Fine / administrative offence: what to do under Georgian law

What to do

1. Deadlines first: a decision (including a receipt issued on the spot) is appealed within 10 days of delivery; a deadline missed for a valid reason is restored at the person's application by the body reviewing the complaint (CAO, Art. 273); payment: the fine must be paid within 30 days of delivery of a copy of the decision (for an on-the-spot fine, of the receipt) (CAO, Art. 290); appealing the decision suspends the payment period, except for certain offences expressly named in the article (CAO, Art. 290). Tell the person both deadlines, even if they ask only about the appeal.
2. Where: a fine imposed by a body (official) is appealed to the superior body (official), whose decision may be appealed to court (CAO, Art. 272); no state fee is payable when appealing a decision (CAO, Art. 272); the complaint is reviewed within 30 days of receipt (CAO, Art. 276).
3. Grounds for annulment: the burden of proving the offence lies with the body conducting the case (CAO, Art. 236), so demand the evidence (photo or video, measurements, driver data); unless the law provides otherwise, a penalty may be imposed no later than 3 months from the date of the offence (for a continuing offence, from the date it was discovered) (CAO, Art. 38); check the composition and the addressee of the receipt: a fine based on photo or video recording by a municipal body is paid by the person to whom the vehicle registration certificate was last issued (CAO, Art. 290⁴). If there is nothing to dispute, a municipal photo or video fine (parking and others) is reduced by 20% if paid within 10 calendar days of the SMS or of the receipt extract (CAO, Art. 290⁵).
4. Consequences of non-payment: for a road traffic violation by a driver, if the fine is not paid on time, a late-payment penalty (საურავი) accrues at double the amount of the fine, but not more than 500 lari; if it is still unpaid within the additional period, the fine is replaced by deprivation of the right to drive for 6 months (CAO, Art. 125); for road traffic offences, the fine together with the late-payment penalty may be paid within 30 days after the main deadline expires (CAO, Art. 290); thereafter the unpaid fine is collected by enforcement from wages, pension or other income, and then from property (CAO, Art. 291).
5. Where to apply: the superior body of the agency that issued the decision; then the district (city) court.
6. Evidence: the decision or receipt and the date of its delivery, photo or video, dashcam footage, witnesses, the vehicle sale contract, the parking payment receipt.
7. Pitfalls: the complaint period runs from delivery, not from the moment the person learns of the fine from a database; if a car is sold without re-registration, camera fines keep arriving at the former owner.

Be sure to check

• 10-day appeal period from delivery and its restoration
• where to file the complaint (superior body, then court) and what to check in the decision
• 30-day payment period and the consequences of non-payment (late-payment penalty (საურავი), deprivation of the right to drive, enforcement)