EXCHANGE REGULATION OF BCT

            
CAPITAL TRANSACTIONS

Foreign direct investments in Tunisia


Direct foreign investments
Foreign investment in projects in Tunisia is free at the level of creation and expansion. If is submitted to prior authorization for projects achieved in some activity sector .

Law n° 92-81 of  3 August 1992
Law n° 93-120 of 27  December 1993
Law n° 94-42 of 7 March 1994

Portfolio foreign investments
Foreign investment in portfolio in Tunisia is subdued to regulation into force as mentioned in the following texts:

Decree n° 77-608 of 27 July 1977.
Circular of the BCT to IA n° 98-02 of 26 January  1998
General decision of the Financial Market Council n° 1 of 5 November 1997
Circular of the BCT to  IA n°2004-03 of 19 July  2004 as modified by circulars of the BCT to IA n°2005-19 of  8 November 2005 and n°2007-10 of  17 April 2007.
Circular of the BCT to  IA n°2006-08 of 1st  August  2006 as modified by circular of the BCT to IA n°2007-11 of  17 April 2007.

Non-residents having made investments, pursuant to the regulation into force, are free to transfer net real proceeds and gains on transfer or liquidation of their invested assets through foreign currency import.

Law n° 76-18 of 21 January  1976

Tunisian investments abroad

In order to finance their foreign investment:

1- Resident companies can transfer, in line with their foreign currency turnover for the previous financial year, which must not be less than 50 thousand dinars :

From 50,000 dinars to 500,000 dinars for financing liaison or representation agencies,

From 100,000 dinars to 1,000,000 dinars for financing subsidiaries,affiliates or capital acquisition in companies set up abroad.

The mentionned companies financing the above stated investment through the debit of their professional accounts in foreign currency may carry out transfers in this respect within the limit of 3,000,000 dinars per year, regardless of the type of investment and of the foreign currency turnover of the considered company.
Funds available in the professional accounts in foreign currency used in this respect must be derived from the company's exports of goods and services.
Funds needed for financing investment must be fully available in the account when the transfer is carried out.

2- Non-exporting resident companies or those having recorded foreign currency turnover of less than 50,000 dinars can transfer :

From 50,000 dinars to 250,000 dianrs for the liaison or representation agencies,

And from 100,000 dinars to 500,000 dinars for branches, subsidiaries and capital acquisition in companies set up abroad.

Exchange note of the Minister of finance n° 4 of 18 January 2005, published in the Official Journal of the Tunisian Republic n° 5 of 18 January 2005 as modified by exchange note of the Minister of finance of 2 march 2007 published in the official journal of the Tunisian Republic n°18 of 2 march 2007 and by exchange note of the Minister of finance published in the official journal of the Tunisian Republic n°20 of 10 march 2009.
Circular of the BCT to IA n° 2005-05 of 16 February 2005 as modified by the circular to IA n°2009-09 of 4 April 2009.

Shareholding of residents in the capital of non resident companies set up in Tunisia

Resident private individuals and Tunisian legal entities or foreign legal entities established in Tunisia are authorised to hold shares in the capital of non resident companies set up in Tunisia and carryout related transfers. Terms for carrying out these transfers by the authorised intermediaries are fixed in circular of the BCT.

Exchange note of the Minister of finance of 2 March 2007 published in JORT n°18 of 2 March 2007and Circular of  the BCT to IA n°2007-23 of 10 October 2007. 


  External borrowings
  • Resident companies may, for their activities' needs, borrow freely, from non-residents in foreign currency up to 10 millions dinars per calandar year for lending institutions and 3 million dinars for the other companies. When granted for a period of more than 12 months, these loans are borrowed freely and without a limit for the amount for the lending institutions and within a limit of 10 millions dinars per year for the other companies. However, the lending institutions must be subdued to a prior voluntary assesment of a rating agency ,or listed on the stock exchange market.
  • Transfers related to reimbursement in principal and interest payment of these borrowing are free.   

Circular of the BCT to IA n° 93-16 of 7 October 1993, as modified by circular of BCT to IA n° 2005-03 of 4 January 2005 and circular of the BCT to IA n°2007-01 of 9 January 2007.

 

Opening accounts abroad

Resident companies having incurred contracts to provide services or to accomplish works on behalf of non-residents abroad, are authorized, to freely open at banks of countries where these contracts are carried out, accounts in currencies of these countries to save part of the income collected in this respect and meant to cover local expenditure.
This procedure concerns exclusively contracts incurred in foreign countries where the law into effect calls for the use of part of the income to cover local expenditure in national currency.
At the end of the contract, the resident company must settle any account that was opened abroad in the local currency and remit the credit amount of this account as per the law into effect.

Circular of the BCT to IA n° 2008-08 of 28 April 2008.

Index | Capital transactions | Foreign trade | Current payments
Residents' & nonresidents' accounts | General aspects


 
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