Funding for children's treatment: state programmes, treatment abroad and documents

How does funding for a child differ from funding for an adult?

Three things change the logic of funding for a child. First, many state programmes are tied to age: patients under 18 have separate components that end when they come of age. Second, some components are funded in full, with no co-payment, for example specific medicines for rare diseases, within the budget allocated to the programme. Third, the application is written and signed not by the child but by their legal representative, so the authority of the parent or guardian has to be proved with a document.

Under the general provisions of the 2026 healthcare programmes, a child's Georgian citizenship is confirmed by a personal number or a birth certificate, so not having an ID card does not hold up an application. The medical choice of what treatment a child needs and where is a decision for the treating doctor and the medical board; this guide only explains who pays and how.

Which state programmes cover children?

The table is based on the 2026 state healthcare programmes (Government Resolution No. 655 of 31 December 2025). Conditions change every year, so check the current year's version before applying.

Anything not shown in the table is funded for a child under the general rules: through universal healthcare, a municipal programme or an individual decision of the referral commission. For the commission, being under 24 automatically means medium funding status, while children in state care receive the highest status. How the commission works is explained in the referral programme guide.

A cancer diagnosis: in Georgia or abroad?

Since 1 August 2023 the state has funded oncology and onco-haematology treatment for all citizens aged 0-18, both at tertiary-level centres in Georgia and abroad. Before that, the paediatric onco-haematology programme worked with only one local provider.

Three things determine which clinic a child is sent to: the patient's needs, the clinic's capabilities and the choice of the legal representative. The partner centres abroad are in Israel, Spain and Turkey; according to a 2025 report by the European Union Agency for Asylum, treatment for 157 children at these centres was funded between August 2023 and February 2025. The package covers diagnostics, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery, and proton therapy where needed.

When the programme was launched in 2023, parents were asked for an application form, identity documents for the child and the representative, Form 100 translated into English and notarised, and a translation of the same kind of any tests already carried out. You can order translations of these documents through our Form 100 translation service, and we cover cancer funding in general in a separate guide to funding cancer treatment.

What documents does an application for a minor need?

The core is the same as for an adult, but you also have to prove who represents the child. A typical set looks like this:

• The child's identity document: a birth certificate or another document confirming the personal number, such as an ID card or passport, if the child already has one.
• The legal representative's ID: a copy of the ID card of the parent, guardian or custodian.
• Proof of authority, if the application is not signed by a parent: a power of attorney from the parent or the act appointing the guardian. How a power of attorney is prepared is explained on the power of attorney service page.
• Form IV-100/a with the full diagnosis and ICD-10 code; when requesting treatment abroad, with the doctor's recommendation.
• The clinic's itemised cost estimate, translated and notarised if the clinic is abroad.
• An extract confirming social status, if the family is registered in the database of socially vulnerable households: the commission uses it to set the funded share.

If the family lives abroad and the birth certificate was issued there, a Georgian agency will need a translation and, depending on the country, an apostille. Our apostille and legalisation tool shows which one you need, and we prepare the translation through our civil status certificate translation service.

Parental consent and a child's travel abroad

Article 8 of the Law of Georgia "On the Rules for Georgian Citizens Leaving and Entering Georgia" regulates two separate matters that families often confuse.

The trip itself

A child under 16 leaves Georgia temporarily with the permission of one of their legal representatives and accompanied by an adult with full legal capacity. A young person aged 16 to 18 who is not in a registered marriage needs the consent of one of their legal representatives.

Getting a passport

One parent's consent is enough for a passport to be issued only in the cases listed in the law: for example, if there is no other parent, a court has restricted their parental rights, or they cannot express their will because of serious illness. Treatment is a separate case: if a child needs treatment abroad and the other parent's whereabouts are unknown, or they refuse consent against the child's best interests, the notarised consent of one parent is enough. Disagreements between parents about the trip are resolved in court.

Practical advice: do not wait for the commission's decision to sort out the child's passport and consent. A decision to fund treatment abroad must be carried out within two months of the minutes, and late paperwork can eat into that time. We prepare documents for a medical visa through our medical visa service.

Why does the child's registered address matter?

Some state components expressly exclude children whose care is already funded by a municipal programme. In the 2026 programmes this applies to treatment abroad for congenital heart defects (Tbilisi beneficiaries) and to bone marrow transplantation (Tbilisi and Adjara beneficiaries). In these cases you apply to Tbilisi City Hall or the relevant Adjara service instead of the state programme.

A change of registration in the middle of treatment should therefore be planned carefully: leaving one programme and joining another does not happen automatically. The rules of municipal programmes are described in the guide to municipal assistance.

What does the state not cover, and where to look for the rest?

When a child is being treated, the costs most often left to the family are those outside the medical package: a parent's travel and accommodation abroad, rehabilitation after treatment, special food or equipment that is not on the programme's list. Families usually put this together from several sources:

• The municipality often covers what remains after a state programme, within its annual limit.
• Charitable organisations are especially likely to help children. Before applying, find out whether the organisation has charitable status and what reporting it requires.
• A public campaign calls for particular care when a child is involved: the child's full medical record, personal number and school details should not be made public. How to set up a campaign that protects the child's interests is explained on the campaign service page.

If an agency turns you down, ask for the refusal in writing and use the guide to appealing a refusal. Deadlines in a child's case are especially tight, so if you cannot keep up with the applications on your own, Advocat.Ge lawyers can help through the funding search service.

Frequently asked questions about funding for children's treatment