From 1928 to 1938 lieutenant Gvishiani was assigned to and took charge of various divisions and departments of mainly Georgian branches of the Soviet secret police apparatus NKVD. He got promoted to major in 1936 and two years and two promotions later in 1938 was deployed as chief to 3rd Special Division of the First Main Directorate in the Novosibirsk Oblast where he served as a "Commissar of State Security 3rd Class". During the Soviet invasion of Manchuria in 1945 Givishiani was awarded several decorations for repatriating all industrial assets from Manchuria to the Soviet Union, for which he was promoted to lieutenant general the same year.