without a lawful basis?

Yes. For a foreigner who is in Georgia without a lawful basis, the law allows births and deaths to be registered, but not other civil acts (such as a marriage). Registering the birth does not settle whether the family’s stay in Georgia is lawful.

Who decides on residence and citizenship?

Residence permits are issued by the Public Service Development Agency, while the final decision on granting and retaining citizenship is made by the President of Georgia. Aviaspace is not a law firm or a government agency and cannot influence these decisions.

Birth and child citizenship