The Labour Migration Law and the Labour Inspection
Compliance with the rules on the employment of aliens in Georgia is determined by the Law on Labour Migration. Under Article 14 of that law, administrative liability for violations of the requirements in the sphere of labour migration is defined by this law, while the conduct of administrative offence cases is governed also by the Code of Administrative Offences and the Law on Labour Inspection. Control is exercised by the labour inspection, which is authorised to impose liability and administrative penalties on infringers.
For an employer this means that an audit is not a theoretical risk: a protocol drawn up by the inspection genuinely turns into a fine where the terms of the contract, the right to work or the documentation are not in order.
Mandatory Conditions of the Contract
Article 13-2 of the law provides that an employment contract between a labour immigrant and a local employer must indicate, together with the essential conditions envisaged by the Labour Code: the name, surname and personal number of the labour immigrant, or the number of his residence card or passport; the name and identification number of the employer organisation; its legal and actual addresses and bank details; the date of entry into force and the term of the contract; the workplace, including the full name of the structural unit, and its full address; and the basic rights, duties and liability of the parties.
The form is also strictly defined: the contract is concluded only for a fixed term, in writing, in Georgian and in the labour immigrant's native language or another language understandable to him. This requirement is often left unsatisfied — and it is precisely what becomes the basis of a protocol.
Working Without the Right
Article 16-1 establishes the heaviest sanction: any remunerated activity carried out by a labour immigrant without the right to labour activity entails a fine on the local employer of 2 000 GEL, individually per each labour immigrant, and at the same time a fine on the labour immigrant himself of 2 000 GEL. For a self-employed alien the fine is likewise 2 000 GEL.
Repetition increases the price: a repeated commission of the same violation entails a double fine, and where the person already penalised commits it again — a triple amount. Thus a single uncorrected defect turns within a short time into a repeatedly increased fine.