Is nomad insurance mandatory in Georgia?

Georgia doesn't usually require visitors to carry nomad insurance for short stays, but the moment something goes wrong it's cheaper to have it than to buy at the hospital. Check the visa-class requirements for your specific situation.

What does nomad insurance cost in Georgia?

Premiums vary by age, plan and deductible far more than by country — most carriers price the underwriting risk, not the postal code. Use the "Typical local costs" table above to gauge what your insurance protects you from, then run a real quote on the matched providers.

Which nomad insurance works best for Georgia?

For Georgia specifically, we list the providers we've vetted in the "Recommended nomad insurance for Georgia" section. They're chosen on three things: do they actually pay claims in Georgia's hospitals, is the policy language honest about what's covered, and does the price match the policy.

How long can I really stay in Georgia visa-free?

Citizens of around 95 countries get one full year on entry. You can leave and re-enter to reset, though border officers do notice repeated patterns. This is one of the most generous visa-free regimes in the world.

Is the Individual Entrepreneur 1% tax thing real?

Yes, with conditions. You need IE registration with the Revenue Service of Georgia plus Small Business status, your turnover must stay under roughly 500,000 GEL per year, and your activity has to qualify. Above the threshold, rates step up. Most online service freelancers fit cleanly.

Is healthcare really that cheap?

Yes. A private GP consultation in Tbilisi often costs less than a Western European co-payment. The catch is that you are paying entry-level prices for entry-level care. Top-tier specialist work at flagship hospitals costs more, though still well below Western or US pricing.

Can I just self-insure given how cheap things are?

For routine and mid-tier care, the maths sort of works. For evacuation, ICU stays, or complex surgery, it does not. The sensible version of self-insurance is a high-deductible international plan or evacuation-only cover, not zero insurance.

Do I need health insurance to enter Georgia?

Not for visa-free stays, and not formally for residency routes either. The decision to carry insurance is practical, not regulatory.

Which private hospitals in Tbilisi should I know?

Aversi, Medi Club, and EVEX cover most of what nomads need. These are the three networks with the strongest English availability, the cleanest billing for international insurers, and the deepest specialist benches.

Does repatriation matter for Georgia?

Yes, more than in most European destinations. Complex cardiac, oncology, and neurosurgery cases are routinely evacuated to Istanbul, Vienna, or Tel Aviv. Make sure your plan's repatriation and evacuation clauses are explicit and high-limit.

Does Passportcard work in Georgia?

At several Tbilisi private clinics, yes, but the network is narrower than in EU countries. Verify specific facilities before relying on it for cashless treatment.

What about war-risk and the Russia border?

Most international insurers cover Georgia normally today. Some policies carry war and civil-unrest exclusions or sub-limits that could activate if the regional picture changes. Read the war clause carefully and ask the carrier directly if you have concerns.

What about Russian-speaking doctors?

Widely available across both public and private systems. This was a meaningful factor for the post-2022 wave of Russian and Belarusian nomads who relocated to Tbilisi and Batumi.

What about dental work in Tbilisi?

High-quality, cheap, and a real medical-tourism draw. Most international plans do not reimburse well, so most nomads simply pay cash.

Can I bring my family on the same setup?

The visa-free year applies per person, so each family member resets independently. For longer-term residency tied to IE status, family reunification routes exist but require separate paperwork. Passportcard and April International both offer family plans.

Nomad insurance

Digital nomad insurance for Georgia

Built for people who stay in Georgia for months at a time but aren't relocating. Hybrid medical + travel + gear cover, written for the way nomads actually live.

Georgia has become one of the most accessible long-stay bases in the world for digital nomads. Citizens of around 95 countries get a full year of visa-free entry on arrival, the Individual Entrepreneur (IE) Small Business regime taxes turnover at just 1% up to roughly 500,000 GEL, and private healthcare in Tbilisi costs a fraction of Western Europe. The trade-off is real: clinical quality concentrates in the capital, English-speaking specialists are limited outside the major private networks, and serious cases often mean evacuation. Most established nomads still carry international cover for catastrophic care and repatriation.

Get matched Full Georgia guide

What nomad insurance covers in Georgia

Nomad insurance is built for long-stay nomads, perpetual travelers, slowmads who change country every few months. The lines below are the base — exact terms are carrier-specific, so always check the policy document for the Georgia situation you care about.

What you get

Medical care while abroad (inpatient + outpatient on better plans)
Trip cancellation and luggage
Laptop / camera / gear cover (add-on)
Adventure activities included by default on most nomad plans
Multi-country coverage without resetting the policy

What it won't do

Treatment in your home-country tax residence (often excluded)
Long-term chronic-condition management on the cheaper plans
Routine preventive care (varies by plan)

Typical local costs in Georgia

What insurance protects you from. Costs vary by region inside Georgiaand between public and private facilities — these are the numbers we've seen most often in 2026.

