Invest in Tunisia
An incentive legal and fiscal framework
Recognising that the quality of investment policy directly influences investors’ decisions, Tunisia is undertaking institutional and regulatory efforts aimed at stimulating investment and creating a favourable business climate.
Promulgated in 2017, the new Investment Law seeks to promote investment with the main objective of strengthening the resilience of the Tunisian economy to the challenges posed by the global economy.
A number of provisions have been introduced. They enshrine the principle of freedom of investment and the simplification of procedures thanks, in particular, to the abolition of several authorisations relating to economic activity and the simplification of administrative procedures for the benefit of investors.
In addition, the legal framework grants investors the freedom to resort to arbitration as well as the reinforcement of the principle of free transfer of funds for foreign investors and the possibility to hold up to 100% of the capital of offshore companies.
It also seeks to enshrine the principle of freedom to recruit foreign executives up to a limit of 30% of the company’s total executives during the first three years following the start of the project.
As far as fiscal and financial incentives are concerned, the legal framework includes several measures to encourage investment. In a nutshell, they mainly consist of the following:
- Investment allowances, which target regional development projects, priority sectors and economic industries;
- A grant in the agricultural and fisheries sector according to the size of the project, in addition to a specific grant for the introduction of new technologies;
- Allowances for economic efficiency which relate to material investments for the introduction of new technologies, R&D expenditure;
- An allowance for the development of employability potential with a coverage of employers’ contributions to the social security system;
- A sustainable development allowance for projects involving water and air pollution control, projects adopting clean technologies, etc.
In addition to the above-mentioned law, several other laws, all equally important, are simultaneously implemented to improve the business environment in Tunisia. To quote only one of these, the Startup Act, launched in April 2019, remains unprecedented in Africa, and aims to position Tunisia as a privileged destination and an incentive site for the creation and attraction of startups.
