Migration police stopped me in Tbilisi. Who are they and what are they allowed to do?

A guide for foreign nationals: who the officers in the vests are, which provisions their powers rest on, and what the law allows you — with a residence permit and without one.

The bottom line, in two paragraphs

There is no body in Georgia officially called the "migration police". The term is everyday shorthand for the Migration Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia — the unit responsible for detecting foreign nationals who have no lawful grounds to stay in the country, and for expelling them. On the street it has no special "migration" powers of its own: it applies the same measures as ordinary police. That is stated directly in Article 53¹ of the Law of Georgia on the Legal Status of Aliens and Stateless Persons.

The practical consequence: a street ID check on a foreign national runs under the Law on Police — same grounds, same duties for the officer, same 30-minute rule. Separately from those police measures, the Law on Aliens adds only three things: photographing and fingerprinting (Art. 53²), inspection of a foreign national's place of residence and work (Art. 53³), and detention with placement in a Temporary Accommodation Centre (Chapter XI). None of the three switches on automatically — each has its own conditions, and those conditions are what you need to know.

What changed on 1 September 2026

Law No 1803 of 25 June 2026 entered into force on 1 September 2026 and introduced one theme that runs through the whole Law on Aliens: working without the right to labour activity. For anyone who gets stopped on the street, this is the most important change of the past year:

working without the right to labour activity is now a standalone ground for expulsion (Art. 51(1)(i)). If the person also has no lawful ground of stay, they are expelled under Art. 51(1)(a) or (b) (Art. 51(4));
a decision on expulsion on that ground is taken by a court, not by the Ministry: the list of "court" grounds was extended from (c)–(h) to (c)–(i) (Art. 52(1)–(2));
photographing and fingerprinting now cover the same extended list: they are mandatory for a person whose expulsion is being examined for working without the right to labour activity (Art. 53²(1));
working without the right to labour activity is now a standalone ground for detention and placement in the Temporary Accommodation Centre (Art. 64(2)(m)). In the same provision, the ground "committed a serious or particularly serious crime" was replaced by any criminal offence (Art. 64(2)(l));
notification of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia and of the consulate is due "immediately, and no later than 24 hours" (Art. 64(8)).

What this means in practice. A courier, a taxi driver, a café worker or a construction worker without a formalised right to labour activity has, since 1 September 2026, fallen into three categories at once: a ground for expulsion, mandatory fingerprinting, and a ground for detention. The right to labour activity and a residence permit are different documents, and holding one does not substitute for the other.

These provisions appear in neither the English nor the Russian version of the law on matsne.gov.ge — neither translation has been consolidated. They are cited from the Georgian text (publication v23), which has legal force.

1. Who these people are

The Migration Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia (მიგრაციის დეპარტამენტი) is a structural unit of the Ministry. Street checks and raids are carried out by its unit for combating illegal migration; the same department runs the Temporary Accommodation Centre where detained foreign nationals are held, and conducts expulsion proceedings.

Since 17 August 2026 the range of officers who may check a foreign national's documents has widened. By a government decree, migration control functions were also assigned to the patrol police and the criminal police. In practice this means your documents may now be checked by an ordinary uniformed patrol officer, not only by "the man in the vest".

What this means for you legally. The distinction between "migration police" and patrol police no longer affects the scope of powers during a street check — both act under the Law on Police. The distinction that remains is where a detention leads: the migration track ends not in an administrative court but in the Temporary Accommodation Centre and expulsion proceedings.

⚠️ About appearance. No published legal act on the uniform or insignia of Migration Department officers could be located. A high-visibility vest with lettering is not described in any published act and does not by itself prove authority. The only thing that proves a particular person's authority is a service ID card or badge (Art. 47 of the Law on Police). How to use this is in section 6.

2. Which provisions their powers rest on

Three provisions are worth knowing by heart.

