What the Law on Tourism and Resorts Regulates
Georgian legislation on tourism and resorts governs the relationships existing in the sphere of tourism and resort activity. It consists of the Constitution of Georgia, this law and other normative acts adopted in accordance with them. Whether you run a tourism business, receive tourists or plan to travel, this framework defines your rights, duties and guarantees. This structure of the legislation means that one law shapes the frame of the field while detailed rules sit in the corresponding normative acts — and the practitioner's task is to read both levels together. For a tourism business this matters at every stage, from establishing the enterprise to dealing with consumers: each step rests on a different normative layer, and ignoring them breeds later disputes.
Core Concepts: Tourism and the Tourist
The law defines tourism as the free, voluntary, temporary movement of a person from their place of residence for rest, recreation, sightseeing of historical and cultural monuments or other purposes. A tourist is a natural person who voluntarily travels outside their permanent place of residence for rest, recreation, business or other purposes, for a period of not less than 24 hours and not more than one year, and whose travel is not remunerated from the financial sources of the place of temporary stay. The definition matters in practice: it determines who counts as a tourist and who is covered by the insurance and service rules established by the law. A definition this precise resolves several practical questions. A person on a temporary assignment whose costs are reimbursed by an employer, for instance, does not fall within the definition of a tourist, because the travel is paid from the financial sources of the place of temporary stay. Likewise the duration boundaries — not less than 24 hours and not more than one year — separate tourism both from a day trip and from relocation: whoever stays longer than a year is no longer a tourist. Precise control over these criteria is decisive when concluding contracts and arranging insurance.
Medical Tourism and Tourist Resources
Medical tourism means the use of resorts to receive treatment, medical examinations and other medical services. Tourist resources, under the law, are the combination of natural, historical-cultural, educational and socio-household resources together with the infrastructure existing on the territory of Georgia that satisfies the demands of tourists. Among natural resources used for treatment the law lists mineral waters, therapeutic muds, karst caves suitable for treatment, the sea, forests and the therapeutic climate, used for treatment, prophylaxis and rehabilitation. Framing claims over these resources and their legal protection is a significant part of the resort business. Within this context the notion of medical tourism stands as a distinct niche: it is not simply recreation but the use of a resort for treatment, examinations and medical services. An enterprise oriented toward medical tourism therefore benefits from framing its offer precisely in the language of the law — which resource is used for what purpose, and what kind of service the contract covers. Such precision helps manage expectations and keeps disputes away.
The Tourist Enterprise and the License Question
The law gives tourist and resort enterprises the right to obtain a service license if this follows from the interests of their activity. What matters here is that taking a license is a right, not an obligation — the enterprise itself decides whether it needs this instrument for its own positioning. Holding a license may serve as an additional assurance in relations with partners and consumers, but its absence does not prevent the activity under the law. In making the decision the enterprise should answer the practical question of what a license actually delivers: whether it reflects the real substance of the activity and whether it settles anything in relations with partners. A decision driven by interests is protected by the law — which is exactly why legal advice is valuable here, helping you appraise the consequences of either choice.
Forms and Bases of Services
Tourist services are provided in the course of group and individual, as well as organized and unorganized tourist travel. Tourist and resort services are rendered on the basis of a contract, a voucher or a route book, which defines the type and volume of services to be provided to the tourist. An unorganized tourist may not be given these services at all — which is why having a documented basis before the journey matters both for the provider and for the tourist. The contract, the voucher and the route book all perform the same function: they fix which services are to be rendered and in what volume. The difference lies in form — the contract is a full-fledged instrument of bilateral agreement, while the voucher and the route book are documents tying the content of services to a specific journey. For the provider, preparing these documents correctly guarantees that claims will be well-founded; for the tourist, that expectations will be met within the agreed scope.
Tourist Insurance and the Economic Framework
Insurance of the tourist's life and health, and compensation for damage caused to insured property, take place under the procedure established by Georgian legislation. The tourist is insured by the subject of tourist activity through a contract concluded with an insurance company. Economically, the reception and servicing of foreign tourists on the territory of Georgia is treated as the export of goods, and tourist and resort services are taxed under the procedure established by tax legislation. A defined part of the aggregate revenue entering the state budget from the sector is earmarked for the preservation of tourist and resort resources and of the historical-cultural heritage. That last detail creates an interesting angle for the industry: part of the sector's revenue works directly on the resources the business is built upon. On insurance, note that under the law the tourist is insured through the subject of tourist activity — the organizer of the journey is responsible for the insurance actually existing. If it was never concluded or is defective, the tourist retains the right to claim compensation, and that claim will run precisely against the organizer.
How We Help on Legal.ge
On the Legal.ge platform you can obtain qualified legal assistance on any tourism-sector question: establishing a tourist enterprise, drafting contracts, vouchers and route books, insurance matters and resolving disputes with tourists. A lawyer will assess your situation and protect your interests both in business and while travelling.