The law
Georgia repealed its college NIL statute: Former O.C.G.A. §§ 20-3-680 to 20-3-683 (repealed effective 2025-07-01). The table records what applies now. Rows drawn from a statute come from the enacted text on the legislature's own site; rows drawn from a school or board policy name that policy. Every source is linked under Sources, read on October 21, 2026.
What it says
| Question | What applies | Section or source |
|---|---|---|
| Who is covered | No statute now. The repealed § 20-3-680(b) covered students at units of the University System of Georgia, the Technical College System of Georgia, and eligible private colleges in Georgia. The 2024 executive order speaks of "a postsecondary educational institution in the State of Georgia" | former § 20-3-680(b); EO 09.17.24.01 |
| Disclosure to the school | No Georgia law requires it now. The repealed § 20-3-681(d)(2) required athletes to disclose NIL contracts to a school official the school designated. The executive order is silent | former § 20-3-681(d)(2) |
| Banned categories | Not addressed, in the repealed article or the executive order | Not addressed |
| Conflicts with team contracts | No statute now. The repealed § 20-3-681(d) barred NIL contracts that conflicted with the team contract, required the school to identify the conflicting terms, and let team contracts require athletes to pay up to 75 percent of NIL pay into a school escrow pool for former athletes | former § 20-3-681(d)(1), (3), (4) |
| School and coach involvement | No statute now. The executive order covers a school "facilitating compensation, offering compensation, or compensating" an athlete. The repealed § 20-3-681(f) had barred schools, booster entities and their officers, employees and agents from paying athletes | EO 09.17.24.01; former § 20-3-681(f) |
| Direct pay from the school | No statute now. The executive order says the NCAA, conferences and similar bodies "shall take" no adverse action against a Georgia school for paying athletes for NIL, provided no school uses funds allocated by the State of Georgia. Whether the order is still in effect could not be confirmed (see below) | EO 09.17.24.01 |
| Agents and attorneys | No NIL-specific rule now. The repealed § 20-3-682 said schools and associations could not stop athletes from hiring representation, that athlete agents had to be certified under Chapter 4A of Title 43 and comply with the federal Sports Agent Responsibility and Trust Act, and that attorneys had to be licensed in Georgia. A search of the General Assembly's site, including the Code Revision acts of 2021 to 2026, found no act from 2021 to 2026 amending Georgia's athlete agent law, Chapter 4A of Title 43; its current text and reach to NIL-only work were not confirmed | former § 20-3-682; O.C.G.A. ch. 43-4A |
| High school and minors | Not addressed. A 2026 high school bill (HB 383, "Georgia High School NIL Protection Act") was last read and referred in the Senate on 2026-02-12 and was not enacted | Not addressed |
| Financial literacy | No statute now. The repealed § 20-3-681(e) required a 5-hour financial literacy and life skills workshop at the start of the first and third academic years | former § 20-3-681(e) |
| Scholarship protection | No statute now. The repealed § 20-3-681(b) and (c) said a scholarship was not compensation and could not be revoked or affected because an athlete earned NIL pay or hired representation | former § 20-3-681(b), (c) |
| Confidentiality of contracts | Not addressed | Not addressed |
| NCAA and conference penalties | The executive order bars the NCAA, conferences and other bodies from adverse action against a Georgia school for NIL pay. The repealed § 20-3-681(h) had barred associations from penalizing athletes or schools over athletes' NIL earnings | EO 09.17.24.01; former § 20-3-681(h) |
| Remedies and enforcement | Not addressed. Neither the repealed article nor the executive order set a remedy or an enforcing agency | Not addressed |
| Employee status | Not addressed | Not addressed |
What the repealed article said
HB 617 (Act 228) added Article 13 to Chapter 3 of Title 20, effective July 1, 2021. It let athletes earn market-value NIL pay but not pay "in exchange, in whole or in part," for attending, participating or performing at a school (§ 20-3-681(a)); barred schools and booster entities from paying athletes (§ 20-3-681(f)); required disclosure to the school (§ 20-3-681(d)(2)); let team contracts require athletes to put up to 75 percent of NIL pay into a pool paid out to former athletes (§ 20-3-681(d)(4)(B)); required a financial literacy workshop (§ 20-3-681(e)); and barred associations from penalizing athletes or schools over NIL pay (§ 20-3-681(h)).
Section 20-3-683 ended the article on the earliest of the effective date of a federal NIL law enacted after March 31, 2021, the effective date of any policy, rule or regulation adopted after that date allowing NIL pay, or June 30, 2025, "rendered null and without effect as a matter of law." SB 153, the 2025 Code Revision act, then repealed the article (Section 20, item (54)), signed May 14, 2025 and effective July 1, 2025. A search of the General Assembly's site finds no other act from 2021 to 2026 that amended the article.
The 2024 executive order
Executive Order 09.17.24.01, signed September 17, 2024 while the House settlement was pending, orders "that neither the NCAA, an athletic conference, nor any other organization with authority over intercollegiate athletics shall take any adverse action" against a Georgia school for "facilitating compensation, offering compensation, or compensating" an athlete for NIL, provided no school uses funds allocated by the State of Georgia. It took effect on signature and ends on the earlier of the effective date of a federal NIL law enacted after the order or the effective date of any settlement in the litigation, after which it is "null and without effect." The court approved the settlement on June 6, 2025, and no later NIL order appears on the Governor's 2025 or 2026 lists.
