Georgia LLC Registration Cost: Government Fees & Professional Service Prices
- Jul 6
- 11 min read
Table of contents
Georgia LLC Registration Cost: Government Fees & Professional Service Prices
The georgia llc registration cost is lower than almost any other jurisdiction a foreign founder would seriously consider — but the number on the government fee schedule tells only part of the story. What you actually spend depends on whether you register in person or remotely, whether you need a virtual zone designation, and how much ongoing compliance you want handled for you.
Georgia has built one of the most accessible company registration systems in the world. The House of Justice processes standard LLC filings within one to three business days. Most founders, once they understand the cost structure, are surprised by how little the government charges and how much variation exists in the professional services layer on top.
This guide breaks down every cost category: official state fees, notary and translation charges, remote registration via power of attorney, virtual zone add-ons, and professional service packages. It covers what is fixed, what is negotiable, and where founders commonly overspend.
What You Are Actually Paying For When You Register a Georgia LLC
Georgia LLC registration, formally called an Limited Liability Company (შპს / Shps), sits inside a registration system that separates three distinct cost layers. Understanding those layers stops you from comparing quotes that are not comparing the same thing.
The first layer is the state fee paid directly to the House of Justice. This is non-negotiable, fixed by law, and very low by international standards. It covers the creation of the legal entity and its entry into the National Business Registry.
The second layer covers notary and translation work. If your founding documents or ID are in a foreign language, a certified translation is required. If you sign a power of attorney outside Georgia, that document typically needs apostille legalisation before it is valid here. These costs vary by country of origin, document volume, and the notary you use.
The third layer is professional services: a law firm or business services provider that prepares your charter, handles filing, obtains your Tax Identification Number (TIN), and optionally sets up a bank account. This layer has the widest price range in the market. A solo consultant may charge a flat fee well below what a full-service firm charges, but the scope is rarely the same.
One more cost sits outside registration itself: your registered address. Georgia requires every LLC to list a legal address. If you do not have physical premises, address leasing is a straightforward solution that adds a modest annual cost to the setup budget.
Founders who treat all four layers as a single "registration fee" end up confused when quotes differ by a factor of three. Separate them, and the market becomes legible.
Government Fees: What the State Charges to Register Your Company
The House of Justice sets two processing speeds for LLC registration, and the difference in cost between them is meaningful.
Standard registration takes up to three business days. Expedited registration is processed on the same day or within four hours, depending on the option chosen. You pay more for speed, but both tracks land well within the range that makes company registration in Georgia attractive compared to EU or UK equivalents.
Beyond the core registration fee, two other official costs may apply. First, if you are appointing a local director or signing a power of attorney, the notarisation of that POA carries its own notary fee, set by the notary rather than by the state. Second, if your LLC charter or shareholder documents originate abroad and require apostille certification, that cost is paid in the issuing country, not in Georgia.
Georgia imposes no minimum share capital requirement for a standard LLC. You can register with a nominal capital contribution stated in the charter. This is a meaningful structural advantage: unlike Germany, where a standard GmbH requires €25,000 in paid-up capital, Georgia removes that barrier entirely.
For founders checking how long company registration takes in Georgia, the answer is genuinely fast. Same-day registration is available and commonly used by time-sensitive founders who need a legal entity before a contract signing or a bank appointment.
The TIN (Tax Identification Number) is issued automatically upon registration. You do not file a separate application or pay a separate fee for it.
In-Person vs. Remote Registration: A Direct Cost Comparison
The most consequential cost decision for a foreign founder is whether to register in person in Tbilisi or remotely through a power of attorney. Both are fully legal. The outcomes are identical. The costs are structured differently.
Dimension | In-Person Registration | Remote via POA |
Travel required | Yes — you must be in Tbilisi | No — sign POA in your home country |
POA apostille cost | Not applicable | Paid in your home country; varies by country |
Notary fee in Georgia | Low; paid at House of Justice | Included in POA preparation |
Processing time | 1 business day (expedited) | 1–3 business days after POA arrives |
Professional service fee | Standard market rate | Often slightly higher (agent handles more) |
Registered address needed | Yes | Yes |
TIN issuance | Same day | Same day as registration completion |
Total state fee | Identical to remote | Identical to in-person |
The POA route adds one cost that in-person registration avoids: apostille legalisation of the power of attorney document in your home country. For founders based in countries where apostille processing is fast and inexpensive, this is a minor consideration. For founders in countries where notarial services are slow or costly, it becomes a real variable to price in.