Article 53¹ of the Law on Aliens (introduced by Law No 863 of 26 June 2025, in force from 1 July 2025):

the authorised body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs is entitled, within its competence, to carry out the measures provided for by the Law of Georgia on the Police for the purpose of combating, preventing, identifying and suppressing illegal migration (para. 1);
it is entitled to inspect public places — cafés, restaurants, fast food restaurants, any form of public transport, hotels and other sites in public spaces are named expressly — in order to detect a foreign national unlawfully residing in Georgia (para. 2).

Article 19(1¹) of the Law on Police — during a stop, the police may verify data on the person against the databases of the Ministry, including for the purpose of identifying "an alien presumably residing unlawfully in the territory of Georgia". This is the statutory basis of street checks.

Article 22(2)(c) of the Law on Police — a superficial check is permitted, among other grounds, where there are sufficient grounds to believe that the place where the person is located is one where persons unlawfully staying in Georgia gather. This is why checks concentrate in particular spots in the city.

The Russian version of the Law on Aliens on matsne.gov.ge does not yet contain Articles 53¹–53³; the translation lags. Only the Georgian text has legal force. The provisions here are cited from the official English translation and cross-checked against the Georgian version.

3. What an officer is entitled to do

Stop you and demand a document

The grounds are the same as for any police stop — Article 19(1) of the Law on Police:

your appearance matches that of a wanted or missing person;
there are sufficient grounds to believe you have committed or will commit an offence;
you are on a territory or facility under a special regime, or in a place of special police control;
you are carrying a weapon that requires a permit;
you are at the scene of a crime, a road accident or another emergency;
your appearance, or that of your vehicle, or your conduct indicates possible involvement in an offence.

A "routine migration check" is not on that list. The basis is a combination: inspection of a public place under Art. 53¹(2), plus one of the Art. 19(1) grounds as applied to you personally.

Verify you against the databases

Art. 19(1¹) — lawful and expressly provided for. What the provision authorises is verification against the databases of the Ministry.

Carry out a superficial check

Art. 22 — by hand or with a special device, over the surface of your clothing; a bag or a car boot may be inspected visually only. The check is performed by an officer of your own sex (in an urgent case, by any officer, but only using a device). The actual owner of the item or vehicle, or a family member, must be present when an item or a vehicle is checked (para. 6). This is not a search: the moment hands go inside your pockets or your bag, a different procedure begins — one governed by the Criminal Procedure Code and requiring a warrant.

Move to identification measures

Art. 20 — where identity cannot be established by ordinary means, where there are sufficient grounds to believe that the information or documents you produced do not reflect your identity, or where you are directly connected to an offence. The measures are: fingerprints and palm prints, a photograph, recording of distinctive physical features, height measurement, a voice recording, verification against Ministry databases, and other biometric data.

Two safeguards that are rarely remembered:

Before identification measures begin, you must be given a reasonable period to confirm your identity voluntarily (para. 3). A second document, calling someone who can bring the original, opening a registry extract — all of this fits here.
A record (protocol) is drawn up, stating the ground for the measure and all material circumstances. It is signed by the officer and by you; if you refuse to sign, a corresponding note is made; and you are entitled to enter your own remark into the record, certified by your signature (para. 4).

Photograph and fingerprint you — but not everyone

This is Art. 53² of the Law on Aliens (Law No 865 of 26 June 2025, in force from 7 July 2025), and it is narrow. A photograph, fingerprints and palm prints are taken from a foreign national who:

is unlawfully residing in Georgia, or
is a person against whom the examination of the issue of expulsion has been commenced on the grounds under Art. 51(1)(c)–(i): threat to state security, protection of the rights of others, regular breaches of Georgian legislation, forged documents, serving a sentence, and — since 1 September 2026 — working without the right to labour activity.

If the person refuses, these data may be obtained by applying proportional coercive measures (para. 2). The data are kept in the relevant database of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and processed under the Law on Personal Data Protection (para. 3). The procedure is established by an order of the Minister of Internal Affairs (para. 4).

