AZE.US
Azerbaijan became the leading destination for personal money transfers from Georgia in the first half of 2026, as a growing number of Azerbaijani citizens sought employment in the neighboring country.
Individuals transferred $36.5 million from Georgia to Azerbaijan between January and June, an increase of 75.3% from the same period last year, economist Natig Jafarli said, citing remittance data.
According to Jafarli, the number of Azerbaijanis moving to Georgia for work has risen sharply over the past two to three years. Nearly 3,000 Azerbaijani labor migrants were officially registered in Georgia during the past 18 months.
The trend marks a notable reversal in the economic relationship between the two countries. A decade ago, Azerbaijanis originally from Georgia routinely sent money to relatives living there. Now, more Azerbaijani citizens are finding jobs in Georgia and sending part of their earnings home.
At the same time, personal transfers from Azerbaijan to Georgia have declined steadily:
- 2021: $60 million;
- 2022: $51.3 million;
- 2023: $45 million;
- 2024: $40.2 million;
- 2025: $26.24 million.
The amount transferred from Azerbaijan to Georgia more than halved in four years. In 2025 alone, the decline reached 42%.
Jafarli attributed part of that drop to a sharp decrease in automobile imports from Georgia. A significant share of earlier transfers may have been connected to Azerbaijani buyers purchasing vehicles on the Georgian market. As car imports declined, the associated financial flow also weakened.
The increase in transfers moving in the opposite direction has a different explanation, he said. It reflects both the rising number of Azerbaijani labor migrants in Georgia and the improving financial position of ethnic Azerbaijanis who live there and send money to relatives in Azerbaijan.
“Only 10 years ago, people living in Azerbaijan who were originally from Georgia regularly sent money to their relatives there,” Jafarli said.
“Now the reverse process has begun. More people are leaving Azerbaijan to work in Georgia, while our compatriots living there are becoming more prosperous and beginning to support relatives here.”
The figures suggest that Georgia is increasingly becoming more than a tourism, trade and transit destination for Azerbaijanis. For a growing number of people, it is also emerging as a source of employment and household income.
AZE.US