Laws of Georgia

All laws and other official documents of Georgia can be found on the Legislative Herald of Georgia.

The working language in Georgia is Georgian. However, all laws are translated into English and Russian. Nevertheless, since translations are not a basic requirement, documents in these languages are released later than Georgian versions. Therefore, if the latest version of the Russian edition is not available and you need to know the completely up-to-date version, you should look at the Georgian version in the latest edition with auto-translation.

• Constitution
• Criminal Code
• Civil Code
• On the Legal Status of Foreigners and Stateless Persons
• On Police
• Customs Code
• On Protection of Consumer Rights
• Georgia Law on Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic Substances, Precursors and Narcological Aid
• On Citizenship
• On Road Traffic
• On Prevention of Domestic Violence, Protection and Assistance to Victims of Domestic Violence and/or Violence Against Women
• On the Established Fee and Deadlines for the Provision of Services by a Public Law Legal Entity – The Service Agency of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia

In these laws, you can find answers to most of the questions that arise. For example, if a police officer searched you and you want to know if it was legal, you can refer to the "On Police" law.

Article 18. Preventive measures and police response to offenses

1. In order to prevent threats to public safety and order or to prevent their violation, the police, within their competence, apply the following preventive measures: a) questioning a person; b) identifying a person; c) inviting a person; d) pat-down and inspection; ...

2. If a police officer cannot be identified by external features, he/she must present a document confirming his/her authority, provided that this does not prevent him/her from performing police functions.

Further, each item is described in detail - how, when, and under what conditions a police officer can apply a particular measure. In the case of a police search, it refers to pat-down and inspection.

Article 22. Pat-down and Inspection

1. Pat-down involves a superficial check of a person's clothing by running one's hand over it, using a special device, or means.

2. A police officer is authorized to conduct a pat-down as part of the application of preventive measures by stopping a person: a) if there is sufficient reason to believe that the person has on his/her person an item whose transportation is restricted or which poses a threat to his/her own life or the life and health of others; b) in case a person is within a radius of 20 meters from the territory or object subject to a special regime defined by Article 23 of this Law;

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8. The duration of a person's stop should not exceed 30 minutes from the moment of the stop.

9. A police officer, when applying the measure specified in this Article, draws up a protocol. The protocol is signed by the police officer who drew it up and the addressee of the measure…