The settlement agreement (Fourth Amended Stipulation and Settlement Agreement, filed May 7, 2025) uses two different dates. Paragraph 18 makes the Injunctive Relief Settlement, which allows school payments to athletes, "effective as of the date of entry of the Final Approval Order, regardless of any appeal." Paragraphs 1(r) and 32 define the agreement's "Effective Date" as the date the judgment becomes "Final," meaning no longer subject to further review on appeal. Objectors appealed the approval. If the order's end date is read as the date the settlement's school-pay terms took effect, the order ended on June 6, 2025; if it is read as the agreement's defined Effective Date, it may still be in effect while appeals continue. The order itself does not say.
Bills that did not pass
HB 383 (2025-2026), the "Georgia High School NIL Protection Act," was last read and referred in the Senate on February 12, 2026; it was not enacted. An earlier version, HB 1276 (2024), did not leave House committee.
How it changed
| Act | What it did | Effective |
|---|---|---|
| HB 617 (2021), Act 228 | enacted Article 13 of Chapter 3 of Title 20 (§§ 20-3-680 to 20-3-683) with market-value pay, no pay to attend or perform at a school, no school or booster pay, disclosure to the school, team-contract conflicts and pooling, a workshop, scholarship protection, a bar on association penalties and agent rules; § 20-3-683 ended the article on the earliest of a new federal NIL law, a new policy allowing NIL pay, or June 30, 2025 | 2021-07-01 (signed 2021-05-06) |
| SB 153 (2025), Act 371 | the annual Code Revision act; Section 20, item (54) repealed Article 13 of Chapter 3 of Title 20, "relating to compensation of intercollegiate athletes" | 2025-07-01 (signed 2025-05-14) |
Federal law
As of 2026-10-21, S. 4668 (Protect College Sports Act) passed the Senate 77-22 on 2026-09-28 and has been held at the House desk since 2026-10-05 with no House action (congress.gov). Georgia has no NIL statute for § 121(a) to preempt. If the 2024 executive order is still in effect, its bar on NCAA and conference action appears to be the kind of state "requirement" that "governs, regulates, or invalidates" association rules on NIL compensation that § 121(a)(2)(A) would preempt; the order also ends by its own terms on the effective date of a federal law regulating athletes' NIL rights. Georgia's athlete agent law (Chapter 4A of Title 43) would sit alongside the federal agent registration and 5 percent endorsement fee cap in S. 4668 § 102; § 121(b)(1)(A) preserves "Uniform Athlete Agent Acts", and whether Georgia's chapter counts as one was not confirmed. S. 4668 § 101(b) would add a federal duty to report Division I deals over $600 within 5 days, where Georgia now has none.
What sits on top of it
- Division I reporting. Third-party deals of $600 or more go to NIL Go within five business days, whatever the state's own rule (NIL Go, reporting a deal, level by level).
- Your school. A school can set a stricter policy than the statute, and most set the disclosure process.
- Agents. Georgia's athlete-agent rules are on the state-by-state registration table.
- High school. High school NIL in Georgia is set by the state's athletic association, not this statute.
- Taxes. NIL taxes in plain words.
How Leave fits
In Leave, every deal thread carries a rules summary for the athlete's state and level, and keeps the contract, its dates and the disclosure deadline that applies. It is a summary, not a ruling; the school and the statute decide. Leave is software, not an agent, and takes 0% of any deal. You decide, you send.
Questions about college NIL law in Georgia
Does Georgia have an NIL law in 2026?
Not a statute. SB 153 (Act 371, signed May 14, 2025) repealed Georgia's college NIL article, O.C.G.A. §§ 20-3-680 to 20-3-683, effective July 1, 2025. What remains is Governor Kemp's executive order of September 17, 2024, whose current effect is uncertain because it ends on the effective date of the House settlement, and Georgia's general athlete agent law (Chapter 4A of Title 43).
Can Georgia colleges pay athletes directly?
No Georgia statute bars it now. The repealed § 20-3-681(f) had barred schools and boosters from paying athletes, and the 2024 executive order says the NCAA and conferences may not act against a Georgia school for paying athletes for NIL, as long as no state-allocated funds are used. Direct pay is now set mainly by the House settlement and NCAA, conference and College Sports Commission rules.
Do I have to tell my school about an NIL deal in Georgia?
Georgia law no longer requires it. The repealed § 20-3-681(d)(2) required disclosure to an official the school designated; that rule ended with the article. School, conference and NCAA rules, such as Division I deal reporting through NIL Go, are separate from state law.
Does Georgia require an NIL agent to be licensed?
There is no NIL-specific rule now. The repealed § 20-3-682 required athlete agents to be certified under Chapter 4A of Title 43 and attorneys to be licensed in Georgia. Chapter 4A, Georgia's general athlete agent law, is still in force, and no act amending it from 2021 to 2026 was found on the General Assembly's site; whether it reaches someone who handles only NIL deals is a question for its current text.
Is Governor Kemp's NIL executive order still in effect?
It could not be confirmed. Executive Order 09.17.24.01 took effect on signature, September 17, 2024, and says it remains in effect until the earlier of the effective date of a federal NIL law enacted after that date or "the effective date of any settlement related to the Litigation" (the House case). The court approved the settlement on June 6, 2025, and under paragraph 18 of the settlement agreement its injunctive relief took effect on that date regardless of appeals. The agreement's defined "Effective Date" (paragraphs 1(r) and 32) comes only when the judgment is final and no longer subject to appeal, and appeals of the approval were filed. The order does not say which date it means. The Governor's office still lists the order among its 2024 orders and, as of its list through October 2026, has issued no later order on NIL.
Be your own agent. Leave.
