Chinese and Indian immigrants in Georgia : what attracts them to the country and what impact do they have on Georgian society?

Since 1991, when Georgia became independent, the country has experienced substantial emigration. While Georgian citizens moved abroad, citizens of other countries moved to Georgia, taking advantage of a relatively liberal migration regime. Increasingly, Tbilisi became the host for citizens of China, India and Turkey as well as from several African countries. Among these immigrants, only some, mainly youths from India, came to Georgia to study. The rest came mainly to work as labour migrants. Traditionally, immigrants from Turkey have been the dominant group. It has been fairly easy for people to move from Turkey which is located close to Georgia. Turkish businessmen became well-integrated into Georgia’s commercial life, owning many businesses and much real estate. Georgians have been well accustomed to dine in Turkish restaurants, stay in Turkish hotels and shop in Turkish shops. Increasingly, however, the immigration debate has been focused on relatively new arrivals from China and India. The fear of Chinese expansion has fed into societal debates on migration. The debate in Georgia has also focused on increasing numbers of immigrants from India and their subsequent ownership of agricultural resources. This policy brief assesses the evidence of current immigration debates in Georgia especially as they apply to immigrants from China and India.Consortium for Applied Research on International Migration (CARIM-East) is co-financed by the European University Institute and the European Unio