The Parliament of Georgia has decided not to proceed with a draft bill that aimed to set a maximum commission rate of 0.5% on card payment transactions. The decision was announced by Paata Kvizhinadze, Chairman of the Parliament’s Finance and Budget Committee.
The initiative, introduced by Georgian Dream MPs on September 16, had drawn strong reactions from commercial banks. Under the proposal, banks’ revenues from card payment services would have significantly declined, as no legal ceiling on transaction commissions currently exists.
Kvizhinadze stated that while Parliament will not impose a maximum fee cap at this stage, work on regulating payment services will continue. A revised bill is expected to be introduced in 2026.
“From the beginning, the goal was to ensure the banking sector was involved in discussions. Meetings were held with the Bankers Association, the National Bank of Georgia, and the Ministry of Economy,” Kvizhinadze explained. “After the National Bank sent its feedback, we considered its remarks. The revised version removes articles related to the fee ceiling, pricing mechanism, and registration of systemic banks. However, this does not mean the issue is closed, we will continue working on it and make final decisions next year.”
At the committee session, Beka Dochviri, Executive Director of the National Bank, suggested an alternative approach to reducing transaction costs: ‘smart routing’ for payments. This system would allow new POS terminal providers to enter the market, automatically processing payments through the bank offering the lowest commission at the time.
“Such terminals could help ensure lower commissions for merchants. In Europe, it doesn’t matter which bank card you use—the terminal simply routes the payment in the cheapest, fastest way possible,” Dochviri noted. “The key is that banks must not restrict or block these new providers.””
Currently, transaction fees for businesses often exceed 0.5%. For small payments under 10 GEL, the exchange commission can reach 5–10 tetri, meaning up to 10% of small transactions may go to fees. For larger payments above 10 GEL, commission rates typically range between 1.5% and 2%, or about 1.5–2 GEL per 100 GEL transaction.
