Tightened rules require 80% foreign players in international gambling tournaments - MP Shota Berekashvili
“The amendments to the Law on Organising Lotteries, Gambling and Other Prize Games, passed at third reading, require that at least 80% of all participants in an international gambling tournament be foreign nationals,” said MP Shota Berekashvili, chair of Parliament’s Economic Policy Committee.
Berekashvili said all the restrictions set out in gambling law will apply to the 20% who are Georgian citizens.
He said strict monitoring will be carried out to ensure the law’s requirements are met.
“International tournaments can already be held today. There are no restrictions regarding whether a Georgian or a foreigner participates. Accordingly, the law provides that if a game has the status of an international tournament, then 80 per cent of the participants must be foreigners, and only 20 per cent may be citizens of Georgia as a mandatory condition. For that 20 per cent, all restrictions established by law regarding gambling remain in effect, including that if a person is on the black list, they will not be able to participate. Likewise, public servants cannot participate. We have tightened the requirements and imposed restrictions on Georgian citizens, capping local participation at 20 per cent.
Strict monitoring will be carried out to ensure the conditions are met, so 80% will be foreign nationals. This is not gambling or a casino in the classic sense. It is a sporting tournament held in many EU countries, including in Barcelona, Paris and Milan. In Paris, casinos and gambling are banned altogether, yet a similar tournament was held there. Why is this kind of tourist flow good? Out of season, especially in Adjara, it would be good to hold such tournaments and increase tourist numbers,” Berekashvili said.
Parliament passed the amendments to the Law on Organising Lotteries, Gambling and Other Prize Games at third reading today.
Most Read
Other News
New gambling bill to allow international poker tournaments in Georgia, with at least 70% foreign players - Shota Berekashvili
28.10.2026.21:51
“The bill amending the Law on Organising Lotteries, Gambling and Other Prize Games will change the rules on holding international tournaments in Georgia and bring them under regulation,” MP Shota Berekashvili, chair of Parliament’s Economic Policy Committee, told Georgian Public Broadcaster’s First Channel.
He said such tournaments would help keep tourist activity high in tourist regions such as Adjara in February, March and April.
“There were previously no regulations on this in the law. When we talk about holding an international tournament in Georgia, we mean, for example, the European Poker Tour, which is held in almost every European capital. It is a sporting competition in poker: players compete in a tournament, and a winner emerges. These amendments tighten the regulations governing the hosting of such tournaments in Georgia. Crucially, it is now mandatory for at least 70% of participants to be foreign nationals, capping Georgian representation at 30%. All current legal restrictions on the gambling industry remain firmly in force. The initiative aims to support the tourism sector during the off-season, when visitor numbers to Georgia typically decline. Holding such tournaments will help keep tourist activity high in tourist regions such as Adjara in February, March and April. All of this will have a positive effect on economic activity,” Berekashvili said.
Parliament has passed the bill amending the Law on Organising Lotteries, Gambling and Other Prize Games at its first reading.
