Germany checks how objectively migration services assess threats to gays in Georgia

The Federal Administrative Court of Germany in Leipzig will check the legality of recognizing Georgia as a "safe country of origin". This proceeding was initiated due to a lawsuit by a Georgian citizen who was denied asylum by the migration authorities despite his claims of persecution because of his sexual orientation.

The court's decision could have long-term consequences for thousands of asylum seekers, as the status of a "safe country" greatly simplifies the deportation procedure and allows agencies to consider applications as "manifestly unfounded."

Litigation and arguments of the parties

The reason for the proceedings was the case of a gay man from Georgia, whose asylum application was rejected by the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) in a summary manner. The ministry referred to the decree of the German government, according to which Georgia has been included in the list of safe states since February 2026. However, the Administrative Court of Osnabrück, which considered the man's complaint, questioned the legality of this status and referred the matter to a higher court.

Judges in Osnabrück noted that since 2024, the human rights situation in Georgia has deteriorated significantly. According to the Court, in such circumstances, it cannot be considered proven that citizens of the country as a whole are not at risk of torture, persecution or degrading treatment. In addition, there were complaints about the transparency of the process: the German government did not publish the sources of data on the basis of which the decision on the country's security was made.

Legislative changes in Georgia

The main criticism of human rights defenders and the courts is related to the law "On the Protection of Family Values and Minors" adopted in 2024. This document effectively restricts the rights of LGBTQ people: it prohibits changing the gender marker in documents, medical interventions related to transgender transition, as well as any public events or content that the authorities may classify as "propaganda".

The German Embassy in Tbilisi in early 2026 said that the country was violating international obligations and moving away from European standards.

Territorial issue and statistics

Another legal aspect concerns the lack of control of the central authorities of Georgia over the territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. According to the precedents of the Court of Justice of the European Union, a country cannot be considered completely safe if the situation in part of its territory remains unstable and human rights are not guaranteed.

Statistics highlight the scale of the problem:

• In 2025, more than 15 thousand Georgian citizens applied for asylum in the EU countries.
• The success rate in Germany in such cases was 0%, while in Belgium it reaches 23%.
• Georgia is consistently among the top twenty countries in the world in terms of the number of asylum seekers in the EU.

Implications for migration policy

If the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig declares the inclusion of Georgia in the list of safe countries illegal, the corresponding provision will become invalid. This will return refugees to the right to a full-fledged rather than expedited consideration of their cases, where each case of persecution will be studied individually, without presumption of the country's security.

This is one of the first cases of the application of a new procedure that allows administrative courts to apply directly to a higher instance to verify the status of foreign states.