Georgia's 'foreign influence' law: legal and political developments one year on

This research briefing considers the impact of Georgia’s “foreign influence” law and legal and political developments that have followed in its wake.

Law on transparency of foreign influence

The law on transparency of foreign influence (the foreign influence law) requires civil society organisations and print, online and broadcast media that receive more than 20% of their annual revenue from abroad to register as “organisations representing the interests of a foreign power”. It entered into force in August 2024, after Georgia’s parliament overrode a presidential veto.

Opposition parties in Georgia opposed the law, fearing it would stifle criticism of the ruling Georgian Dream party in the run-up to parliamentary elections due in October 2024 and derail Georgia’s EU membership bid. Georgia’s then President Salome Zourabichvili claimed the law was in breach of Georgia’s Constitution which includes a commitment to ensure Georgia’s full integration into the EU and NATO.

The foreign influence law drew criticism from the EU, UK and US and was instrumental in the EU’s decision to place Georgia’s accession to the EU on hold in June 2024. The Council of Europe and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), international organisations in which Georgia participates, have called for the law to be repealed.

Commons Library research briefing, The impact of Georgia’s ‘foreign influence’ law (October 2024) describes the political developments which led to the adoption of the foreign influence law, its impact within Georgia and wider international reaction.

Other legal changes ahead of the October 2024 parliamentary elections

In the run-up to the elections Georgia’s parliament passed a new law on the protection of family values and minors which its opponents said would stigmatise LGBT+ groups and undermine freedom of expression. Changes were also made to Georgia’s electoral code, raising concern that they would affect the credibility of the electoral process.

October 2024 parliamentary elections

The Georgian Dream party won 54% of the vote and 89 of the 150 seats in Georgia’s unicameral parliament. The OSCE deployed a team of international election observers. Its final report, issued in December 2024, noted the negative impact of the foreign influence law in the run-up to the elections. It identified multiple failings in the electoral process and called for a comprehensive review and reform of Georgia’s electoral law.

Opposition parties refused to participate in the newly elected parliament, claiming the elections were rigged. A case brought by Georgia’s then President, Salome Zourabichvili, challenging the election outcome was dismissed by Georgia’s Constitutional Court.

On 28 November 2024, Irakli Kobakhidze was reconfirmed as Prime Minister, a post he has held since February 2024. Georgian Dream’s candidate for President, Mikheil Kavelashvili, was sworn into office on 29 December, but his predecessor maintains that she remains the sole legitimate President of Georgia.

Following EU criticism of the conduct of the elections, Georgia’s Prime Minister announced in November 2024 that his government would not seek to reopen accession talks with the EU until 2028, sparking further protests. Responding to what it viewed as “democratic backsliding” in Georgia, the EU cut funding to the government, downgraded political contacts and said it would introduce visa restrictions.

The UK and US also condemned attacks on freedom of expression and assembly and, in a coordinated move, imposed sanctions on ministers and senior officials responsible for human rights violations against peaceful protestors and journalists. The US also extended its visa restrictions. 38 OSCE countries invoked the “Vienna Mechanism” to register their concern at the disproportionate use of force by the Georgian government.

Developments in 2025: new laws limiting freedom of expression and assembly

Amid ongoing protests and an opposition boycott of parliament following the October 2024 parliamentary elections, Georgia’s parliament passed an array of laws targeting civil society, independent media and dissenting voices which the Council of Europe and OSCE said were likely to have “a chilling effect” on freedom of assembly and expression.

They included changes to laws concerning assemblies and demonstrations, broadcast media, and restrictions on funding to support the work of civil society organisations in Georgia.

Law on the regulation of foreign agents

In addition, a new law on the registration of foreign agents (the foreign agents law), in force since 1 June 2025, targets individuals and organisations receiving funding from abroad or deemed to be carrying out “political activities” in Georgia on behalf of a “foreign principal”. The new law is broader in scope than the earlier foreign influence law, requires the disclosure of detailed information to Georgia’s Anti-Corruption Bureau, and introduces criminal penalties – including possible imprisonment – for those who fail to register as “foreign agents”. Critics of this and other laws passed in recent months fear they will be used to target the activities of Georgian civil society and citizens expressing criticism of the Georgian Dream government.

Suppression of opposition parties and local elections in October 2025

Many of the leaders of Georgia’s main opposition parties have been jailed for refusing to cooperate with an investigative committee set up by the Georgian parliament which they consider illegitimate.

Faced with the prospect of an opposition boycott of local and mayoral elections due to be held on 4 October 2025, President Mikheil Kavelashvili offered to pardon jailed opposition leaders if they agreed to take part. All refused to request a pardon from a president whose legitimacy they do not recognise and most opposition parties also decided to boycott the elections. As a result, in many areas Georgian Dream party candidates were unopposed.

The elections took place without oversight by independent observers. Georgian Dream gained the most votes in all the areas that were contested.

An opposition rally on election day drew thousands of protestors. An attempt by some to occupy the presidential palace was thwarted, amid claims by the Georgian authorities that there had been an attempted coup. Shortly after, the Georgian Dream government announced plans to increase fines and jail terms for those participating in anti-government protests. It initiated criminal proceedings against eight leading opposition figures, most of whom were already in jail. The government also announced plans to ban Georgia’s main opposition parties.

A report by the BBC in December 2025 alleged that water cannons used against protestors in November and December 2024 to quell mass demonstrations in Tbilisi contained a toxic chemical agent. Georgia’s government has dismissed the allegations and said it had acted “within the bounds of the law and constitution”.

International reaction

The EU, Council of Europe and OSCE have stepped up their criticism of democratic backsliding and repression in Georgia.

The EU has threatened to extend visa restrictions to encompass a wider range of actors linked to the ruling Georgian Dream party. It has denounced “Russian-style conspiracy theories and divisive narratives” disseminated by Georgia’s government to undermine EU-Georgia relations. The European Parliament has called for “an immediate and comprehensive audit” of the EU’s policy towards Georgia.

Despite this, Georgia’s Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze insists that Georgia’s membership of the EU by 2030 is a realistic goal. The EU, however, has made clear that Georgia’s EU accession process has “effectively come to a standstill” and Georgia is “a candidate in name only”. It says that Georgia must “urgently reverse its democratic backsliding” if it wishes to “return to the EU accession path”.

Georgia has withdrawn its delegation to the Council of Europe’s parliamentary assembly (PACE) but remains a member of the Council of Europe. Some members of the Assembly have called for Georgia to be expelled for undermining the Council of Europe’s core principles.

The UK has joined with the EU and OSCE in condemning Georgia’s “negative democratic trajectory” and Georgian Dream’s “false claims and public attacks” targeting the UK and other international partners. In April 2025 the UK imposed sanctions on Georgia’s Prosecutor General and others responsible for serious human rights violations. Pressed on the possibility of sanctioning Georgian Dream founder and backer Bidzina Ivanishvili, the government has made clear that it will not comment on or speculate about future sanctions designations.

The US government’s approach to Georgia under the Trump administration remains under review but has not so far yielded the “reset” hoped for by the Georgian Dream government. The US State Department’s latest report on human rights in Georgia, published in August 2025, highlighted the “chilling impact” of various laws curtailing freedom of expression and association, as well as “credible reports” of a wide range of human rights violations.

Where next?

Despite Georgia’s Prime Minister maintaining that joining the EU by 2030 is a “realistic and attainable” goal, there is little to indicate that his government intends to take the steps required by the EU to reverse democratic backsliding and erosion of the rule of law.