In 1925 Batmanishvili was received by Pope Pius XI, along with a group of Eastern Catholic priests, and was appointed apostolic administrator (some sources indicate that he was exarch) for the Georgian Catholics of the Byzantine rite.
En 1925 foi recibido polo papa Pío XI xunto a un grupo de sacerdotes católicos orientais, e nomeado administrador apostólico (algunhas fontes indican que exarca) para os católicos xeorxianos de rito bizantino.