Product Certification & Compliance for Import to Georgia

Many importers assume Georgia copies the EU and either overspend on certificates they never needed or skip a mandatory step and get stuck at customs. The truth is a mix: EU-style technical regulations, a mostly voluntary baseline, and separate food controls running in parallel. This guide to product certification and compliance for import to Georgia lays out what needs conformity assessment, who checks it, how to label it, and where the food rules differ.

Quick Summary:

• Georgia's regime is lighter than the EU's: most products need no certificate, and conformity assessment is mandatory only inside legally defined "regulated areas."

• The backbone law is the Product Safety and Free Movement Code, in force since 2012 and aligned with EU New Approach directives.

• Regulated industrial categories include electrical/low-voltage equipment, toys, machinery, lifts, and pressure vessels, usually via a Declaration of Conformity rather than a third-party certificate.

• Food, animal products, and plants follow separate SPS rules under the National Food Agency (phytosanitary/veterinary certificates and operator registration).

• Conformity assessment must use a body accredited by the Georgian Accreditation Center (GAC), an EA MLA and ILAC MRA signatory, so EU and accredited test reports are widely accepted.

• Mandatory consumer information and labeling must be in Georgian.

• Minimum customs paperwork is a declaration, invoice, and transport docs; 18% import VAT applies, with most goods at 0% duty.

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The big picture - how product compliance works in Georgia

Compliance here runs on three parallel tracks, and knowing which one your goods fall under saves you most of the confusion. The first is general product safety plus technical regulations for industrial and consumer goods. The second is sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) control for food, plants, and animal products. The third is sector-specific regimes, such as the separate licensing that governs pharmaceuticals.

The headline for most importers is simple: Georgia is mostly voluntary, and lighter than the EU. The foundational law is the Product Safety and Free Movement Code, in force since 2012 and modeled on EU New Approach directives.

The key concept built into that law is the "regulated area." Mandatory safety requirements and conformity assessment apply only inside a regulated area defined by law. Outside those areas, an importer voluntarily chooses which safety requirements to meet. That single distinction decides whether you need a formal assessment at all, so it is worth confirming before you spend a tetri on testing.

The technical-regulations framework (and why it's lighter than the EU)

Georgia adopts technical regulations modeled on EU "New Approach" directives, but it does not require CE marking and does not enforce the full EU acquis. That gap is the whole reason compliance here is cheaper and faster than in Brussels.

Importers also get a choice of standards. You can conform your product to Georgian standards or to the standards of any EU or OECD member country. If you pick foreign standards, you register them with the national standards body, the Georgian National Agency for Standards and Metrology (GeoSTM). A Governmental Order recognizes the technical regulations of 37 EU and OECD countries, so a product built to those rules already has a recognized basis.

The testing infrastructure backs this up. Around 100 accredited test laboratories operate in the country, covering the main industrial and consumer fields. Technical regulations themselves are published through Matsne, the official Legislative Herald, so the binding text is always public.

Regulated areas vs voluntary areas

This is the single most actionable distinction in the whole system. In a regulated area, conformity assessment is mandatory, and it must be done by an accredited body or a body named directly in law. Examples include low-voltage electrical equipment, toys, machinery, and pressure equipment.

Everywhere else, compliance is voluntary and self-chosen. Most furniture, textiles, stationery, and general household goods sit outside the regulated areas. You still have to place a safe product on the market and label it correctly, but no certificate or formal assessment is triggered.

Georgia vs the EU at a glance

The practical takeaway: budget for compliance the Georgian way, not the EU way. If you want the financial side too, our breakdown of VAT in Georgia covers the 18% import VAT that applies at clearance.

Which products actually need conformity assessment or certification

Here is the category breakdown most importers come for. Walk your product through these buckets and you will know whether it triggers conformity assessment, an SPS control, or nothing beyond general safety.

Electrical and electronic equipment is regulated under the low-voltage technical regulation, which covers equipment rated 50 to 1,000 V AC and 75 to 1,500 V DC. It generally needs a Declaration of Conformity plus Georgian-language safety instructions, not necessarily a third-party certificate.

Toys fall under a dedicated toy-safety technical regulation. Machinery, lifts, simple pressure vessels, and other equipment carrying increased technical risk are regulated as well. Construction and building materials are controlled, and accredited testing for building materials exists in-country.

Food, beverages, and supplements sit on the SPS track, covered in its own section below. Cosmetics follow sector rules, while pharmaceuticals are licensed separately. General consumer goods such as furniture, textiles, and most household items face general product safety only, so they typically need no certificate at all.

