No Sectoral Permit Exists — the General Work Residence
In Georgia there is no separate, sectoral work residence permit for the construction industry. For aliens employed in construction the general regime applies — the work residence permit provided by subparagraph „a“ of Article 15 of the Law on the Legal Status of Aliens. The general starting principle is established by Article 29 of that law: the labour activity of aliens in Georgia is regulated by Georgian legislation.
This distinction matters in planning: no special privilege or additional requirement applies to construction — liability is determined entirely by the general norms, and a breach of precisely those norms creates risk for both the construction company and the employee.
The Income Threshold — Five Times the Subsistence Minimum
To obtain a work residence permit, an alien employed in a construction company submits to the agency a document confirming entrepreneurial or labour activity and a certificate confirming that his monthly income or remuneration from such activity in Georgia is not less than five times the subsistence minimum of the average consumer.
The threshold is set at the level of monthly income and must be confirmed anew at each grant and extension — a temporary reduction requires documentary justification.
The Turnover Rule — 50 000 GEL
On the employer's side the law sets an annual turnover threshold: the enterprise's annual turnover must not be less than 50 000 GEL per each alien seeking a work residence permit. The reduced threshold of no less than 35 000 GEL applies only to educational and medical institutions — a construction company cannot use that exception.
In practice this means that a construction group must verify turnover separately for each alien employee: where the turnover does not reach 50 000 GEL, the application is reasonably certain to be refused, although the remaining turnover can still support employment on other bases.
Terms
A work residence permit is first issued for a period from 6 months to 1 year, and subsequently its validity may be extended up to 12 years, on the same conditions as those of the original permit. Given the duration of construction projects, this cycle should be synchronised with the project plan.
In a special case a temporary residence permit may be first issued for a term of 5 years — a possibility that depends on the assessment of the deciding organ.