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Divorce Decree Translation for Marriage in Georgia

If either of you was married before, the registry needs proof that the marriage has ended. It is the document that most often stops a wedding in Georgia, and the one part of the file that can only be fixed in the country that issued it.

Check my divorce papers What the registry needs

Last reviewed 21 October 2026 against the Law of Georgia on Civil Status Acts and the Public Service Development Agency rules.

What the registry needs

Proof that the previous marriage has ended

Georgian law asks each of you to confirm that there is no bar to the marriage. An earlier marriage that has not ended is such a bar, so the registry asks for the document that proves it is over.

The rules

If either of you was married before, you bring proof that the previous marriage ended.
Documents issued abroad must be apostilled or legalized, unless Georgian law provides otherwise (Art. 11(2)).
Foreign documents other than identity documents need a notarized Georgian translation.
In the joint application you confirm that there is no bar to the marriage (Art. 52(3)).

Sources: Public Service Development Agency, Registration of marriage; Law of Georgia on Civil Status Acts.

Why it so often goes wrong

The decree is brought without an apostille, which only the issuing country can add.
An interim judgment is brought instead of the final decree.
The name in the decree differs from the name in the current passport.
Only a scan or a photocopy is brought, and the notary needs the original.

Each of these is visible on a scan. Our document audit catches them before you travel.

Which document

Which document proves the end of the marriage

Countries prove a divorce in different ways. Bring the document your country issues as official proof, with its apostille or legalization.

Court divorce decree

The final decision of the court that dissolved the marriage. Bring the version that shows it has become final, not an interim judgment or a hearing record.

Divorce certificate

Many countries register the divorce in the civil register and issue a divorce certificate or an extract. It is often shorter and easier to translate than a full judgment.

Death certificate

If your former spouse has died, the death certificate proves that the marriage has ended. The same apostille and translation rules apply.

Religious divorce

The Georgian registry works with official documents. If your divorce was granted by a religious court, ask us first: in some countries such courts are state courts whose decisions can be apostilled, in others you also need a civil register extract.

More than one previous marriage

Bring proof that your most recent marriage ended. We check whether your documents leave any gap that the registrar might ask about.

Divorced in Georgia

If your earlier marriage was dissolved in Georgia, the divorce is already in the Georgian civil register and the steps are different. Tell us and we will check what you need.

How it works

From your decree to a notarized Georgian translation

The only slow step happens at home. Everything in Georgia takes a day.

At home

Apostille or legalization

Get the final decree, divorce certificate or death certificate and have it apostilled in the country that issued it, or legalized if that country is not a party to the Apostille Convention.

Before you travel

Send a scan

We check that the document is final, that the apostille is attached and readable, and that your name matches your passport. You get a written answer the same or the next day.

In Tbilisi

Translation and notarization

We translate the document and its apostille into Georgian. The translation is notarized against your original in Tbilisi and is ready the same or the next day, in time for your registration.

Good to know

Details that make the difference at the desk

What we translate

We translate the whole document, not a summary: the court or registry details, the names and dates of both former spouses, the operative part of the decision, the note that it has become final, every stamp and signature, and the apostille or legalization itself. A registrar reading the Georgian translation sees exactly what the original says.

Long court judgments

Some court decisions run to many pages, with reasoning on property and children. The registry needs to see that the marriage was dissolved and that the decision is final. If your country issues a short divorce certificate as well, that is often the better document to bring, and it saves translation time. Ask us before you order papers at home.

When your name has changed

If you took back your previous surname after the divorce, the name in the decree may not match the name in your passport. Bring the document that links the two, for example a name change certificate or a decree that records the return to your previous name, and we translate it in the same set so the registrar can follow the chain.

Apostille: only at home

Georgia cannot apostille a foreign document. The apostille comes from the country that issued the decree, and for countries outside the Apostille Convention the document goes through that country's legalization chain. Plan this first: it is the step with the longest lead time in the whole file. Our legalization page explains how the chain works.

If one of you is a Georgian citizen

A Georgian citizen who divorced abroad may also need the foreign decision recognized in Georgia so that the divorce is entered in the Georgian civil register. That is a separate procedure from the marriage registration. If this applies to you, tell us at the start and we will check the steps before you book a date.

FAQ

Questions about divorce papers for marriage in Georgia

Yes, if you were married before. The registry needs proof that the previous marriage ended: a final divorce decree, a divorce certificate, or the death certificate of a former spouse.

Yes. Documents issued abroad must be apostilled, or legalized for countries outside the Apostille Convention. The apostille can only be issued in the country where the decree was issued, so arrange it before you travel.

No. Georgian authorities can apostille only Georgian documents. A foreign decree has to be apostilled or legalized in the country that issued it.

We do. We translate the decree and its apostille into Georgian, and the translation is notarized in Tbilisi against your original. It is ready the same or the next day.

Yes. The notary usually needs to see the original document with its apostille to notarize the translation, and the registry expects the original as well.

Often yes. Many countries issue a divorce certificate or a civil register extract, which is shorter and proves the same fact. Ask us before you order documents at home.

It can be. Bring the document that links the two names, such as a name change certificate, and we translate it in the same set so that the registrar can follow the change.

The death certificate of your former spouse, apostilled or legalized in the issuing country, with a notarized Georgian translation that we prepare.

Contact

Tell us your wedding date

Send your passports and your planned date. We reply with a document checklist and a timeline for your wedding.

+995 501 113 200

Email

info@targmanebi.ge

Office

118 Davit Aghmashenebeli Ave, Tbilisi 0102, Georgia

Business hours

Mon-Fri 10:00-19:00
Sat 11:00-19:00