Pensions to rise by ₾45 for under-70s from January, PM

Georgia will increase monthly pensions for people aged under 70 by 45 lari from 1 January, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said on Monday.

The increase will bring the monthly pension for people under 70 to 415 lari, excluding pensioners living in high-mountain settlements, Kobakhidze said at a briefing at the government administration.

The rise exceeds the 20-lari increase that would have applied under the standard pension indexation formula. The decision will add 128 million lari to the state budget’s pension expenditure, the PM added.

Kobakhidze noted that social spending accounts for more than 33% of Georgia’s state budget. In 2026, more than 5 billion lari was allocated for old-age pensions, while 540 million lari was earmarked for co-financing the funded pension scheme.

By comparison, he said, pension expenditure stood at 1.065 billion lari in 2012.

The PM warned that social spending was already close to the limits recommended by international financial institutions. Increasing it beyond those limits, he said, could slow economic growth, fuel inflation and weaken fiscal consolidation, potentially affecting Georgia’s access to international financing.

Kobakhidze added that the government would continue seeking to increase pensions for people under 70 beyond the standard indexation formula in the coming years, while staying within acceptable fiscal limits.