Author: Nodar, Car Select expert · April 3, 2026
Excise on cars over 6 years old rises to 4.5 GEL per cc: what changed on April 2, 2026
The discussed ban on importing cars over six years old never went into effect. Instead, as of April 2, 2026, excise on that category went up to 4.5 GEL per cc. Here's the new rate table and who qualifies for a break.
Amendments to Georgia's Tax Code took effect on April 2, 2026, changing how excise is calculated on passenger cars. A straight ban on importing cars over six years old had been discussed, but lawmakers raised the excise on that category instead.
The new scale: for cars aged zero to six years inclusive, the rate is 1.5 GEL per cc. For anything older, it is 4.5 GEL per cc, exactly three times as much. Before the amendments, the rate ranged from 0.8 to 2.4 GEL per cc depending on the car's age, type and engine size. Age is counted as the gap between the year the customs declaration is filed and the model year, not the purchase date.
On a 2.0-litre engine that's a 6,000 GEL gap in excise alone, and with VAT, which is charged on the excise too, the gap widens to roughly 7,080 GEL, about $2,600 at 2.7 GEL to the dollar. The example that made the rounds in the press: a 2018 Toyota Prius with a 1.8-litre engine, whose excise went from about 1,440 to 8,100 GEL.
A few carve-outs remain: cars recognised as classics under the Law on Motor Transport (over 30 years old and meeting the set requirements) keep a preferential 1 GEL per cc, left-hand-drive electric vehicles pay no excise at all, and left-hand-drive hybrids up to six years old get a 60 percent discount off the base rate. Right-hand-drive cars, on the other hand, pay triple the rate in either age band, and a right-hand-drive EV pays a fixed 3,000 GEL.
Transitional provisions at the old rates apply to cars whose shipping documents were issued before April 2, 2026. For cars moved by road or rail or driven in, there was a second condition: entry in Georgia's Interior Ministry database before July 1, 2026. For clients who were already negotiating auction lots when the amendment landed, we recalculated clearance under the new rules before any bid was confirmed.
If you're planning to import a car from the US, Europe, Japan or Korea in the coming months, budget against the new scale rather than last year's estimates: the gap between a six-year-old car and a seven-year-old one at the border often outweighs the difference in the lot price itself. You can run the exact numbers for a specific year and engine size in our customs calculator.
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