Two conclusions follow. A foreign national with a valid residence permit, or within a lawful visa-free period, does not fall under this provision. And separately: an officer's personal phone is not a Ministry database. Photographing your residence card on a personal smartphone and forwarding the image through a messaging app is described neither in Art. 53² nor in Art. 19(1¹). That is a distinct ground for complaint, including to the Personal Data Protection Service.

Inspect your home and workplace — on a judge's order

Art. 53³ (Law No 930 of 2 July 2025, in force from 8 July 2025). An inspection of a foreign national's place of residence or work, or other private property or possessions, is carried out on the basis of an order of a judge of a district (city) court. But the provision contains two exceptions, and you need to know them:

the consent of a co-owner of the property, or of the employer at the place of work, is sufficient to carry out the inspection without a judge's order (para. 1);
in case of urgent necessity — where delay might result in the foreign national going into hiding or destroying or concealing their travel document — the inspection begins immediately and the petition is submitted to a judge within 24 hours, with the urgent necessity substantiated (para. 2).

During such an inspection, interviewing, identification, superficial assessment and examination are permitted, as are other preventive and coercive measures in the cases provided by Georgian legislation (para. 3). The employer may be asked to produce the documents certifying the lawful grounds for your work in Georgia (para. 4).

What this means if you rent or are employed. Your flatmate, your co-tenant or the property owner is legally capable of letting an inspection in without a court order. So is your employer. Your own position is not what the provision rests on.

Detain you

The grounds and the procedure are in Chapter XI of the Law on Aliens (Arts. 64–66). This is the most serious scenario and it is set out in section 9.

4. What an officer is not entitled to do

Demand that you unlock your phone, or show messages, photos or banking apps. Examining the contents of a phone goes beyond a superficial check (Art. 22(1) and (5) cover only the surface of clothing and a visual inspection of an item) and is possible only under the Criminal Procedure Code.
Reach inside your pockets, bag or wallet without a warrant. That is a search, not a superficial check — Art. 22(10) says plainly that if grounds for a search arise, the search is conducted under the procedure established by the Criminal Procedure Code.
Take fingerprints and photographs "just in case" from a foreign national whose status is lawful and undisputed: Art. 53² is tied to specific categories.
Process your personal data outside official systems — the provisions speak of the databases of the Ministry (Art. 19(1¹), Art. 53²(3)).
Enter your home without a judge's order, absent the consent of a co-owner or an urgent necessity followed by a petition to a judge within 24 hours (Art. 53³(1)–(2)).
Hold you on the spot for more than 30 minutes within a stop: "the duration of stopping a person shall not exceed 30 minutes from the moment of the stop" (Art. 22(8)). After that you are either released, or a different procedure begins, with its own rules and its own safeguards.
Demand money in any form. A fine for breaching the rules of stay is imposed through administrative-offence proceedings, not in cash on the street.

5. What you are obliged to do

There are exactly three obligations during a street check, and they do not depend on your nationality or your status.

Stop, identify yourself and give the personal data the officer asks for (Art. 19(1)).
Produce an identity document. For a foreign national this means a passport, an ID card, a residence permit card or a temporary certificate, including the certificate of a person under international protection. A photo of a document on your phone is not legally a document — it may help in practice, but it does not replace the original.
Allow a superficial check of your clothing if the officer states that they are applying the measure under Art. 22.

The law requires nothing further from you. An interview is voluntary: the provision of information by a person during an interview is voluntary (Art. 19(2)). Questions such as "where are you going", "where do you live", "who do you live with", "how much do you earn", "show me your lease" belong to the interview — you are not obliged to answer them.

6. Your rights — the same for everyone, whatever your status

Ask for the service ID. A police officer must produce a document certifying their authority if they cannot be identified as a police officer by external features (Art. 18(3)). An officer in a vest over civilian clothes, without a uniform and without a badge, fits that description. The request is lawful, and in practice it works. A calm way to put it: "Could you show me your service ID, please — a vest is not an ID."

