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EU Halts Visa-Free Travel for Georgian Officials
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 6, 2026
1 min readLast updated: April 1, 2026
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Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 6, 2026
1 min readLast updated: April 1, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleThe EU has suspended visa‑free entry for Georgian officials holding diplomatic, service, and official passports due to persistent democratic backsliding. Ordinary Georgian citizens remain unaffected.
BRUSSELS, March 6 (Reuters) - The European Commission said on Friday it was suspending visa-free travel for holders of Georgian diplomatic, service and official passports in response to what it called a deliberate and persisting violation of the commitments taken under its visa-free regime.
"Representatives of Georgian authorities have to use their diplomatic or service passport when travelling to the EU for official and diplomatic purposes. Not doing so may result in the issuance of an entry ban," the Commission said in a statement.
Once among the most democratic and pro-Western of the successor states to emerge from the Soviet Union, Georgia has turned increasingly authoritarian since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine and has deepened economic ties with neighbouring Russia.
(Reporting by Gianluca Lo Nostro; Editing by Makini Brice)
The EU suspended visa-free travel due to what it called deliberate and persisting violations of commitments under the visa-free regime.
The suspension affects holders of Georgian diplomatic, service, and official passports.
Not using the correct passport may result in an EU entry ban for the officials.
The announcement was made by the European Commission in Brussels.
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