The Statutory Definition of Distance Learning
The legal basis for the compliance of an EdTech platform in higher education is Article 47-7 of the Law on Higher Education. Under this norm, distance learning means the conduct of the educational process in a distant or electronic form or through other means of communication. Distance learning is carried out in the form of synchronous or asynchronous communication — synchronous meaning an interaction where communication between the sender and the receiver of information takes place at the same time, and asynchronous an interaction where it does not.
Understanding this definition matters because it determines what kind of digital solution fits the statutory framework: a platform built on both real-time and deferred interaction is an equally legitimate format.
The Duty to Select the Platform and Interactivity
The law frames the platform as the institution's obligation: for the purpose of conducting distance learning, the higher education institution ensures the selection and proper use of a distance learning application or platform through which the educational process can be conducted interactively.
Two details are decisive here: selection and proper use are the institution's duty — responsibility for the technological choice therefore rests on it; and the statutory standard is „interactivity“ — the platform must enable the two-way conduct of the educational process, while one-way delivery of content does not satisfy this requirement.
The interactivity requirement also disciplines the procurement stage: when comparing platforms, the institution should assess not only the feature list but the proven ability to run seminars, assessments and feedback — the elements that constitute the educational process in the legal sense.
Accessibility — the Instruction and Video Guide
To ensure the accessibility of distance learning, the higher education institution develops an instruction or video guide for the use of the selected application or platform and ensures its familiarisation by students and staff.
For an EdTech provider this norm translates into a practical contractual issue: the product must be structured so that the instruction and video guide can genuinely be created and reach every user.
Assessment and the Boundaries of Permission
The law also regulates assessment: the list of components of higher education programmes within which distance learning will be permitted is approved by the minister upon the submission of the National Center for Educational Quality Enhancement; the rules and conditions for conducting the educational process remotely and for assessing the results obtained are likewise approved by the minister.
The decision on permitting distance learning and on its period, as well as on the institution that must use distance learning to deliver higher education, is taken by the minister by an individual administrative-legal act — the remote format is thus not the institution's arbitrary choice.
Practical Compliance and the Contract
A separate EdTech statute does not exist in Georgia — the platform's compliance rests precisely on the requirements of this article: interactivity, selection and proper use by the institution, and the existence of an instruction and video guide. These are the elements that should be reflected in the contract as measurable conditions, so that the responsibility of the provider and the institution is precisely delineated.
International certificates are added value, but from the standpoint of Georgian law what is decisive is precisely compliance with Article 47-7.
Checking the compliance of an EdTech platform is assembled in three layers. The first is functional: whether the platform satisfies the interactivity standard — whether it can conduct the educational process in a two-way manner in both synchronous and asynchronous regimes; on this layer the conclusion is supported by a documented description of the technical capabilities. The second is organizational: whether the institution secures the proper use of the platform — this includes the readiness of staff, technical support and the continuity of the process, since the law frames proper use as the institution's obligation and does not leave it to the provider's goodwill. The third is documentary: whether an instruction or video guide exists and whether it is communicated to students and staff. The three layers together build the full picture: a technically strong but undocumented platform is as much a risk as a documented but functionally weak one. That is why a compliance project begins with planning all three layers, not with technical testing alone — and why the contract with the provider should mirror the same structure, attaching obligations and remedies to each layer separately, so that a failure at any single layer has a pre-agreed consequence instead of an open dispute. In procurement discussions this three-layer scheme also gives the institution a neutral language for comparing competing platforms: features are weighed against documented obligations rather than marketing claims, and the eventual selection file shows not only what was chosen but why it was chosen under the statutory standard of Article 47-7.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below we answer the questions most frequently raised about EdTech platform compliance.
Which law regulates the platform?
Article 47-7 of the Law on Higher Education — the norms on distance learning.
Who selects the platform?
The higher education institution — selection and proper use are its obligation.
What is the statutory standard of a platform?
The ability to conduct the educational process interactively.
What documentation is required?
An instruction or video guide, whose familiarisation is ensured for students and staff.
Who decides on moving to the remote format?
The minister, by an individual administrative-legal act; it is not the institution's arbitrary choice.
How We Help on Legal.ge
The Legal.ge team will verify the platform's compliance with the requirements of Article 47-7, help formulate the terms of the contract with the provider and prepare a description of the interactivity and accessibility requirements.
Contact us on Legal.ge — a properly built contract protects both parties.