The short answer
12 months from the date of the sale, and after that until the purchaser bars the right to redeem
How the clock works
The right to redeem runs for 12 months from the date of the sale and does not end there. It continues after the year until the tax deed purchaser forecloses it by serving and publishing the statutory barment notice, which cannot be started until 12 months have passed. The purchaser delivers the notice to the sheriff at least 45 days before the redemption deadline named in it, and publishes it once a week for four consecutive weeks in the six months immediately before that deadline. Redemption puts title back in the defendant in fi. fa. subject to the liens that existed at the sale, and the purchaser must execute and record a quitclaim deed. Title under a tax deed recorded on or after July 1, 1996 ripens by prescription four years after recording. Judicial in rem foreclosures under Article 5 run on a different clock: the owner has 60 days after the sale to redeem by paying the minimum bid price into the superior court.
Who can redeem
The defendant in fi. fa. and any person holding any right, title, or interest in, or a lien upon, the property. A creditor of the defendant who holds no lien may also redeem and then claim against the property for the amount advanced, provided the property is later sold under a judgment in the creditor's favor and the quitclaim deed is recorded.
What the owner pays to redeem
The amount paid for the property at the tax sale as recited in the tax deed, plus any taxes the purchaser paid after the sale, plus any special assessments, plus a premium of 20 percent of that amount for the first year or fraction of a year and 10 percent for each year or fraction of a year after that. If redemption comes more than 30 days after the barment notice, the sheriff's cost of serving it and the cost of publication are added. For sales made after July 1, 2016, sums the purchaser paid to a property owners' association, condominium association, or homeowners' association are added as well. Payment goes to the purchaser or the purchaser's successors.
How your interest accrues
The 20 percent premium attaches to the first year or any fraction of it, so it is owed in full even if the owner redeems the day after the sale. Once 12 months pass, another 10 percent is added for each additional year or fraction of a year. The premium is a flat statutory add-on to the price paid at the sale, not a rate that accrues monthly, and Georgia sets no ceiling on the total once multiple years elapse.
Why some certificates are bid to zero
There is no interest bid-down in Georgia, because there is no certificate to bid on. Bidders compete on price, and the buyer's return is the statutory redemption premium: 20 percent of the amount paid for the first year or any fraction of a year, then 10 percent for each year or fraction of a year after that. The official holding an unpaid tax execution may transfer it to a private party who pays it in full, and that transferee takes the tax official's enforcement rights and lien priority, but no officer is required to make the transfer and it is not a public certificate auction.
What happens when it ends
The tax collector or tax commissioner notifies the taxpayer once the last day for payment has passed and may issue an execution 30 days later. The execution is levied on the property, the defendant gets at least ten days' written notice of the sale by registered or certified mail, and the parcel is advertised and sold.
A redeemed certificate, plus your accrued interest, is what makes the wait profitable; see how redemption periods work across states. An unredeemed certificate is instead your path to the property through a tax deed sale, which still does not convey marketable title on its own, so budget for a quiet title action.
Verified Jul 25, 2026 against Georgia statutes.
Tax Sale Atlas publishes educational information about public tax sale processes. This is not legal, financial, or investment advice. Rules, dates, and fees change; confirm with the county office before you bid.