Know the ground for the measure. The ground for applying a police measure is explained to the person, unless doing so would impede the performance of police functions (Art. 19(3)). The absence of an answer to "on what ground?" itself becomes an argument in a later complaint — so ask once, calmly, and remember the answer.

The 30-minute rule — Art. 22(8). Note the time when the stop begins.

A reasonable period to confirm your identity voluntarily before identification measures start — Art. 20(3).

A record, and your remark in it. A record is drawn up for identification measures (Art. 20(4)) and for a superficial check (Art. 22(9)); you are entitled to enter a remark certified by your signature, and if you refuse to sign, a corresponding note is made. The remark is the only way to put your version of events on paper at the scene.

An explanation of your right of appeal. During a superficial check the officer is obliged to explain your right to appeal the lawfulness of the measure (Art. 22(7)).

The right not to go to the station "for a talk". Inviting a person (Art. 21) is a separate preventive measure: the officer must explain the ground for the invitation and must expressly explain that attending the police and leaving the police are voluntary (paras. 2 and 3). An invited adult may not stay longer than 4 hours (para. 6). If you are not being detained but "invited", you may decline. It is sensible to ask directly: "Am I detained, or am I being invited?"

The right to understand the procedure, and to an interpreter. Do not sign any document until its content has been translated for you. If the text is in Georgian and no translation was provided, write exactly that in the remarks box: "The text is in a language I do not understand; its content was not explained to me."

The right to a lawyer upon detention — Constitution of Georgia, Art. 13(4): a detained person has the right to request the assistance of a lawyer, and that request must be granted. For migration detention the same right is restated expressly in Art. 64(7)(b) of the Law on Aliens.

The right to appeal an officer's action — Art. 56 of the Law on Police: to a superior official, to the prosecutor's office, or to a court.

Non-discrimination — Art. 11 of the Law on Police. The rights of a person who has been stopped do not change with nationality, language or appearance.

7. If you hold a residence permit

A valid residence permit changes your position fundamentally: you are outside the category the harshest provisions are addressed to. Art. 53² (photograph and fingerprints) describes a foreign national unlawfully residing in the country, or one against whom expulsion proceedings have been commenced. Art. 51(1)(b) — a ground for expulsion — refers to the absence of lawful grounds for further stay. Neither applies to you while your permit is valid.

What follows in practice:

Carry the original. Either your residence card or your passport must be on you at all times. The impossibility of identifying a person is a standalone ground for detention in the migration procedure (Art. 64(2)(a)); and although all of Chapter XI is built around expulsion — that is, around people without lawful grounds to stay — on the street the dispute about who you are begins precisely with the absence of a document.
Watch the expiry date of your passport, not only of your Georgian documents. A passport running out while your residence permit is valid creates questions that need not have arisen.
If your permit is under renewal, keep proof of the submitted application with you (the receipt, a status printout from my.gov.ge) together with your old card and your passport. The law expressly provides this protection for one case: while administrative proceedings to extend a Georgian visa are in progress, the expulsion ground "no lawful grounds for further stay" (Art. 51(1)(b)) does not apply during that period (Art. 51(2)). That reservation does not extend verbatim to the renewal of a residence permit — the lawfulness of your stay while the application is being examined is governed by the general rules. Which is all the more reason to carry documentary proof that the procedure is under way: on the street the matter is settled by the paper you produce, not by an argument about a provision.
Photographing your card on an officer's personal phone is not the same as verification against a Ministry database. You may calmly ask: "Is this a check against the Ministry database, or a photo on a personal phone?" Remember the answer and the circumstances — that is a future point in a complaint.
A workplace inspection concerns you too. Your employer may be required to produce documents on the lawfulness of your work (Art. 53³(4)). A residence permit and the right to labour activity are different things; holding one does not substitute for the other. Since 1 September 2026, working without the right to labour activity is a standalone ground both for expulsion (Art. 51(1)(i)) and for detention (Art. 64(2)(m)) — and a valid residence permit does not protect you from it, because the provision speaks of the right to work, not of the ground of stay.

