The outflow of the new Belarusian diaspora from Georgia continues for the third year

The outflow of the new Belarusian diaspora from Georgia continues for the third year, according to an analysis conducted by "Pozirk" using data from the National Statistics Office of Georgia.

At the same time, it is difficult to talk about specific rates of diaspora reduction for 2025 and compare them with previous years: there are significant discrepancies between the thematic tables on the Georgian and English versions of the website. The columns with numbers are identical, but some countries, including Belarus, are in different places (see screenshots), and some are present in one table but absent in another.

According to the Georgian-language version of the table, last year 1,938 migrants with Belarusian citizenship arrived in Georgia (957 men, 981 women), while 2,065 (1,088, 977) departed, or 127 more.

The English-language version indicates that the number of arrivals was 1,090 (847 men, 243 women), and the number of departures was 3,070 (2,157, 913), or 1,980 more.

Павялічыць

Immigration to and emigration from Georgia in 2025, Georgian-language version of the table. Belarus is highlighted. Screenshot "Pozirk"

Павялічыць

Immigration to and emigration from Georgia in 2025. Screenshot "Pozirk"

In 2024, 147 more Belarusian migrants left Georgia than entered it (2,598 versus 2,451). Thus, depending on the table, the rate of diaspora reduction in 2025 either decreased by 13.6% or increased by 13.5 times.

As of January 1, 2026, 12,681 or 10,828 new wave migrants lived in Georgia, which is 9% or 22.3% less than on January 1, 2023 (13,935).

Belarusian migrants massively settled in Georgia in 2022, according to Sakstat data. At that time, 13,361 people arrived, and 852 departed (a positive balance of 12,509).

In 2021, the balance was also positive (+1,426), but the scale of migration was smaller: 1,583 people arrived, and 157 departed.

In total, over five years (2021-25), 22,890 or 22,042 Belarusian emigrants arrived in Georgia, and 10,209 or 11,214 departed from it.

“The main problem for Belarusians here is legalization,” Belarusian human rights activist Raman Kisliak, who lives in Georgia and has been seeking asylum from local authorities for three years, told "Pozirk".

“If a passport expires, it’s impossible to legalize, ‘visa-run’ or otherwise. Residence permits are tied to the passport’s validity period,” Kisliak noted.

Georgia is “the pain of Belarusian democratic forces on the international arena,” because there is a “very difficult situation” there, stated Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, head of the United Transitional Cabinet, on February 7, 2026, in Warsaw at a hearing of the Coordination Council.

“The only promise we were able to get from this government indirectly is that Belarusians will not be deported to Belarus. They will not provide asylum. That’s what we were told,” Tsikhanouskaya noted.

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