GP visit (private clinic, expat-friendly)	30 to 60 GEL (about $11 to $22)
Specialist consultation	50 to 100 GEL
Basic emergency room visit (non-admission, private)	80 to 200 GEL
One-night hospital stay (private)	150 to 400 GEL
Common procedure (e.g. appendectomy, private)	3,000 to 7,000 GEL
International health insurance from-price (32-year-old)	from around $60 to $110/month

Ranges depend heavily on whether you are using a basic Aversi neighbourhood clinic or a flagship private hospital with international-tier billing. Prices creep upward each year as the nomad and medical-tourism markets grow, and the lari has been volatile against the dollar and euro, so quoted ranges in GEL can move meaningfully in either direction year to year.

Healthcare in Georgia: what you're dealing with

Georgia runs a Universal Health Care Programme (UHCP) for citizens and certain residents, financed through the state budget and administered by the Ministry of IDPs, Labour, Health and Social Affairs. It covers a baseline of emergency and primary care plus some planned treatment, with significant co-payments on anything complex. As a nomad you are almost never inside this system. You will be using private providers and either paying cash or claiming on international insurance.

The private sector is where care for foreigners actually happens. Three networks dominate: Aversi, EVEX (part of Georgia Healthcare Group), and Medi Club / New Hospitals. These concentrate heavily in Tbilisi, with meaningful presence in Batumi and Kutaisi and thin coverage everywhere else. Standards in the flagship Tbilisi facilities are genuinely good for routine and many specialist procedures. Regional hospitals vary widely, and most international insurers will route you back to Tbilisi for anything non-trivial.

English availability is the weak point. In top Tbilisi private clinics you will usually find English-speaking GPs and many specialists, but it is not guaranteed and the picture drops off fast outside the capital. Russian remains widely spoken, which is part of why a meaningful chunk of Russian and Belarusian nomads ended up here from 2022 onward. For non-Russian, non-Georgian speakers, the realistic play is sticking to the expat-oriented private clinics in Tbilisi.

Costs are the headline. Out-of-pocket pricing at private clinics is often 5 to 10 times cheaper than Western Europe for equivalent consultations. This shifts the economics of insurance in Georgia in a way it does not in Portugal or Germany. The honest framing: cheap routine care, real risk on catastrophic events, and evacuation costs that can dwarf any savings from skipping cover.

Recommended nomad insurance for Georgia

The carriers we've actually vetted for Georgia. They pay claims at local hospitals, the policy language is honest, and the price matches the cover.

Passportcard
See the "Top insurance picks" section of this guide and the full Passportcard profile for country-specific notes on cashless billing and network access in Georgia.
Read provider profile
April International
April's reimbursement model and EU footprint work well for nomads in Georgia — see the full April International profile + this guide's "Top insurance picks" for country-specific reasoning.
Read provider profile

What to watch out for in Georgia

Evacuation distances. Top-tier care for complex cardiac, oncology, or neurosurgery typically means evacuation to Istanbul, Vienna, or Tel Aviv. Confirm your plan's evacuation clause covers both ground and air movement out of Georgia.
War-risk perception and exclusions. Georgia borders Russia and lived through the 2008 war. Most international insurers cover Georgia normally today, but some policies still carry war and civil-unrest exclusions or sub-limits. Read the war clause before assuming you are covered if the regional picture shifts.
Currency volatility. The lari has moved meaningfully against the dollar and euro in recent years. Cash-pay prices in GEL can feel cheap or expensive depending on the month. Insurance priced in USD or EUR insulates you from this.
Dental coverage gaps. Dental work in Tbilisi is high-quality and cheap, but most international plans reimburse Georgian dental claims poorly. Add a dental rider only if you actually plan to use it, otherwise just self-pay.
Mental health provider scarcity. English-speaking therapists exist in Tbilisi but capacity is thin and waiting times are real. Russian-speaking options are broader. Telehealth from your home country is often the cleaner solution.
Winter air quality. Tbilisi's winter heating mix and basin geography produce real respiratory issues. Factor this in if you have asthma or chronic respiratory conditions.
Regional vs. capital quality gap. Care in Kutaisi, Batumi, and smaller cities is meaningfully thinner. If you are based outside Tbilisi, confirm your insurer is willing to route you back to the capital and cover associated costs.

FAQ

Other insurance for Georgia

Different stages of nomad life need different cover. Here's the full set we've mapped for Georgia.

Get matched with nomad insurance for Georgia

Three minutes of honest questions, then we'll show you the nomad insurance options that actually fit your situation in Georgia.

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