Online safety & content laws in Georgia (2026)

Legal framework

No comprehensive online safety law; partial regime comprising the Law on the Protection of Family Values and Minors (2024), the Law on Transparency of Foreign Influence (2024/2025), and the Law on Personal Data Protection (2023, in force March 2024), overseen by the Personal Data Protection Service (PDPS)

Key points: internet & online safety in Georgia

1. 01Freedom on the Net score

   Freedom House's Freedom on the Net 2025 scored Georgia 70/100 (Free), a drop of 4 points, the largest decline among countries still rated Free, citing restrictive legislation, threats against digital media workers, and rising self-censorship. Website blocking remains limited and internet access is broadly available.

   freedomhouse.org

2. 02Anti-LGBTQ content law

   The Law on the Protection of Family Values and Minors, signed 3 October 2024 and in force from December 2024, bans the 'popularization' of same-sex relationships and portrayal of non-binary or transgender identities in media, advertising, and educational content, including online platforms. OHCHR and ARTICLE 19 condemned it as incompatible with international human rights standards.

   ohchr.org article19.org en.wikipedia.org

3. 03Foreign-influence registration regime

   The Law on Transparency of Foreign Influence (passed May 2024, effective August 2024) requires online media and civil-society organisations receiving more than 20% of funding from abroad to register as 'foreign agents.' A strengthened Foreign Agents Registration Act signed April 2025 criminalised non-registration with up to five years' imprisonment, drawing censure from the Venice Commission and the EU.

   congress.gov venice.coe.int hrw.org

4. 04Personal Data Protection Law

   A new GDPR-aligned Law on Personal Data Protection was adopted by parliament on 14 June 2023 and entered into force on 1 March 2024. It establishes data-subject rights, controller/processor obligations, and transparency requirements. Enforcement is entrusted to the independent Personal Data Protection Service (PDPS).

   matsne.gov.ge dlapiperdataprotection.com

5. 05No comprehensive online safety / DSA-equivalent

   Georgia has not enacted a comprehensive online platform safety or content-moderation law. There is no age-verification mandate for social media, no DSA/OSA-style systemic-risk or duty-of-care framework, and no formal platform-liability regime beyond general civil and criminal law. Georgia's EU accession process, paused over the foreign-influence laws, had been a driver for aligning with EU digital regulation.

   freedomhouse.org ecnl.org

6. 06Self-censorship and media pressure

   Freedom House and Eurasianet documented increasing extralegal pressure on digital journalists and online outlets in 2024-2025, including physical assaults and intimidation. Criminal penalties introduced in February 2025 for insulting public officials online (up to 45 days' detention) further chilled online speech, though outright website blocking remains rare.

   eurasianet.org freedomhouse.org

Timeline of decisions

1. 1 Dec 2024Law · official
   Law on Protection of Family Values and Minors enters into force, banning LGBTQ+ content online

   Passed on 17 September 2024 and signed on 3 October 2024, this legislation bans online and broadcast content depicting same-sex relationships, restricts LGBTQ+ 'propaganda' in education and public spaces, and empowers the Georgian National Communications Commission (ComCom) to enforce the content ban against online platforms — materially extending state content-regulation to the internet.

   Legislative Herald of Georgia (Matsne)

2. 19 Oct 2023Law
   Broadcasting Law amended to transfer hate-speech and obscenity oversight to ComCom

   Parliament adopted amendments to the Law of Georgia on Broadcasting, shifting authority over hate speech, incitement to terrorism, and obscenity from media self-regulatory bodies to the Georgian National Communications Commission (GNCC/ComCom). The change was widely criticised for concentrating content-regulation power in a government-aligned regulator without sufficient editorial independence.

   Civil Georgia

3. 1 Dec 2018Law · official
   Revised Constitution enshrines internet access as a fundamental right

   The amended Constitution of Georgia, which entered into force in December 2018, added Article 17 guaranteeing that 'everyone has the right to access and freely use the internet.' Georgia became one of the first countries worldwide to elevate internet access to constitutional status, providing a legal basis for challenging disproportionate online restrictions.

   Constitutional Court of Georgia

4. 15 Jul 2004Law · official
   Law on Freedom of Speech and Expression adopted, establishing intermediary liability shield

   Parliament enacted the Law on Freedom of Speech and Expression (adopted 17 June 2004, promulgated 15 July 2004), providing that no entity would be held liable for defamatory or other harmful content generated by unknown or anonymous online users. This became the foundational statutory norm protecting Georgian ISPs and online platforms from content-based liability.

   Legislative Herald of Georgia (Matsne)

Sources

1. 1.freedomhouse.org/country/georgia/freedom-net/2025
2. 2.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2024/09/georgia-call-rescind-new-anti-lgbtiq-law
3. 3.article19.org/resources/georgia-family-values-bill-imposes-censorship-on-media/
4. 4.congress.gov/crs-product/IN12368
5. 5.venice.coe.int/webforms/documents/default.aspx?pdffile=CDL-AD(2025)034-e
6. 6.hrw.org/news/2024/05/09/georgia-foreign-influence-bill-threatens-rights
7. 7.matsne.gov.ge/en/document/view/1561437
8. 8.dlapiperdataprotection.com/?t=law&c=GE
9. 9.eurasianet.org/georgia-skids-downward-in-latest-freedom-house-report-on-internet-fre
10. 10.ecnl.org/news/georgia-overview-foreign-influence-law
11. 11.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgian_anti-LGBTQ_law