A quick product decision table

Conformity-assessment bodies and the Georgian Accreditation Center (GAC)

Behind every valid Declaration of Conformity or test report sits the institutional layer, and the Georgian Accreditation Center (GAC) is at the center of it. GAC is Georgia's single national accreditation body, operating under the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development. It accredits testing labs, calibration labs, medical labs, inspection bodies, and certification bodies.

The recognition piece is what saves importers money and time. GAC is a signatory to the EA MLA and the ILAC MRA, so results from bodies it accredits carry international recognition. In practice, you can often rely on an existing EU or accredited test report instead of re-testing in Tbilisi.

GAC accredits to the standards you would expect: ISO/IEC 17025 for testing and calibration laboratories, ISO/IEC 17020 for inspection bodies, and ISO 15189 for medical laboratories. A few hundred bodies are accredited nationally across these scopes.

Keep three institutions separate in your head. GAC accredits the bodies. GeoSTM handles standards and metrology. The Market Supervision Agency enforces technical regulations and can order a product removed, recalled, or destroyed.

Self-declaration vs third-party certification

Many Georgian technical regulations let the manufacturer or importer issue a Declaration of Conformity under internal production control. The low-voltage and toy regulations work this way. You prepare the technical documentation, run the conformity assessment procedure, and sign the declaration yourself.

Third-party certification is reserved for higher-risk categories where the rule specifically requires an accredited body to assess and certify. This is exactly where importers overpay: do not buy a certificate the regulation never asked for. Confirm the route first, then act.

Labeling and marking rules

What goes on the product and packaging is its own compliance step, and the language rule is firm. Mandatory consumer information must be in Georgian. That covers cosmetics, pharmaceutical, chemical, processed food, and utility products at the point of sale.

Read "label" broadly. It means any printed, written, or graphic marking on the product or packaging, including trademarks. For regulated industrial goods, the Declaration of Conformity and Georgian-language safety instructions and manuals are part of the compliance package, not an optional extra.

Georgia does not use CE marking. That said, importer or manufacturer identification and any conformity markings required by a specific technical regulation must still appear on the goods. Detailed food-label content, such as energy value, allergens, and origin where omitting it would mislead, is governed by a dedicated decree and ties into the SPS rules below.

Food and agricultural imports - SPS controls and the National Food Agency

The second compliance track is food and agriculture, and it is run by the National Food Agency (NFA) under the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture. The NFA covers three areas: food safety, veterinary services, and plant protection.

The documents follow the product type. Imports of plants and plant products need a phytosanitary certificate. Animals and animal-origin products need a veterinary certificate. Food business operators, importers included, must be registered, and for certain animal or plant consignments an SPS import permit is required before the goods arrive.

Border SPS checks apply at entry. Georgia is approximating EU food-safety rules under the DCFTA, including HACCP-based controls and risk analysis, governed by the Food/Feed Safety, Veterinary and Plant Protection Code. So this track is trending closer to the EU even while industrial goods stay lighter. Plan these steps early, because an unregistered operator or a missing certificate stops a consignment at the border. Doing this cleanly is far easier through a registered Georgian company, which you can set up by opening an LLC.

Customs paperwork and import VAT

Compliance ends at the border crossing, and the paperwork there is lean. The minimum documents are a customs declaration, a commercial invoice, and transport documentation. Add a certificate of origin when you are claiming a preferential duty rate.

The money side is straightforward. Duty falls into three bands - 0%, 5%, and 12% - and nearly 90% of goods enter at 0%. An 18% VAT applies to most imports at clearance, and it is recoverable if you are VAT-registered. The higher duty bands mostly hit goods also produced in Georgia, such as some agricultural products, construction materials, and certain processed goods.

Who acts as importer of record matters more than it looks. A registered Georgian company simplifies VAT recovery, makes ongoing accounting and recordkeeping cleaner, and carries the operator duties properly. Paying duties and VAT from a corporate business bank account keeps the trail tidy too. If you need an importer-of-record entity or help structuring import VAT, register a Georgian company with us and we will set it up correctly from day one.

Common mistakes importers make (and how to avoid them)

The same handful of errors cost importers time and money here, and all of them are avoidable.

• Assuming CE marking is required or sufficient. It is neither; Georgia runs its own system, and your CE file is supporting evidence, not the deliverable.

• Paying for a third-party certificate when a Declaration of Conformity is all the regulation requires.

• Re-testing in Tbilisi when an accredited EU report would already be accepted through the ILAC MRA.

• Missing Georgian-language labeling and safety instructions, which are mandatory for regulated and consumer goods.