Remote registration via POA is the default path for most of Gegidze's international clients. The step-by-step remote LLC registration guide covers exactly what the POA must contain and which documents need to accompany it — details that vary depending on your nationality and whether your country has ratified the Hague Apostille Convention.
One structural point that often surprises founders: the POA does not give your agent ongoing authority over your company. It covers the registration act only, unless you draft it to cover additional tasks. Once the entity is registered, you hold full control as the director and shareholder.
What Your Registration Budget Should Actually Include
Most founders fix their eyes on the government fee and miss the four or five surrounding costs that together define the real georgia llc registration cost. The registration fee is the smallest line item. What follows it is what matters.
The first cost that catches people off guard is the registered address. Georgian law requires every LLC to list a physical address in its founding charter. If you do not own or rent premises in Georgia, you need a leased address. Providers typically offer a formal registered address at a monthly or annual rate — confirm current pricing before budgeting. Address leasing solves this directly: the address appears on your charter, satisfies the legal requirement, and is renewed on a schedule you control.
The second cost is document preparation and translation. Foreign founders almost always need at least one document translated into Georgian and certified. A passport copy, a foreign company extract, or a resolution from a parent company — all require certified Georgian translation before the House of Justice will accept them. Translation per page has a market rate that varies by language pair; budget for it rather than discover it mid-process.
The third cost is notarisation. Even if you register in person, certain documents — particularly those originating outside Georgia — need a notary's seal before they are valid here. Remote founders also pay a notary in their home country to execute the POA. The apostille and notarisation process has its own cost structure depending on the document type and jurisdiction.
The fourth cost is banking setup. Registering the company and opening a business bank account are two separate processes with separate fees. Some banks charge account-opening fees; others charge only monthly maintenance. Either way, plan for the time cost as well — Georgian banks require in-person visits or, increasingly, video-KYC sessions for foreign directors, and this step can add days to your timeline. Opening a business bank account in Georgia is a process distinct from registration and worth treating as a parallel track.
The fifth cost, often invisible until year two, is ongoing compliance. An LLC in Georgia must file declarations, maintain bookkeeping records, and hit annual and monthly tax deadlines. If you registered under a special tax status — Virtual Zone, International Company, or small-business IE — the compliance obligations differ from a standard LLC. Tax accounting and bookkeeping is a recurring line item, not a one-time setup cost.
Budget all five layers from the start. Founders who plan for the government fee alone routinely re-forecast twice before the company is operational.
The Timeline Behind the Costs
How quickly you complete each stage also affects what you pay. Express processing costs more, and delays can extend service-provider retainers.
The document preparation phase is where most remote founders lose time. Apostille processing in your home country sets the pace; some jurisdictions take a week, others take several weeks. Once you have clean documents, the House of Justice step is fast — company registration in Georgia is consistently one of the fastest in the region, with standard processing measured in one to three business days. Express processing, at a higher fee, often completes the same day.
Banking is the second bottleneck. Georgian commercial banks are cautious with newly registered foreign-owned LLCs. They want to see a registered address, a clear business activity description, and often a sample contract or client reference. Starting the bank application immediately after registration confirmation — not after waiting — is the right move. Some founders use B2B financing solutions to bridge early cash-flow gaps while the account clears compliance checks.
The Revenue Service registration step only triggers if you meet certain thresholds or elect into VAT, or if you are hiring employees and need payroll registration. For a newly formed LLC with no Georgian-source employees and turnover below the VAT threshold, this step may not be immediate. Confirm your specific obligations based on your planned activity.
Special Statuses: When the Cost Structure Changes
A standard LLC is not the only option. Three special statuses alter both the cost of setup and the ongoing tax bill significantly.
Virtual Zone status exempts qualifying IT companies from corporate income tax on foreign-sourced revenue. The application goes through the Revenue Service after company registration. The status itself does not cost a large government fee, but the virtual zone compliance obligations add an annual layer — specific declarations, restrictions on domestic revenue, and activity-type requirements. If your business is software development, consulting, or another qualifying IT service sold entirely outside Georgia, the tax saving is structural and substantial. See the full picture at Virtual Zone LLC services.
International Company status targets businesses in maritime, aircraft, or specific technology sectors that operate internationally from Georgia. The qualification criteria are narrower, but the tax benefits — including reduced payroll tax on qualifying employees — can offset higher setup complexity. Details are at International Company status.
Individual Entrepreneur (IE) with Small Business Status is not an LLC, but it is worth comparing costs directly. An IE registers faster and cheaper than an LLC, and small business status carries a 1% turnover tax up to the annual threshold. The limitation is liability: an IE does not separate personal and business assets. For solo operators or freelancers with low liability exposure, the cost difference is real. The IE registration service covers this path in full.
