France issues travel advisory for Georgia

The French Embassy in Georgia has issued a travel advisory warning its citizens that they might be denied entry into the country in case they participated in the ongoing pro-European protests.

The embassy’s advisory was issued on Thursday, warning French nationals that participation in the ongoing protests ‘often results in arrests and dispersal by law enforcement’.

They warned that participation in these demonstrations can be punished by heavy fines of ₾5,000 ($1,800) — the usual amount protests accused of blocking roads are fined.

‘French nationals present in Georgia are advised to avoid gatherings’, the embassy wrote.

The embassy added that entry into Georgia may be denied even to holders of a valid Georgian residence permit, listing participation in protests or social media activity as factors that could put them at risk of being barred entry into the country.

France’s travel advisory was similar to the one issued by Poland the day prior.

While Georgia has not officially reacted to the travel advisories issued by the two EU countries, pro-government TV channel Imedi published two separate posts claiming that only nine Polish nationals were denied entry into Georgia in 2024 and 2025, making up 0.012% of all entries by Polish nationals, while only 16 French citizens were barred from entering Georgia in 2024 and 2025, at 0.5% of all visitors from France.

Since the start of the protests in late November 2024 — following the Georgian government’s decision to halt EU accession until 2028 — there have been a number of high-profile cases where citizens of EU countries have been deported at the border, ostensibly due to their presence at the demonstrations, journalistic coverage, or statements on social media.

Since the October 2024 parliamentary elections, which gave the ruling Georgian Dream party 54% of the vote, Georgia has denied entry to a number of foreign journalists, including French journalists Clément Girardot and Jérôme Chobeaux and, most recently, UK journalist Will Neal.

Poland issues travel advisory for Georgia following border entry denials

The Polish Embassy in Georgia highlighted that attending demonstrations, being around them, or specific social media activities were a risk.

OC MediaXandie (Alexandra) Kuenning