The obligations connected with military reserve service are not always to be performed immediately: the law provides both for exemption from mobilization reserve service and for the deferral of its completion. For a reservist and his family they are an important safety instrument, but their use requires precise legal assessment and documentary substantiation.
We explain who is exempted, who receives a deferral and how these rights are exercised; below is the complete classification of statutory grounds.
Exemption from Mobilization Reserve Service
Under the law, the following are exempted from mobilization reserve service:
- a woman who has no military-accounting specialty;
- a person deemed unfit for military service due to his state of health;
- a person who has reached the age of 60.
Exemption means that these persons are not considered obliged to perform mobilization reserve service at all; exemption on health grounds rests on a finding of unfitness, formalized in the appropriate manner — it is on that document that the status changes.
Grounds for Deferral: Family Circumstances
The completion of mobilization reserve service is deferred for a person whose care involves an incapable-of-work family member — a parent, spouse, child, stepchild or another person permanently living with him — or a minor needing permanent care who has no other legal representative or other person provided for by law who is obliged and able to look after him. Its use requires substantiating that the care falls precisely on this person and that no alternative exists.
Grounds for Deferral: Elections, Activity and Health
The law provides further grounds of deferral:
- a person registered, on the day of call-up to the mobilization reserve, as a candidate for membership of the Parliament or the presidency of Georgia, the supreme representative body of an autonomous republic or the representative body of a municipality, or for mayor of a municipality — until the official publication of the final results of the respective elections;
- a person whose activity is connected with the harvesting of agricultural crops — where the specificity so requires and this person is the family's only adult and able-bodied member;
- a person deemed temporarily unfit for military service due to his state of health.
The election-related ground lasts until the official publication of the final results; the harvest-related ground depends on the specificity of the agricultural activity; and temporary unfitness rests on a medical conclusion whose force expires with time.
Grounds for Deferral: Official Statuses and Other Circumstances
A deferral is also granted to a number of representatives of the state apparatus and the justice system:
- an employee of the systems of the Ministries of Internal Affairs and of Defense of Georgia and of the State Security Service, as well as a person on special registration;
- a judge, a prosecutor;
- a person in a diplomatic position;
- a person in a state-political position, a person in a political position;
- a person elected by the Parliament of Georgia;
- an employee of the emergency response forces directly participating in emergency response measures and restoration works.
Some of these grounds are connected with a permanent status, others with a particular period or activity, and the manner of documenting each of them differs accordingly.
The law provides additional grounds:
- a person abroad before the declaration of mobilization;
- a clergyman of a religious organization performing priesthood;
- a convicted person serving a sentence in a penitentiary institution;
- a person accused of a crime, with imprisonment applied as a preventive measure;
- a person convicted of a crime against the constitutional order and security foundations of Georgia, of terrorism, of a crime against military service, or of a crime against humanity;
- a category determined by the law on military duty and military service — for a period of 3 years, as well as other persons determined by this article.
Being abroad is assessed at the moment of the declaration of mobilization, for a clergyman the actual exercise of priesthood is decisive, and conviction, accusation and having been convicted are confirmed by the respective decisions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is exempted from mobilization reserve service?
A woman without a military-accounting specialty, a person deemed unfit for military service due to health, and a person who has reached the age of 60.
My child needs permanent care. Will I receive a deferral?
Yes. If your care involves a minor family member needing permanent care who has no other legal representative or other person able and obliged to look after him, the completion of mobilization reserve service is deferred. The same applies to an incapable-of-work member of the family.
I am a candidate for mayor. How does this affect reservist status?
If on the day of call-up to the mobilization reserve you are registered as a candidate for mayor of a municipality, the completion of service is deferred until the official publication of the final election results. The same rule applies to candidates for other representative bodies.
In which case are judges and prosecutors granted a deferral?
The law directly grants judges and prosecutors a deferral of mobilization reserve service; the full list of grounds is given above, and its use requires documentary substantiation.
How is the right to deferral exercised?
Deferral does not occur automatically: it is necessary to determine which statutory ground corresponds to your situation, prepare confirming documents and submit an application in the prescribed manner. We will guide you through this process in full.
How We Help on Legal.ge
The use of these rights begins with determining the applicable ground and gathering the confirming documents. Our service includes:
- verifying whether your situation corresponds to the statutory grounds;
- compiling the list of documents and preparing them;
- reasoning the application;
- in case of refusal — challenging the decision as prescribed by legislation.
Remember: deferral and exemption do not occur automatically — this right requires exercise and a timely response. Contact us so that we can assess your case and substantiate the correct ground with documents.