8. If you have no residence permit

Two very different situations need to be separated here.

You are in the country lawfully, simply without a residence permit

A visa-free period, a valid visa, the status of a person seeking international protection, an application filed and not yet decided — all of these are lawful grounds of stay. Exactly the same set of rights from section 6 applies to you, and you likewise fall outside Art. 53².

What to carry: your passport with the entry stamp, or the document confirming your status. If you are seeking international protection — the certificate of a person under international protection, or confirmation that your application has been registered.

If you entered visa-free, know your own limit: the length of the visa-free period depends on your nationality, and the day it expires is the day your grounds of stay end. Check the date on your entry stamp rather than relying on what a friend from another country was told.

You have no lawful grounds of stay

There is no point in softening this: the position is serious, and Art. 53², Art. 51 and Chapter XI are addressed precisely to you. But you still have rights here, and they are not decorative.

What the law provides for. A breach of the rules of stay is an administrative offence under Art. 191 of the Code of Administrative Offences of Georgia. The current amounts under the Georgian version of the Code:

Overstay	Fine	Entry ban
up to 3 months	GEL 1,000	6 months
up to 1 year	GEL 2,000	2 years
over 1 year	GEL 3,000	3 years
breach of transit rules	GEL 500	—

The English version of the Code on matsne.gov.ge is outdated and shows different amounts with no entry bans; it should not be relied on.

A decision on expulsion on the grounds of "unlawful entry" and "no lawful grounds for further stay" (Art. 51(1)(a) and (b)) is taken by the authorised body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, not by a court; on the remaining grounds ((c)–(i)) the decision is taken by a court (Art. 52(1) as amended from 1 September 2026).

Working without the right to labour activity is a separate matter. Since 1 September 2026 it is a standalone ground for expulsion (Art. 51(1)(i)); if the person is at the same time without a lawful ground of stay, expulsion follows under (a) or (b) (Art. 51(4)). The same circumstance is a ground for detention and placement in the Temporary Accommodation Centre (Art. 64(2)(m)) and brings mandatory fingerprinting with it (Art. 53²(1)). The permission itself — the "right to labour activity" — was introduced by the reform of the Law on Labour Migration and has applied since 1 March 2026; fines for working and for hiring without it fall on the worker and on the employer alike.

Voluntary departure. Upon the foreign national's request and taking the circumstances of the case into account, a reasonable period of 7 to 30 calendar days is granted for leaving Georgia voluntarily under the decision on expulsion (Art. 54(1) of the current version). At the interview stage, the authorised body of the Ministry must explain to you in writing, in a language you understand, your right to use that period (para. 2). During it, obligations may be imposed on you: reporting to the Ministry body no more than twice a week, depositing bail of at least GEL 3,000, handing over your travel document, not changing your address without immediately informing the authority (para. 3).

The right to seek international protection. Upon commencement of expulsion proceedings, the authorised body of the Ministry must explain to you in writing, in a language you understand, your right to apply to a state agency for international protection (Art. 52(5)). If you do apply, the expulsion proceedings and the asylum procedure are conducted simultaneously, within a single administrative proceeding, and the decision is issued as a single administrative act, appealable within 10 calendar days of its service (Art. 52¹).

What to do on the street if you have no status. Exactly what everyone else does: identify yourself, produce what you have, do not make excuses and do not volunteer information. The interview is voluntary (Art. 19(2)) — you are not obliged to say where you have been living, who you worked for or for how long. Ask for a lawyer as soon as detention or paperwork enters the conversation.

9. If the check turns into detention

This is a separate procedure, and from that moment different rules apply.

The grounds for detention are listed in Art. 64(2). They include: the impossibility of identifying the foreign national, a risk of going into hiding, failure to comply with an alternative measure, a threat to security, securing enforcement of an expulsion decision, bringing the person before a court, the absence of documents required for return, and — since 1 September 2026 — working without the right to labour activity (sub-paragraph (m)) and the commission of a criminal offence (sub-paragraph (l)).

