Georgian PM announces amnesty for illegally registered state-owned agricultural plots

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Monday announced a new initiative to declare amnesty for illegally registered state-owned agricultural plots.

Garibashvili said anyone who had illegally obtained ownership rights to state-owned agricultural plots of land before September 1, 2023 would be freed from probation, punishment, and non-enforceable fines.

He added the amnesty would only be granted to individuals who “fully recompense the state for any harm” they had caused by September 1, 2024.

The compensation will involve giving up the rights of ownership for the plots of land in question or, in cases where the former is not possible, by the registered owners paying an amount equivalent to the value of the land.

Over the years, [...] many of our citizens have illegally registered state-owned agricultural land, and this is actually a very big problem. Dozens of cases are pending in the Prosecutor's Office. An investigation is underway, there have been many misunderstandings in this regard. We consulted with the Prosecutor's Office and the Parliament, and I am taking the initiative to declare amnesty for such cases”, he said.

The PM also said the initiative would not be extended to cases of crimes committed by officials, employees of state enterprises, legal entities under public law and non-entrepreneurial legal entities using their official status, as well as by organised groups.