Russia’s share of remittances fell by three percentage points to 13% in 2025. The United States led with 19%, followed by Italy at 17%. Over USD 3.6 billion was transferred from abroad in total in 2025.
Whilst Russia held the top spot in remittances for years, its share had been steadily declining before the Russia-Ukraine war. Specifically, Russia’s share fell from 54% in 2013 to 19% in 2013.
The decline continued into the first quarter of 2022, although the trend reversed sharply from the second quarter. Remittances from Russia increased fivefold in 2022, exceeding USD 2 billion.
Graph 1: Russia’s Share in Remittances
Source: National Bank of Georgia
The peak level of remittances from Russia was maintained for five consecutive quarters with the decline beginning in the second half of 2023. Russia had fallen to third place by 2024. Both the value and the share continued to decline in 2025. Overall, whilst remittances rose by USD 285 million to USD 3.646 billion, transfers from Russia fell by USD 74 million to USD 468 million, reflecting a 14% drop.
The United States held first place in 2025 as in 2024, followed by Italy in second. Three countries amongst the top five – Ireland, Germany and Greece – are EU members.
Graph 2: Remittances (USD Million)
Source: National Bank of Georgia
Over USD 100 million was transferred from just seven countries in 2025 whose combined share exceeded 76%. Remittances increased in value from all countries as compared with the pre-pandemic period, although the share rose in only three cases.
Graph 3: Shares in Remittances
Source: National Bank of Georgia
Whilst the value of remittances from China grew by 180% in 2025, it reached only USD 2.7 million, less than 0.1% of total remittances. Transfers from India were minimal at USD 90,000. Combined remittances from South Korea and Japan totalled USD 2.1 million whilst those from Australia and New Zealand reached USD 2.5 million.
Remittance volumes were higher from Arab countries: Qatar USD 4.6 million, Lebanon USD 9.6 million, Jordan USD 18 million, Saudi Arabia USD 18 million and the United Arab Emirates USD 22 million. An unusual increase was observed from Mozambique – rising from USD 5,000 to USD 3.7 million.
Whilst remittances are not directly included in GDP calculations, they significantly impact one of its components – consumption. Dependence on remittances remains high. The National Bank’s report states that 300,000-325,000 people cashed remittances each month between January and December 2024.
The relative share of remittances exceeds 10% of GDP, higher than domestic exports and 2.8 times greater than foreign direct investment, based on three quarters of data.
