The US has decided to make its visa bond programme permanent for Georgians, obliging them to post a bond of up to $20,000 for tourist or business visas. Georgia is the only European country to be included in a list of ‘high-risk’ countries the US associates with overstays. Georgia was first included in the list and had visa bonds imposed on its citizens in early 2026. According to the Department of State, the main goal of the visa bond programme is ‘Protecting the American People Against Invasion,’ and ‘to reduce visa overstays’. After the pilot visa bond programme launched in the first 10 months, the number of overstayers was reduced to 50.