Georgia’s ruling Georgian Dream party has prepared legislative amendments that would require individuals to compensate victims for damages caused by their crimes within a reasonable timeframe and prohibit them from leaving Georgia’s territory until compensation is paid.
The Georgian Dream party has drafted legislative changes that would introduce a travel ban from Georgia as a type of social protection measure. The proposed amendments to the Criminal Code will be presented to parliament as a legislative package at next week’s bureau meeting, addressing issues of economic and financial crimes.
The draft law states that a new chapter will be added to the existing code, which will regulate in detail the issues and specifics related to the prohibition of departure from Georgia. According to the draft, the travel ban from Georgia is a social protection measure aimed at preventing individuals from avoiding compensation for damages caused by their crimes.
The initiators explain that the travel ban from Georgia means that Georgian citizens and non-citizen residents with status in Georgia are obligated to compensate victims for damages caused by crimes they committed within a reasonable timeframe and not leave Georgian territory.
Regarding the specific changes, the draft establishes that the duration of the travel ban from Georgia will be determined by doubling the statute of limitations periods set by Article 79 of the Criminal Code for the expungement of convictions for less serious, serious, and particularly serious crimes. The draft details that it will be 6 years for less serious crimes, 12 years for serious crimes, and 16 years for particularly serious crimes.
“The travel ban from Georgia may be imposed independently of sentencing or conditional punishment. It can also apply if a person is completely released from punishment. Moreover, a travel ban from Georgia may be imposed even when it is not provided as a social protection measure for the committed crime in the corresponding article of the special part of Georgia’s Criminal Code. According to the changes proposed by the draft law, the travel ban from Georgia will also be enforced through electronic surveillance means,” the draft law states.
The draft law notes that the basis for the travel ban from Georgia will be several articles of the Criminal Code.
“It is also important that when imposing a travel ban from Georgia, the court considers the offender’s personality, their past, personal and economic conditions, behaviour after the crime, and their willingness to compensate for damages within a reasonable time and reconcile with the victim.
The law will specify cases when a travel ban from Georgia is not imposed. Specifically, if the victim submits a written refusal to pursue damage compensation, and if the individual’s insanity is ruled out by Article 34 of the Criminal Code following the commission of the crime, the travel ban from Georgia will be temporarily suspended until the individual has recovered. Regarding cases where more than one person participated in committing the crime, they bear joint liability for damage compensation,” the draft notes.
According to the draft law, an article will be added to the Criminal Code that gives a person the opportunity to be released from the travel ban from Georgia if they meet the following requirements: a) the convicted person has fully compensated for damages; b) the victim provides written refusal of damage compensation; c) the victim agrees that the convicted person should have the travel ban from Georgia lifted and will settle with them on the amount and conditions of damage compensation. Removal or expungement of a conviction does not lift the travel ban from Georgia.
Mamuka Mdinaradze, the Executive Secretary of Georgian Dream and parliamentary majority leader elaborated on the new legislative initiative. He explained it stipulates that the period during which an offender cannot leave the country—pending compensation for damages—will be included in the sentence calculation after serving the full term.
As Mdinaradze illustrated, individuals like Giorgi Bachiashvili (former Head of the Co-Investment Fund), or anyone currently accused who may be found guilty in the future, should not expect to leave the country freely after causing harm. Instead, they will be required to settle their debts before regaining travel privileges.
“We have seen numerous economic crimes in the construction sector. I apologize for using this term, but these cases often involved individuals ‘screwing over’ thousands of citizens—serving only a few years in prison and then keeping the stolen money. Whether it’s Bachiashvili or any other person accused today and convicted tomorrow, if it’s proven that they committed a crime and caused harm, they will not be able to move around so freely until they compensate for the damages they caused. If someone causes harm or appropriates property, recovery from the responsible party will be possible. If unjustified property is proven to have been acquired unlawfully, measures will be taken to simplify damage compensation and ensure the victim’s interests are protected,” Mdinaradze stated.
