The State of Georgia has a board of pardons and paroles that handles all requests for clemency. The governor plays no direct role in these decisions. There is no time limit on applying for commutation of sentence, and no minimum amount of time served. For the pardons process, the requestor must wait a minimum of five years after sentence completion and break no laws during this time. Also there may not be any pending charges or fines that are incomplete.
There is no standardized application for clemency in the state of Georgia. Those requesting a pardon or a commutation of sentence must write to the board to request it.
The state has a full-time, five member board that handles both pardons and paroles. In order to grant a pardon, there must be a majority vote of three out of five members of the board. The hearings are not open to the public, but family members and supporters may send correspondence in favor of the requestor to the board. It may take several months for the decision to be sent to the pardon requestor.
All rights are restored upon completion of sentence.