Driver's license in Georgia: how can a Russian citizen obtain a driver's license

Before taking exams at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, you need to collect a package of documents.

International passport and a receipt for the payment of the passport certification fee. No certification is required, it is sufficient to pay the fee in a bank.

Receipt for the payment of the state fee for the license and exam. All fees are paid in cash only in a bank on the territory of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Medical certificate. The certificate is issued at a hospital in Tbilisi or at a doctor's office at the "Autopapa" car market, where the Ministry of Internal Affairs is located. The certificate can be obtained on the day of the exam. We had to get another certificate because there was a mistake in my husband's certificate at the hospital. They only checked our vision for the certificate.

Georgian ID card. If you do not have a residence permit or Georgian citizenship, you must have a local person with a "piradoba" - a Georgian ID. The person provides their address for registration at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, where documents and fines will be sent. We went with a long-time acquaintance of mine. Based on the experience of our friends, friends, apartment owners, or instructors usually help with registration. The person with the ID is only needed during the document registration process, and they are not responsible for anything.

To take the theory exam, you need to register on the sa.gov.ge website two to three weeks in advance. You also need to pay the fee for the license and exam on the same website.

After the document check, you will be sent to the room where you take the theory exam. If you fail the theory, you can only retake it after a week and will have to pay the state fee again. There are five free attempts to take the practice exam on a manual transmission within a month of passing the theory exam.

The theory exam is taken on a computer, and the examiner helps to select the Russian language. You have half an hour for thirty questions, and you can make three mistakes.

You can go to the driving course immediately after passing the theory exam. Those who want to take the exam on a manual or automatic car are divided into two lines. If you take the exam on an automatic car, your license will indicate that you can only drive an automatic car. Additionally, there are no free attempts to retake the exam on an automatic car.

The driving exam is taken on Ministry of Internal Affairs cars, and the process is fully computerized. After getting in the car, the inspector explains the rules and turns on the computer installed in the car. The computer is connected to sensors that track the movement of the car relative to control lines, read the state of the ignition, brakes, gears, and automatically respond to any violations.

The examiner is silent, and the computer program communicates with the driver's voice: it tells you which element to perform next, lists the fines you have received, and even congratulates you in case of success. Initially, you have 100 points, and points are deducted for each violation. Stalling the engine is minus 15 points. As soon as you have less than 60 points, the computer announces that you have failed, and you must exit the car. After that, there are two options: to take a free retake after a week or to pay for an additional attempt on the same day.

After passing the exams successfully, you can pick up your license after a week at the same location where you took the exam in Rustavi or at the Ministry of Internal Affairs Service Agency in Tbilisi. For an additional fee, they can print your license on the same day.

If desired, you can also apply for an international license, which will be valid for three years in countries that have signed the Geneva Convention (can be issued on the same day of application).

Have you had a different experience obtaining a driver's license in Georgia? Share it in the comments.