My prescription medication was seized. What happens now, and can I get it back?

Unfortunately a very common scenario. The procedure is roughly this:

1. Expert examination. The seized item is sent for laboratory analysis — the substance, quantity, and whether it falls under the Law "On Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic Substances, and Precursors" are determined. Timeline: usually 1–3 weeks.
2. Waiting period. While the examination is ongoing there is no decision, but investigators or inspectors may contact you.
3. Three possible outcomes:
   • the substance is not controlled — proceedings are dropped;
   • controlled, small dose — administrative liability (fine of 500–2000 GEL, or up to 60 days of arrest; usually a fine);
   • dose above the "small" threshold — criminal charges.

What to do immediately:

• Do not give explanations without a lawyer. Especially about the origin of the medication ("a friend brought it", "I bought it in Yerevan" — everything is used against you).
• Appeal the inspection protocol. Critically important. Grounds almost always exist: no search warrant was shown, no attesting witnesses, no gloves, no interpreter or an interpreter only over the phone, the evidence bag was not sealed in front of you, the seized item was described imprecisely (no factory packaging noted). A single successful procedural appeal can invalidate the entire evidentiary basis.
• Obtain a medical certificate from a Georgian doctor with a diagnosis that fits the medication. This is the key to closing the case on medical grounds.
• Hire a lawyer. At this stage it is difficult to draft an appeal correctly without one.

Getting the medication back: if proceedings are dropped — yes, the seized item is returned. If you were fined — it is usually destroyed.