Foreigners in Georgia: entitlement to State healthcare and need for insurance: what to do under Georgian law

What to do

1. Status determines everything: the law grants the right to healthcare under State programmes to citizens and to stateless persons with status in Georgia (Law of Georgia on Healthcare, Art. 5). The basic Universal Healthcare Programme package covers citizens (and persons with neutral documents), stateless persons with status, asylum seekers, refugees and persons with humanitarian status; foreigners with a residence permit are not named in the list (Decree No. 36, as amended 11.2023, Art. 1, Art. 2, Annex 1). Annual State programmes cover citizens, unless a specific programme extends the circle of recipients (Decree No. 474, general rules, Art. 2). A temporary or permanent residence permit by itself does not include a person in the Universal Healthcare Programme; the exception is persons covered by the order on measures related to the war in Ukraine, to the extent set out in that order (Decree No. 474, general rules, Art. 2).
2. What everyone has: ambulance care is available to any person on the territory of Georgia (Decree No. 474, Art. 2, Annex “Ambulance”); the ambulance crew provides care and, if indicated, arranges hospitalisation at an appropriate clinic (Decree No. 474, Art. 3, Annex “Ambulance”); the State protects the right to emergency care, without which death or serious harm to health is unavoidable (Law of Georgia on Patients’ Rights, Art. 12).
3. Separate programmes are broader than the Universal Healthcare Programme: pregnancy care is available to citizens and persons permanently residing in Georgia (Decree No. 474, Art. 2, Annex “Mother and Child Health”); scheduled vaccinations under the national calendar are available to children under 18 who have been lawfully in Georgia for more than 3 months (Decree No. 474, Art. 2, Annex “Immunisation”); insulin is available to permanent residents (see the situation on medicine reimbursement).
4. Insurance: a tourist must have a health and accident insurance policy on entry (Tourist Insurance Rules, Art. 3); the insured sum of the policy must be at least 30,000 GEL (Tourist Insurance Rules, Art. 4); the rule applies from 1 January 2026 (Tourist Insurance Rules, Art. 2); the absence of health and accident insurance (or of sufficient funds) is grounds for refusing a visa or entry (Law of Georgia on the Legal Status of Aliens and Stateless Persons, Art. 11). For a resident with a residence permit who is not in the Universal Healthcare Programme, private insurance is the only protection against a clinic bill.
5. Treaties with the country of citizenship: the rights of foreigners are guaranteed by Georgia’s international treaties, and in their absence by the law of the country of stay (Law of Georgia on Patients’ Rights, Art. 9).
6. Where to apply: National Health Agency; clinic; ambulance service.
7. Documents to prepare: passport; residence permit card; document confirming refugee or stateless person status; insurance policy.
8. Pitfalls: promising a foreigner with a residence permit access to the Universal Healthcare Programme, as such persons are not in its circle of recipients; assuming that ambulance care also covers inpatient treatment; confusing tourist entry insurance with insurance for a residence permit.

Be sure to check

• the Universal Healthcare Programme is for citizens, stateless persons with status, refugees and asylum seekers; a foreigner with a residence permit does not receive it
• ambulance care is available to anyone in Georgia; inpatient treatment without the Universal Healthcare Programme is paid by the patient or by insurance
• separate programmes (pregnancy care, child vaccination, insulin) cover permanent residents and persons lawfully staying in Georgia
• from 1 January 2026 a tourist must have insurance cover of at least 30,000 GEL; without it entry may be refused