Time limits to remember (Art. 64(3)):

within 48 hours of detention you must be brought before a court to decide on your transfer to the Temporary Accommodation Centre;
if the court does not take that decision within the next 24 hours, you must be released immediately.

Rights that must be explained to you upon detention — in a language and in a manner you understand (Art. 64(7)):

the grounds for detention;
the right to a lawyer;
the right to notify any person you choose, or a close relative, of your detention;
the right to apply to a diplomatic mission or consular office;
the right to request a medical examination;
the right to appeal your detention.

In addition, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia and the consular office of the relevant state must be notified immediately, and no later than 24 hours after the detention, and you must be allowed to notify a person of your choice immediately — using the resources of the authority itself if necessary (Art. 64(8) as amended from 1 September 2026).

Length of placement: up to 3 months, extendable by the court by a further 6 months on a reasoned motion; the total period may not exceed 9 months (Art. 64(5)).

Alternatives to placement in the Centre — these have to be fought for in court (Art. 65(2)): regular reporting to a Ministry body or a territorial police department no more than twice a week; surety by a citizen of Georgia connected to you, or bail of at least GEL 3,000, or a certificate of regular income; a maximum bail of GEL 5,000; handing in travel documents; an obligation not to change the address of residence indicated in the proceedings. The court may apply two measures at once; the term is 3 months, extendable by a further 3, but not more than 9 in total.

The Russian translation of Chapter XI on matsne.gov.ge lags and shows different bail amounts. When preparing a motion, check against the Georgian version or with a lawyer.

One practical thing to do in advance. Memorise 4 to 6 phone numbers: family or friends, a lawyer, your embassy. Phones are taken away on admission to the Centre, and without numbers stored in your memory or written on paper, the right to "notify a person of your choice" becomes a formality. If your country has no embassy or consulate in Georgia, find out in advance which mission covers Georgia and write that number down too.

→ The Temporary Accommodation Centre, its regime and the practice of release are covered in a separate article.

10. How to conduct yourself in practice

Keep your hands visible and narrate your movements. "I am taking my passport out of my inside pocket" is a simple sentence that removes half the tension.
Ask once, calmly, for the service ID if the person in front of you is in a vest or in plain clothes (Art. 18(3)). Once — and then act as the situation requires. A long argument about a vest turns a routine check into a confrontation.
Ask once for the ground of the measure (Art. 19(3)). Remember the answer, or the absence of one.
Produce the original document. A photo on your phone is a supplement, nothing more.
Do not make excuses and do not volunteer information about yourself. The interview is voluntary (Art. 19(2)). A polite "I would rather not answer" is enough.
Do not unlock your phone. Calmly: "I will not unlock my phone. If you have grounds, do it under the Criminal Procedure Code."
If hands go into your bag or pocket — "This is a search; show me the warrant", followed by "Please don't reach in — I will show you everything myself."
Ask directly: "Am I detained, or am I being invited?" The answer determines whether you are obliged to go anywhere (Art. 21(3)).
Do not argue about the lawfulness of the measure on the street. Disobedience to a lawful demand of a police officer is Art. 173 of the Code of Administrative Offences — administrative detention of up to 60 days. All objections belong in a remark to the record and in a written complaint.
Do not offer, and do not accept offers, to "settle it on the spot". A fine is imposed by a procedure, not in cash.
Record the facts: the time the stop began and ended, the exact location (coordinates), the number of officers, the number plate of the service vehicle, the details on the service ID, whether your document was photographed and on what device.
If a record is drawn up, read it and enter your remark in your own hand (Art. 20(4), Art. 22(9)). If you disagree with a wording, write that down. The record is valid without your signature, but your remark becomes the central argument on appeal.
Keep a lawyer's number in your phone and on paper. Having the contact before an incident is worth more than any knowledge of the law at the moment the paperwork starts.