• Treating food like industrial goods and skipping the SPS steps, operator registration, and certificates that the NFA requires.

• Importing in a personal name and losing clean VAT recovery and clarity on operator duties. Picking the right business structure up front and getting tax consulting on import VAT treatment avoids the rework.

Key Takeaways

• Confirm first whether your product sits in a regulated area. If it does not, you likely need no certificate, only safe-product compliance and Georgian labeling.

• For regulated industrial goods, check whether a Declaration of Conformity is enough before paying for third-party certification.

• Reuse an existing EU or accredited-lab test report where possible, and confirm the body is GAC-recognized.

• For any food, plant, or animal product, plan SPS steps early: operator registration plus phytosanitary or veterinary certificates.

• Get mandatory labeling and safety instructions translated into Georgian before goods ship.

• Set up a Georgian company as importer of record so you can recover the 18% import VAT and meet operator obligations cleanly.

Frequently asked questions

Does Georgia require CE marking to import products?

No. Georgia does not use or require CE marking. Its technical regulations are modeled on EU New Approach directives, but conformity is shown through a Declaration of Conformity or, for higher-risk goods, certification by an accredited body. A CE file from the EU is useful supporting evidence, not a Georgian requirement.

Which products need mandatory certification or conformity assessment in Georgia?

Only products inside a legally defined "regulated area" need mandatory conformity assessment. These include low-voltage electrical equipment, toys, machinery, lifts, and pressure vessels. Food and agricultural products follow a separate SPS track under the National Food Agency. Most other goods, such as furniture and textiles, need only general product safety and correct labeling.

Is product certification in Georgia voluntary or mandatory?

It is mostly voluntary. Under the Product Safety and Free Movement Code, mandatory conformity assessment applies only within regulated areas. Outside those areas, an importer voluntarily chooses which safety requirements to meet. This makes Georgia's regime noticeably lighter than the EU's.

What is the Georgian Accreditation Center (GAC) and why does it matter?

GAC is Georgia's single national accreditation body, operating under the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development. It accredits testing labs, inspection bodies, and certification bodies to ISO standards such as ISO/IEC 17025 and 17020. Because GAC is an EA MLA and ILAC MRA signatory, results from the bodies it accredits are recognized internationally.

Will Georgia accept my EU or foreign test reports and certificates?

Usually, yes. You may conform products to Georgian standards or to the standards of any EU or OECD member country, and Georgia recognizes the technical regulations of 37 such countries. Because GAC is an ILAC MRA signatory, test reports from accredited bodies are widely accepted, so you can often avoid re-testing in Tbilisi. Foreign standards you rely on should be registered with the national standards body.

Do I need a certificate to import electronics or electrical appliances?

For equipment in the 50 to 1,000 V AC or 75 to 1,500 V DC range, you need to meet the low-voltage technical regulation. In most cases that means preparing technical documentation and issuing a Declaration of Conformity, plus Georgian-language safety instructions, rather than buying a third-party certificate. Higher-risk items may require an accredited body's involvement.

What do I need to import food into Georgia?

Food imports fall under the National Food Agency. You generally need to be registered as a food business operator, and consignments require the right certificate: a phytosanitary certificate for plants and plant products, or a veterinary certificate for animals and animal-origin products. Some animal or plant consignments also need an SPS import permit before arrival, and SPS checks apply at the border.

Do product labels have to be in Georgian?

Yes. Mandatory consumer information must be in Georgian. This applies to cosmetics, pharmaceutical, chemical, processed food, and utility products at the point of sale. For regulated industrial goods, safety instructions and manuals must also be provided in Georgian.

What's the difference between a Declaration of Conformity and a certificate?

A Declaration of Conformity is issued by the manufacturer or importer, who takes responsibility for the product based on internal production control and technical documentation. A certificate is issued by an independent accredited body after it assesses the product. Many Georgian regulations accept self-declaration, so you should not pay for third-party certification unless the specific rule requires it.

How is Georgia's import compliance regime different from the EU's?

Georgia is lighter. It does not require CE marking, does not enforce the full EU acquis, and applies mandatory rules only to a narrower set of regulated areas. It also accepts EU and OECD standards and accredited test reports. Food and agricultural controls are the exception, moving closer to EU rules under the DCFTA.

Who can be the importer of record in Georgia?

A registered Georgian company is the cleanest choice for the importer of record. It makes recovering the 18% import VAT straightforward, keeps accounting and operator duties in order, and gives customs a clear responsible party. Importing under a personal name is possible for one-off shipments but usually complicates VAT recovery and ongoing compliance.