During the reporting period the Special Preventive Group members were informed by the social service staff of the Institution N14 that a convict placed in a solitary confinement was not allowed to receive long-term visits as per Article 171, Part VI of the Imprisonment Code. This case indicates that the legal norm has been misinterpreted as, in fact, it refers to such cases when a convict is subject to a disciplinary punishment (still into force) and the restriction must not be extended to those cases, when the term of disciplinary punishment is exhausted. According to Clause 4 of Decree 132 of July 22, 2014 of the Minister of Corrections, costs of long-term visits are paid by a convict or his/her visitor via bank transfer. Fee of a long-term visit amounts 60 GEL for adult convicts and 30 GEL when juveniles are concerned. It is worth noting that severe economic conditions of a convict and his/her family impede the right of prisoners to long-term visits and prevent the latter to maintain strong relations with their families. The Public Defender welcomes an amendment to Article 172 as a result of which ‘long-term visits may be exempt from fees under the terms specified by the Minister. According to Article 4, Clause 4 of Decree 132 of July 22, 2014 of the Minister of Corrections visitors who are registered beneficiaries in the unified registry for socially unprotected households are exempt from paying fees for visits. The Table below provides the breakdown of long-term visits carried out in 2014.189 N Penitentiary Institution Number of Long-term Visits 1. Institution N2 705 2. Institution N3 190 31 3. Institution N6 191 343 4. Institution N11 19 5. Institution N12192 73 6. Institution N14 722 7. Institution N15 1559 8. Institution N17 1780 189 Institutions 5, 7, 8, 18 and 19 have no adequate infrastructure for long-term visits 190 Long-term visits in Institution 3 started in May 2014 191 Including those prisoners who had been transferred to another institution for long-term visits 148 NATIONAL PREVENTIVE MECHANISM OF GEORGIA