Registering a Georgian Individual Entrepreneur and picking up Small Business Status is the easy half of this move, and the 1% rate is real. The harder half is entirely Australian: whether you have genuinely stopped being an Australian tax resident under tests that go well past a day count, and what the deemed-disposal rule charges on the way out. Add the fact that Australia has no tax treaty with Georgia at all, and this guide is less about Georgian law than about what Australian law requires before the 1% is legally yours.
What an Australian freelancer running a Georgian IE actually pays
A freelance developer earning AUD 120,000 in self-employment profit, registered as a Georgian IE with Small Business Status, owes Georgia exactly 1% of turnover: AUD 1,200. The rest happens on the Australian side, for as long as you remain resident.
Using the resident individual tax brackets that apply from 1 July 2026, tax on AUD 120,000 works out to roughly AUD 26,500: nothing on the first AUD 18,200, 15% on the next band up to AUD 45,000, and 30% on the remainder. The 2% Medicare levy adds a further AUD 2,400. There is no compulsory superannuation guarantee on self-employment income at all - the 12% super guarantee only applies to employees.
| Australia (resident) | Georgia (IE + Small Business Status) | |
|---|---|---|
| Turnover / net profit | AUD 120,000 | AUD 120,000 |
| Income tax (2026-27 resident brackets) | ~AUD 26,500 | - |
| Medicare levy (2%) | ~AUD 2,400 | - |
| Georgian tax (1% of turnover) | - | AUD 1,200 |
| Total | ~AUD 28,900 (~24%) | AUD 1,200 (1%) |
The rest of this guide is what it actually takes to make that gap legally durable.
Does the 1% actually apply to your income in the first place
Before any of the Australian math matters, the 1% has to genuinely apply, which is a Georgian-side question. Small Business Status taxes Georgian-source income, and for services that generally means work physically performed in Georgia, not income billed through a Georgian registration while you sit in Sydney or Perth. We cover this in Georgia's 1% tax and the underlying test in Georgian-source income rules. What changes for an Australian specifically is whether Australia still considers you resident, and what it charges when that changes.
Australian tax residency: four tests, and the day count is rarely the one that matters
Australia runs four separate residency tests, and satisfying any one is enough to make you a resident - failing the day count says nothing about the others.
The resides test asks the plain question: do you actually live in Australia, looking at family location, employment, property, social ties and how often you return. The domicile test is usually the one that actually decides a departing Australian's case, and it is the least understood: you remain resident under this test if your domicile is in Australia, unless you can show your permanent place of abode is outside it. Domicile is a legal concept, not a lifestyle choice - most Australians carry an Australian domicile of origin, and it takes a genuine, demonstrable, indefinite move abroad to establish a permanent place of abode elsewhere. The 183-day test looks at physical presence combined with a usual place of abode in Australia; someone under 183 days can still be resident under the other tests, and someone over it can, narrowly, still avoid residency. The Commonwealth superannuation test catches a narrow group of government employees and rarely applies to an ordinary freelancer.
The honest takeaway: the domicile test, not the day count, is where most emigrating Australians' cases are actually won or lost.
What Australia charges on the way out
Australia has no tax treaty with Georgia in force. There is no tie-breaker article if the ATO disputes that you have genuinely ceased residency, and no reduced withholding on Australian-source income afterward. The domicile test and the CGT election both have to be right from the start.
Ceasing to be an Australian resident triggers CGT event I1 under section 104-160 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997: you are treated as having disposed of every capital gains tax asset you hold, other than taxable Australian property (broadly Australian real estate and certain mining and business assets), at market value on the day residency ends. A choice under subsection 104-165(2) lets you defer this instead of triggering the gain immediately, treating the affected assets as remaining taxable Australian property until actual disposal or until you become resident again. The election is all-or-nothing across every asset caught, and gains realised during deferral do not qualify for the 50% CGT discount for that period - deferral moves the decision, it does not remove the tax.
A trap most departing Australians do not expect: since a law change effective 12 December 2019, a foreign resident at the time they sell their former family home generally cannot claim the main residence exemption at all, unless a specific life event (a terminal medical condition, death, or divorce or separation) occurred within six years of becoming a foreign resident. Selling before departure, or while still genuinely resident, avoids this entirely.
Australia's CFC rules attribute a CFC's tainted income to an attributable taxpayer - broadly a resident with a 10% or greater interest, or 1% where among five or fewer Australian entities that control it - and the mechanism requires a company. A Georgian IE is a sole proprietorship with no separate legal personality, so there is nothing to attribute. A Georgian LLC can be a CFC if Australian residents control it, and attribution then turns on the active income test: below 5% tainted (broadly passive or related-party) income, nothing is attributed. Georgia is not one of Australia's seven "listed countries" (Canada, France, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, the UK, the US), so a Georgian LLC gets no benefit of the narrower listed-country rules if it fails that test.
Georgia has double tax treaties in force with 58 countries, and Australia is not one of them, independently confirmed by Australian Treasury's own list of 47 income tax treaty partners. Without a treaty, standard withholding applies in full to Australian-source payments to a non-resident: 30% on unfranked dividends, 10% on interest, 30% on royalties. Unlike the United States, Australia does not tax citizens on worldwide income after they genuinely leave, so the missing treaty is a one-time risk, not a permanent tail.
Superannuation is not cashed out early on emigration - the Departing Australia Superannuation Payment is only for temporary visa holders. The Medicare levy generally does not apply once you are a genuine foreign resident, claimed via the levy exemption on your return.
