Georgia approves stricter penalties for construction in cultural heritage protection zones

The increase in fines will affect not only construction, but also restoration work at cultural heritage sites. Starting from January 11, fines for unauthorized construction in cultural heritage protection zones at sites owned by the state or municipal authorities will increase from 25 to 250 thousand lari, announced Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze.

The need to make appropriate changes to the "Code of Georgia on Spatial Planning, Architectural and Construction Activities" became relevant in November 2023.

According to the new law, unauthorized construction in the cultural heritage protection zone on real estate owned by the state or municipality will be punishable by a fine of 250 thousand lari instead of 25 thousand lari, Kaladze said. The classification of cultural heritage zones is divided into four categories depending on historical significance and time of construction.

As the mayor explained, for unauthorized construction in the zone of protection of cultural heritage belonging to the state or municipality, in the class I zone, the fine will increase to 16 thousand lari from the current 8 thousand, for construction in the class II zone – up to 75 thousand lari from the current 25 thousand, and for construction in class III and IV zones, the fine will be 250 thousand lari instead of 25 thousand.

The fine for illegal construction in the private sector in the cultural heritage protection zone of class I will amount to 16 thousand lari instead of 8 thousand lari. For construction in the class II zone, the fine will be 24 thousand lari instead of 8 thousand lari, and for the construction of buildings and structures in the class III and IV zones, the fine will be 200 thousand lari instead of 20 thousand lari.

Fines for finding an object in the cultural heritage protection zone without appropriate conservation are also increasing. For example, for buildings of classes III and IV, the fine will be 150 thousand lari instead of 20 thousand.

Fines for carrying out restoration work on cultural heritage sites are also being tightened. If the repair work began without permission, the fine will amount to 250 thousand lari, and in case of violation of the permit and conservation rules – 150 thousand and 200 thousand lari, respectively. In case of minor repairs, starting without a permit will entail a fine of 40 thousand lari, in case of violation of the permit – 20 thousand, and in case of violation of the conservation rules – also 20 thousand.

"I want to remind our population once again that the purpose of the adoption of this law is to prevent illegal construction in cultural heritage protection zones as much as possible and to introduce a kind of preventive mechanism," Kaladze stressed. The Mayor of Tbilisi expressed hope that the residents of the capital carrying out the construction will take care of preserving the uniqueness of the historical part of the city.