Renewal Has Its Own Regime — on the Same Conditions
Extending the validity of a residence permit is a separate legal regime and differs significantly from the first grant. Under paragraph 3 of Article 16 of the Law on the Legal Status of Aliens, the validity of the temporary residence permits envisaged by that article may be extended up to 12 years, for the alien's expected period of stay in Georgia, on the same conditions as those of the permit whose extension the alien requests.
The requirement of extension „on the same conditions“ is the decisive detail: if the permit was granted, for example, on the basis of labour activity, that basis must be confirmed anew upon extension. Renewal is not an automatic formality — it is a new application on the existing basis, which is precisely why it can also be refused where the conditions no longer exist.
Terms by Type of Permit
Paragraph 1 of Article 16 distributes the terms by type. Temporary residence permits under subparagraphs „a“–„g“ and „v“ of Article 15 are first issued for a period from 6 months to 1 year; the temporary permit under subparagraph „d“ is first issued for a term of 6 years; that under subparagraph „e“ — for a term of 3 years. A special residence permit, on the basis of the written initiative of a member of the Government, is first issued for a term of up to 5 years, while a short-term residence permit may be issued and its validity extended on each occasion by 1 year.
In a special case a temporary residence permit may be first issued for a term of 5 years. Knowing these terms matters when planning a renewal: the application for extension should be submitted in good time before expiry, so that the continuity of stay is not broken.
The Residence Card — the Obligation to Collect It
Alongside the renewal, a practical stage is the residence card. Under Article 20 of the law, the agency issues the corresponding residence card to an alien who has received a residence permit in Georgia, and the alien is obliged to collect it within 1 month of receiving the permit.
Exemptions from the obligation to collect the card apply, for example, to staff of accredited diplomatic and equivalent representations in Georgia and their family members, and to holders of diplomatic and service or official passports. Compliance with the collection deadline matters: the law attaches a consequence also to the case where the alien does not apply to the agency to collect the card within 6 months of receiving the permit.