Georgian Parliament Adopts Laws Necessary for Accession to the Eurozone

The Parliament of Georgia adopted in the third, final reading a package of legislative amendments necessary for the country’s accession to the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA), informed TASS with reference to the press service of the parliament.

Legislative changes include three packages – a draft law on the National Bank, on the activities of commercial banks, on the tax system and the tax service. In total, the changes will affect 21 laws.

Earlier in the day, the documents were considered in the second reading at a meeting of the Budget and Finance Committee of the Parliament. The press service clarified that no changes were made to the submitted bills after the first reading, but the comments of the relevant departments and the association of banks were taken into account.

The fact that the Georgian authorities are preparing to join SEPA at the end of August informed Prime Minister of the country Irakli Garibashvili. He said that the Ministry of Economy, the National Bank and other state bodies are currently working in this direction, and also announced the adoption of legislative amendments.

Residents of countries that are part of SEPA can make non-cash payments in euros anywhere in the EU, as well as to a number of non-EU countries. SEPA was launched by European banks with the support of national governments and the European Commission in 2008, and today 36 countries in Europe are its members.