The steps, in order
- Build a genuine, demonstrable life in Georgia - a lease in your own name and real local ties are what the domicile test actually rewards, not a quick departure.
- Do not assume the 183-day test settles anything - the resides and domicile tests can still find you resident regardless of days spent away.
- Decide whether to sell your old family home before you leave, since selling later as a foreign resident can forfeit the main residence exemption entirely.
- Work out your CGT event I1 exposure and whether the section 104-165(2) deferral election suits your specific assets.
- Register a Georgian Individual Entrepreneur and apply for Small Business Status, in person or under power of attorney through remote company registration.
- Choose an IE over an LLC if CFC exposure is a live concern, or confirm a genuinely active LLC passes the 5% tainted-income test.
- Claim the Medicare levy exemption on the return covering your period as a foreign resident.
Timeline and cost
The Georgian side is fast: an IE with Small Business Status typically registers within days in person, or two to three weeks under power of attorney. The Australian side sets the real pace, since the domicile test rewards a genuinely established life abroad rather than a quick departure - work out the CGT event I1 position with an accountant before you leave, not after.
The verdict for an Australian national
Georgia works with conditions for an Australian national. Australia does not tax citizens on worldwide income after they genuinely leave, and has no multi-year trailing-residence rule the way German or Spanish law does - once the domicile test is genuinely satisfied and CGT event I1 is settled, this is a one-time hurdle rather than an ongoing tail. The catch is that the domicile test is a genuinely higher bar than most expect, and there is no treaty to fall back on if the ATO decides a permanent place of abode was never actually established abroad.
We'll work through your position under Australia's four residency tests, whether CGT event I1 applies to your specific assets and whether the deferral election makes sense, and whether an IE or an LLC is the right call given Australia's CFC rules, before you register anything here.
See what it costs
Our full country-by-country guide compares every country we cover, including moving from Canada to Georgia, the other economy here with no Georgian treaty, and moving from Portugal to Georgia, where the trap is entirely different.
Key takeaways
- The domicile test, not the 183-day count, usually decides a departing Australian's case - it requires a genuine, demonstrable permanent place of abode abroad.
- CGT event I1 deems non-property assets sold at market value on the day residency ends, with a deferral choice available, though deferred gains lose the CGT discount for that period.
- Selling your old family home while still a foreign resident can forfeit the main residence exemption entirely, not just on the years since you left.
- CFC rules require a company, so a Georgian IE sits outside them; a Georgian LLC needs to pass the 5% active-income test, with no listed-country benefit since Georgia is not one of the seven.
- Without a treaty, standard 30% withholding applies in full to Australian-source payments to a non-resident, with no reduction to rely on.
- Superannuation is not paid out early on emigration for citizens or permanent residents, and there is no compulsory super guarantee on self-employment income to begin with.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a tax treaty between Australia and Georgia?
No. Georgia has double tax treaties in force with 58 countries according to its Ministry of Finance, and Australia is not among them. Treasury's own list of 47 income tax treaty partners does not include Georgia either, so there is no tie-breaker article and no reduced withholding to rely on.
Does leaving Australia for 183 days automatically make me a non-resident?
No, and this is the most common misunderstanding. The 183-day test is only one of four independent residency tests. The domicile test, which asks whether you have established a genuine permanent place of abode outside Australia, usually matters more, and failing the day count alone proves nothing if the domicile or resides tests still point to Australia.
What is CGT event I1, and can I defer it?
It is the rule under section 104-160 that deems most capital gains tax assets, other than taxable Australian property, sold at market value the moment you stop being resident. A choice under subsection 104-165(2) lets you defer the gain until actual disposal or until you become resident again, though gains realised during deferral lose the 50% CGT discount for that period.
Will I still get the main residence exemption if I sell my old home after moving to Georgia?
Only if a specific life event - a terminal medical condition, death, or divorce or separation - occurred within six years of becoming a foreign resident. Otherwise, a foreign resident at the time of sale loses the exemption entirely, under changes effective December 2019.
Do Australian CFC rules reach a Georgian IE or an LLC?
Not an IE - CFC rules attribute income from a company, and an IE has no separate legal personality. An LLC can be a CFC if Australian residents control it, and attribution then depends on the active income test; because Georgia is not one of Australia's seven listed countries, a Georgian LLC that fails that test faces broader attribution than a CFC in a listed country would.
Do I get my superannuation paid out when I move to Georgia?
No, not as a citizen or permanent resident. The Departing Australia Superannuation Payment is only available to temporary visa holders leaving permanently. Your superannuation stays in the fund under the ordinary preservation rules regardless of where you live.
Do I still pay the Medicare levy once I am living in Georgia?
Generally not, once you are genuinely a foreign resident for tax purposes for that period, claimed via the levy exemption on your return.
Is an IE or an LLC the better structure for an Australian?
For most solo movers, the IE is structurally simpler, since Australia's CFC rules cannot reach it at all. An LLC can still make sense for liability separation or reinvestment reasons, but check the active income test first, given Georgia's status as an unlisted country.
Without a treaty, what happens if the ATO disputes that I have left?
There is no tie-breaker article to resolve it, so the dispute is decided entirely under Australia's domestic residency tests, principally the domicile test - exactly why establishing a genuine, demonstrable permanent place of abode in Georgia matters more here than where a treaty exists.