What this means in practice
Kickbacks and Commissions in Georgia: Defence and investigations guidance for bribery, influence, public procurement, official conduct and publicly funded projects.
For Kickbacks and Commissions, the early priority is to reconstruct the decision and approval chain. The first evidence review should include tender and procurement files and should be completed before assumptions harden into the case narrative.
Issues to assess early
Reconstruct the decision and approval chain
Distinguish lawful services from an alleged improper advantage
Review procurement, grant and payment records
Assess public and private roles separately
Evidence that may matter
Evidence must be examined in context. Existence of a document, transfer, message or device artefact does not answer every question about authorship, knowledge, purpose, legality, completeness or reliability.
- Tender and procurement files
- Contracts, invoices and payments
- Official decisions and approvals
- Messages, calls and meetings
- Audio, video and witness material
Potential Criminal Code provisions
The provisions below are a focused research map for kickbacks and commissions, not a statement that any person has committed an offence. Each element, part, threshold and aggravating circumstance must be checked against the current Georgian text and the actual evidence.
Influence peddling
Potentially relevant where an advantage is linked to alleged improper influence over a decision-maker rather than a direct official act.
Read full Article 339¹ text on this pageBribe-taking
The alleged advantage, recipient's official status, requested or performed act, intent and evidence of exchange must be proved.
Read full Article 338 text on this pageAn investigation may start under one article and later be narrowed, expanded or reclassified. New evidence, expert conclusions, the legally assessed consequence, a defence application, prosecutorial review or a court ruling may support a different provision, part or aggravating circumstance. The Georgian consolidated text controls; an English translation may lag.
Read the relevant provisions before the external source
The operative English text below is reproduced from the official consolidated Criminal Code of Georgia, publication 296, accessed 9 August 2026. Formatting has been normalised for on-screen reading; the current Georgian-language consolidated text controls if wording or timing differs.
Article 339¹Influence peddling+
1. Whoever in his/her own interests or in those of another person promises, offers or grants money, securities, other assets, material benefit or any other unlawful advantage, directly or indirectly, to a person claiming or confirming that he/she can exert an unlawful influence, for his/her own or another person’s benefit, on the decisions of an official or a person equal thereto, regardless of whether or not such influence has been exerted and/or the desirable outcome of such influence has been obtained, –
shall be punished by a fine or corrective labour for up to two years, or by house arrest for a term of six months to two years or imprisonment for up to two years.
2. If a person who claims or confirms that he/she can exert unlawful influence on the decision of an official or of a person equal to the official demands or accepts, directly or indirectly, for his/her own benefit or for the benefit of another person, money, securities, other assets, material benefit or any other unlawful advantage from a person who acts in his/her own or another person’s interests, regardless of whether or not such influence has been exerted and/or the desirable outcome of such influence has been obtained, –
shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of three to five years.
3. The act provided for by paragraph 2 of this article committed by an organised group, –
shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of four to seven years.
Note:
1. For the offence provided for by paragraph 1 of this article, criminal liability shall not apply to a person who has voluntarily notified this fact to the authorities conducting criminal proceeding. A decision to discharge a person from criminal liability shall be taken by the authorities conducting criminal proceedings.
2. A fine shall be imposed on a legal person for committing the act provided for by this article.
Open Article 339¹ in the official consolidated Criminal Code↗︎Article 338Bribe-taking+
1. Taking or demanding by an official or a person equal thereto, directly or indirectly, of money, securities, other assets, pecuniary gain or of any other unlawful advantage, or accepting an offer or promise thereof for his/her own benefit or for the benefit of another person in order for the official or the person equal thereto to take or not to take certain actions during the exercise of his/her official powers for the benefit of the bribe-giver, or to use his/her official standing to achieve similar goals, or to exercise official patronage, –
shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of six to nine years.
2. Bribe-taking:
a) by a public political official;
b) in large quantities;
c) by a group of persons with preliminary agreement, –
shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of seven to eleven years.
3. The act provided for by paragraphs 1 and 2 of this article committed:
a) by a person convicted for bribe-taking;
b) repeatedly;
c) by extortion;
d) by an organised group;
e) in particularly large quantities, –
shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of eleven to fifteen years.