11. Where to complain

The legal basis is Art. 56 of the Law on Police: an action of a police officer is appealed to a superior official, to the prosecutor's office, or to a court. A preventive measure is appealed administratively to the body that carried it out, and the decision on the complaint is reviewed by the common courts under the rules of administrative procedure.

Where	For what	Contact
MIA hotline	first report, putting the fact on record	126 · `gen126@mia.gov.ge`
General Inspection of the MIA	disciplinary misconduct by officers: failure to identify themselves, refusal to show a service ID, rudeness (Art. 57(4)(a))	16 Mikheil Gakhokidze St, Tbilisi · +995 32 241-87-30 · `dipi@mia.gov.ge`
Public Defender (Ombudsperson)	recording a violation of rights; the safest first step	`ombudsman.ge` · 24/7 hotline: 1481
Personal Data Protection Service	photographing a document on a personal phone; processing data outside Ministry databases	`personaldata.ge`
Legal Aid Service	free state-appointed lawyer upon detention	`legalaid.ge` · 1485
Prosecutor General's Office	where there are indications of a crime (violence, extortion)	through the prosecutor's office reception

Two practical rules.

First: the complaint must be in writing. An oral report to a hotline leaves no trace in the file — it works as a first record, not as a document.

Second: weigh the risk first. For someone whose status of stay is vulnerable, a complaint can attract attention in return — an administrative report, or acceleration of expulsion proceedings. That is not an argument for silence; it is an argument for filing through a lawyer, and for making the initial record through the Ombudsperson (1481) rather than through the very agency whose officers you are complaining about.

Short checklist

Stop. Hands visible. Narrate your movements.
If the person is in a vest or in plain clothes, ask once, calmly: "Show me your service ID" (Art. 18(3)).
Ask once for the ground of the measure (Art. 19(3)). Remember the answer.
Identify yourself and produce the original passport or residence card. A phone photo is only a supplement.
You are not obliged to answer "where are you going", "where do you live", "where do you work": the interview is voluntary (Art. 19(2)).
A superficial check is by hand over clothing only, by an officer of your sex; a bag and a car boot, visually only (Art. 22).
Hands inside a pocket or bag — "This is a search, show me the warrant." Then: "I will show you everything myself."
Do not unlock your phone.
Note the time: a stop may not exceed 30 minutes (Art. 22(8)).
If your document is photographed on a personal phone, ask whether this is verification against the Ministry database, and record the episode for a complaint (Art. 53², Art. 19(1¹)).
Fingerprints and photographs are lawful only for a foreign national without lawful grounds of stay, or where the examination of expulsion has been commenced on grounds (c)–(i), which now include working without the right to labour activity (Art. 53²). Before identification measures you must be given time to confirm your identity voluntarily (Art. 20(3)).
If you are asked to come to the station, ask: "Am I detained, or invited?" An invitation is voluntary (Art. 21(3)).
If a record is drawn up, read it and enter your remark in your own hand (Art. 20(4), Art. 22(9)).
Do not argue on the street: Art. 173 of the Code of Administrative Offences — detention of up to 60 days. Objections belong in a complaint.
If detained, ask for a lawyer, for your family to be notified and for your consulate to be informed (Art. 64(7)–(8)). Remember: 48 hours to court, plus 24 hours for the decision (Art. 64(3)).
Write down the officer's name and details, the vehicle number, the time and place, the number of the record.
Initial record: Ombudsperson 1481. Upon detention: Legal Aid Service 1485. Written complaint: through a lawyer.

Sources

Links lead to the Legislative Herald of Georgia (matsne.gov.ge), the official state portal for the publication of legal acts.