The table below shows how setup and ongoing costs differ across structures. Figures reflect structural mechanics; confirm current GEL amounts with the relevant authority before budgeting.
Structure | Government Registration Cost | Key Ongoing Tax Rate | Annual Compliance Complexity | Liability Separation |
Standard LLC | Standard NAPR fee (confirm current rate) | 15% CIT on distributed profits | Moderate — annual declaration + bookkeeping | Yes |
Virtual Zone LLC | Standard NAPR fee + Revenue Service status application | 0% CIT on qualifying foreign-source IT revenue | Higher — activity restrictions + annual VZ declarations | Yes |
International Company LLC | Standard NAPR fee + sector qualification review | Reduced rates on qualifying income (confirm with Revenue Service) | Higher — sector compliance requirements | Yes |
Individual Entrepreneur (SBS) | Lower than LLC (confirm current NAPR fee) | 1% turnover up to threshold (confirm threshold on rs.ge) | Lower — simplified declarations | No |
For a deeper look at how Georgia's business tax system works across all entity types, the corporate income tax guide and the full business tax explainer are the two most complete resources.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the Georgia LLC registration fee change if I have multiple shareholders?
The government registration fee at the House of Justice does not scale with the number of shareholders. You pay the same base or express fee regardless of whether the LLC has one founder or five. What does increase with multiple shareholders is the document preparation cost — each foreign shareholder needs identity documents certified and potentially translated, which multiplies the notary and translation line items.
Can I register a Georgia LLC with zero paid-in capital?
Yes. Georgian law does not require a minimum paid-in capital for a standard LLC. You define the charter capital in your founding documents, and it can be nominal — commonly one Georgian lari. This differs from many European jurisdictions where a minimum capital deposit is mandatory before registration. No bank deposit is required as a precondition of NAPR registration.
What happens if I use an incorrect or incomplete registered address?
The House of Justice will reject the application if the address cannot be verified, or if the address format does not match Georgian postal standards. Beyond registration, the Revenue Service uses your registered address for official correspondence. If notices go undelivered because the address is vacant or wrong, you can miss compliance deadlines without realising it. A leased registered address from a professional provider reduces this risk because the provider monitors incoming mail.
Is there a penalty for late VAT registration after crossing the threshold?
Yes. If your LLC's taxable turnover crosses the VAT registration threshold and you fail to register within the required timeframe, the Revenue Service can assess back VAT plus interest and penalties. The threshold amount is subject to revision — check the current figure on rs.ge. The penalty structure is set in the Tax Code, but exact current amounts should be confirmed directly with the Revenue Service or a registered tax adviser.
Can I change the company name or director after registration, and what does it cost?
Both changes are possible through NAPR. A name change requires a charter amendment, a new registration application, and the applicable amendment fee. A director change follows a similar process — a shareholder resolution, an updated registration application, and the amendment fee. The amendment fee is lower than the original registration fee, but express processing is available at a premium if speed matters. Confirm current amendment fees directly with NAPR or the House of Justice.
Does registering a Georgia LLC automatically make me a Georgian tax resident?
No. Company registration and personal tax residency are separate legal statuses. Your LLC is a Georgian tax resident from the moment of registration. You, as an individual, become a Georgian tax resident only if you meet the 183-day physical presence rule or qualify under the high-net-worth individual residency route. Georgia tax residency requirements covers both paths in detail. Some founders register an LLC without ever becoming Georgian tax residents themselves — this is common and legally straightforward.
If I hire Georgian employees after registration, what additional costs apply?
Hiring triggers payroll tax obligations separate from the LLC registration cost. You must register with the Revenue Service as an employer, withhold income tax from employee salaries at the applicable rate, and file monthly payroll declarations. The payroll management service handles the mechanics for founders who do not want to manage this in-house. If you need to staff up quickly without yet having full employment infrastructure, employer of record services allow you to engage Georgian workers through a third party while your own HR setup matures.
What to Watch Next
Georgia's registration fees and tax thresholds are set by regulation, and both have changed in the past. Before you commit a budget, pull the current figures from the House of Justice fee schedule and the Revenue Service portal at rs.ge — treat any number you read in an article (including this one) as directional, not final. The structural advantages — fast registration, low corporate tax on retained earnings, zero capital gains on crypto for Georgian tax residents — are stable and well-established. The specific numbers around them deserve a five-minute verification. Your most concrete next step is to map your activity type against the three special statuses: standard LLC, Virtual Zone, and IE with small business status. That choice shapes your ongoing cost far more than the one-time registration fee ever will.