Note: Taking of a bribe in large quantities shall mean the amount of money, securities, other assets or pecuniary gain exceeding GEL 10 000; bribe in particularly large quantities shall mean the amount exceeding GEL 30 000.
Open Article 338 in the official consolidated Criminal Code↗︎How Georgian criminal law frames Kickbacks and Commissions
A useful legal analysis does not begin and end with the name of an offence. It identifies what must be proved, what remains disputed and which neighbouring legal route may better fit the established facts.
What must the evidence establish?
The case should be tested for official status, actual authority, the advantage, the requested act and the alleged exchange or influence. A complaint, financial loss, injury, seized object or digital trace may justify investigation, but does not by itself prove every element.
Where is the legal boundary?
The material must distinguish an improper advantage from a lawful gift, fee, political contact, service or procurement decision. Attempt, assistance, group activity, repetition and legally defined consequences may also alter the applicable article or part.
What evidence needs independent testing?
Priority material commonly includes decision chains, procurement files, calendars, communications, payments and evidence of legitimate work. Reliability depends on lawful collection, completeness, provenance, authorship, chain of custody and a method capable of being challenged.
In a Kickbacks and Commissions matter, an approval, payment or private communication may be portrayed as an improper advantage even though the decision chain, lawful service, authority and intent remain disputed.
The immediate decision is how to protect the record and prepare for role and jurisdiction review without prejudicing the client’s procedural position. This is a fictional example for orientation, not a report of a client matter or an assumption of guilt.
How the process may develop
Not every matter reaches every stage, and several steps can overlap. Arrest, search, seizure, charging, restraint measures and court review each have their own legal basis. Current deadlines should be verified against the consolidated Criminal Procedure Code and the specific decision served in the case.
How defence counsel can assist
Criminal defence counsel can clarify status and rights, attend permitted investigative actions, review prosecution evidence, obtain lawful defence evidence, prepare motions and submissions, represent the client at restraint and trial hearings, negotiate only where instructed and appropriate, and coordinate appeals or international work.
An investigation or charge is not a conviction. Only a court may find a person guilty, and defence rights must remain practical and effective throughout the proceedings.
Frequently asked questions
Does Article 339¹ — Influence peddling — automatically apply to Kickbacks and Commissions?+
For Kickbacks and Commissions, Article 339¹, Article 338 may provide a starting point, but a page title is not a legal qualification. Investigators and prosecutors must match proved facts to every element, part and aggravating circumstance. The qualification may be narrowed, expanded or changed after expert results, new evidence, a defence motion, prosecutorial review or a court decision. Potentially relevant where an advantage is linked to alleged improper influence over a decision-maker rather than a direct official act.
Which factual boundary is decisive in a Kickbacks and Commissions case?+
In a Kickbacks and Commissions case, the evidence must distinguish an improper advantage from a lawful gift, fee, political contact, service or procurement decision. That boundary is tested through the person's individual conduct, knowledge or intent, the legally classified consequence and every circumstance relied upon to move the allegation into a different article or aggravated part.
What evidence can prove—or undermine—the allegation of Kickbacks and Commissions?+
The focused record for Kickbacks and Commissions is not the same as for every offence. Priority material includes decision chains, procurement files, calendars, communications, payments and evidence of legitimate work. The defence should test provenance, completeness, authorship, lawful collection, chain of custody and whether each item proves the disputed element rather than merely repeating the accusation.
Can the article or charge for Kickbacks and Commissions change after the investigation starts?+
Yes. For Kickbacks and Commissions, Article 339¹, Article 338 may be a starting map, but expert results, quantity or value, injury classification, individual role, attempt or participation, a defence application, prosecutorial review or a court decision may support a different article, part or legal outcome.
What should be preserved immediately in a Kickbacks and Commissions matter?+
In a Kickbacks and Commissions matter, preserve the original chronology, procedural records and the topic-specific material before routine loss or alteration. Early advice is important because company and individual positions may diverge as soon as officials request records or interviews; preservation must be lawful and must not involve hiding, changing or coordinating evidence.
Primary sources for this guide
Legislation can change and official English translations may lag the Georgian text. Check the current consolidated version and obtain advice before relying on a deadline, offence classification or remedy.
Criminal Procedure Code of Georgia↗︎Criminal Code of Georgia↗︎Ministry of Finance Investigation Service↗︎