Constitution of Georgia — Art. 13(4) (right to request the assistance of a lawyer upon detention):

document page: matsne.gov.ge/en/document/view/30346

Law of Georgia on the Police (2013, doc_id 2047533) — Art. 11 (non-discrimination), Art. 12 (proportionality), Art. 18(3) (duty to produce a document certifying authority), Art. 19 (interview of a person, grounds for an ID check, verification against Ministry databases), Art. 20 (identification of a person, reasonable period, record), Art. 21 (inviting a person — voluntary nature), Art. 22 (superficial check, the 30-minute rule, record, right of appeal), Art. 47 (uniform, service ID and badge), Art. 56 (appealing an action of a police officer), Art. 57 (General Inspection of the MIA):

document page: matsne.gov.ge/en/document/view/2047533
PDF in English: matsne.gov.ge/en/document/download/2047533/26/en/pdf

Law of Georgia on the Legal Status of Aliens and Stateless Persons (2014, doc_id 2278806) — Art. 51 (grounds for expulsion), Art. 51¹ (obligation of cooperation), Art. 52 (commencement of proceedings; explanation of the right to international protection), Art. 52¹ (simultaneous proceedings where protection is requested), Art. 53¹ (detection of aliens unlawfully residing in Georgia; inspection of public places), Art. 53² (photograph, fingerprints and palm prints), Art. 53³ (inspection of the place of residence and work), Art. 54 (voluntary departure), Chapter XI, Arts. 64–66 (detention and placement in a Temporary Accommodation Centre; alternative measures):

document page: matsne.gov.ge/en/document/view/2278806

⚠️ Articles 53¹–53³ do not yet appear in the Russian version of the law on the portal — that translation has not been consolidated. The provisions here are cited from the official English translation (publication v22) and cross-checked against the Georgian version (v23), which has legal force. The amending laws: No 863 of 26 June 2025 (in force from 1 July 2025), No 865 of 26 June 2025 (in force from 7 July 2025), No 930 of 2 July 2025 (in force from 8 July 2025).

⚠️ The amendments made by Law No 1803 of 25 June 2026, in force from 1 September 2026 (the new expulsion ground "working without the right to labour activity" — Art. 51(1)(i) and (4); the extension of the list to (c)–(i) in Art. 52 and Art. 53²; the new ground for detention — Art. 64(2)(m); the 24-hour deadline for notifying the consulate — Art. 64(8)) are absent from both the English and the Russian versions of the law on the portal. They are cited from the Georgian text only.

Law of Georgia on Labour Migration (doc_id 2806732) — the "right to labour activity", introduced by the reform (Law No 862 of 26 June 2025, applicable from 1 March 2026):

document page: matsne.gov.ge/en/document/view/2806732
state labour migration system: labourmigration.moh.gov.ge

Code of Administrative Offences of Georgia — Art. 191 (breach by aliens of the rules of stay and transit: fines and entry bans), Art. 173 (disobedience to a lawful demand of a police officer):

document page: matsne.gov.ge/ka/document/view/28216

No official Russian version of the Code is published on Matsne. The fines for breaching the rules of stay are cited from the version in force in Georgian; the English translation is outdated and shows amounts that are no longer applicable.

Criminal Procedure Code of Georgia — search procedure (applies where a superficial check turns into a search):

document page: matsne.gov.ge/en/document/view/90034

Law of Georgia on Personal Data Protection (2023, doc_id 5827307) — the basis for applying to the Personal Data Protection Service where your data are processed outside official systems:

document page: matsne.gov.ge/en/document/view/1561437

Migration Department of the MIA of Georgia — Statute approved by MIA Order No 588 of 6 August 2014:

department page: police.ge/en/ministry/structure-and-offices/migratsia
Statute (PDF): info.police.ge/uploads/67cfe10a43eb0.pdf

Public Defender (Ombudsperson) of Georgia: ombudsman.ge · 24/7 hotline — 1481

Legal Aid Service of Georgia: legalaid.ge · 1485

Personal Data Protection Service of Georgia: personaldata.ge

Disclaimer. This material is for information only and is not legal advice. Only the Georgian text of a law has legal force; the English and Russian translations on matsne.gov.ge lag behind the version in force. For your specific situation, consult a lawyer.