General Package
Tunisia offers one of the most attractive incentive systems in the Euro-Mediterranean region. A whole range of financial and fiscal incentives to local and foreign investors.
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- State coverage of part of the salaries paid to Tunisian employees depending on the level of supervision, in all activities except those excluded from regional development incentives.
- Investment grant of 15% (including working capital), up to a limit of 1.5 million TND.
- Grant covering 65% of infrastructure work expenses in the industrial sector, within a limit of 10% of the project cost and capped at 1 million TND.
- Full exemption from corporate income tax for the first 5 years, followed by taxation at a 10% rate in subsequent years.
- 100% exemption from the employer’s social security contribution for 5 years (16.57% of gross salaries).
- Exemption from the Professional Training Tax (TFP).
- State coverage of part of the salaries paid to Tunisian employees depending on the level of supervision, in all activities except those excluded from regional development incentives.
- Grant of 30% of the approved investment cost with a ceiling of 3 Million Dinar.
- Grant covering 85% of infrastructure work expenses in the industrial sector.
- Full exemption from corporate income tax for the first 10 years, followed by taxation at a 10% rate in subsequent years.
- 100% exemption from the employer’s social security contribution for 10 years (16.57% of gross salaries).
- Exemption from contributions to the Housing Promotion Fund for Employees (FOPROLOS).
- Exemption from the Professional Training Tax (TFP).
* The incentives provided for under Law No. 2016-71 of September 30, 2016, on investment, or under other legislative texts, may be combined, provided that the total amount of incentives granted does not exceed one third of the investment cost, with a ceiling of five (5) million dinars. This limit does not take into account the State’s contribution to infrastructure expenses, the employability enhancement grant, the economic performance grant, and the sustainable development grant.
List of activities not eligible for the advantages granted to the RD
- Extraction and sale of raw material
- Financial services and insurance
- Communication operators and internet service providers
- Retail and wholesale
- Catering services, cafés and on-site consumption services except classified tourist restaurants
- Production and distribution of electricity , gas and fuel except the production of renewable energies
- Real estate business, public works and related services
- Real estate and rental services
- Small trade services
- Hairdressing and beauty services
- Transport
- Tourist travel agencies
- Agriculture, fishing and aquaculture
- Free professions
- Paramedical services, pharmacies and medical test laboratories
- Party halls
- Bakery, pastry and confectionery industries
- Industry of different spices and coffee grinding
- Non-structured crafts (less than five employees)
Priority sectors are characterized by their strategic vocation and their capacity to increase growth or with a high employability potential, and are considered as priority in development plans.
Financial incentives
- Investment grant of 15% of the investment cost up to a maximum of TND 1 million.
- 100% exemption from employers’ social contributions for 3 years.
- State coverage of 50% of salaries paid to graduates recruited for the first time on a permanent basis up to a limit of 250 TND per month per employee, for a supervision rate varying between 10% and 15%.
- State coverage over a period of three years of 50% of the salary paid with a ceiling of two hundred and fifty (250) dinars per month for a supervision rate higher than 15%.
List of priority sectors
- Agriculture, fisheries, aquaculture, and related services
- Preliminary processing activities of agricultural and fishing products
- Nanotechnology industries
- Biotechnology industries
- Textile and clothing
- Electronic industries
- Engineering plastics and composite products
- Automotive, aeronautic, maritime and rail industries and components
- Pharmaceutical and medical device industries
- Research and development and clinical research centres
- Industrial equipment industry
- Military industries
- Cultural and creative industries
- Collection, recovery, transformation of solid and liquid waste
- Projects for the protection and enhancement of natural sectors, biodiversity and the fight against desertification
- Production of renewable energies
- Communication and information technologies (ICT)
- Logistics services in logistics areas
- Sports and leisure centres
- Collecting, recovery, transformation of solid and liquid waste
- Tourism: hotel accommodation and tourist animation projects as part of the development of cultural, ecological, health, desert and golf tourism.
Activities that are mainly based on the valuation of resources in useful and agricultural substances, natural and cultural heritage through industrialization and exploitation in production areas and can contribute to the development of value chains through a radical change in the product.
Financial incentives
A grants for added value increase and competitiveness: 15% of the approved investment cost up to 1 million TND.
List of economic chains
- Extractive materials
- Geothermal culture
- Medicinal and aromatic plants
Material investments to master new technologies and improve productivity
50% of the approved investment cost with a limit of 500 thousand TND. This percentage can reach 55% for category “A” investments in agriculture, fishing and aquaculture and 60% for combined agricultural service companies and development groups in the agricultural sector and some fishing. This grants is only granted at the effective start of the activity.
List of material investments
- Material investments to master new technologies:
- Design equipment: computer-aided design and computer-aided drawing (CAD / CAM)
- Computer-assisted production management and computer-assisted maintenance and
management (GPAO / CMMS); - Laboratory equipment excluding tools, small equipment such as laboratory glassware,consumables and production equipment.
- Material investments to improve productivity:
- Acquisition of agricultural tractors and related machines: harvesters and olive harvesting machines;
- The execution of works, the installation of equipment, and the acquisition and installation of machinery and equipment necessary for irrigation water savings, the improvement of its quality, and the control of irrigation and fertilization techniques.
- Carrying out water and soil conservation works;
- Seed production and multiplication;
- Preparation of meadows, pastures and sown rangelands and planting fodder and forest shrubs;
- The equipment, machinery, means, development operations, and buildings necessary for production according to the organic method.
- Protective nets set-up;
- Setting up electricity production stations using renewable energies in agriculture, fishing and aquaculture;
- The equipment, instruments and specific means necessary for the production of compost and the valorisation of plant, animal and organic by-products;
- Renewal of old olive and fruit tree plantations;
- Enhancing agricultural land, improvement of soil fertility, development of oases and construction of rainwater harvesting stations;
- Equipment and materials specific to multi-chapel greenhouses and Canary Islands greenhouses;
- Acquisition of field precision equipment and materials for the rationalization of agricultural inputs and quality control;
- Equipment and materials for temperature and humidity control in production areas;
- Specific equipment and instruments for the production of forest and pastoral
plants; - Milking equipment and cold equipment on the farm Cold and freezing equipment on board.
- Machines for making flake ice on board;
- Prospecting fishing equipment;
- Satellite vessel monitoring systems;
- Isothermal rooms and containers for the preservation of the product on board;
- Selective fishing engine;
- Automatic feed dispenser specific to aquaculture projects;
- Automatic oxygen dispenser for aquaculture ponds;
- New olive tree plantations.
Intangible investments
50% of the cost of intangible investments approved with a limit of 500 thousand TND including the study grants, with a limit of 20 thousand TND. This grants is only granted once the activity has actually started.
List of immaterial investments
- Product laboratory tests to confirm its compliance with the required standards and get a specific quality label.
- Design and registration of trademarks for agricultural products;
- Setting up a system of controlled designation of origin and indication of source and other proofs of quality for agricultural products;
- Setting up a tracking system for agricultural products;
- Study costs;
- Support and supervision costs;
- Patents exploitation;
- Marketing assistance;
- Technical assistance in:
- CAM computer- assited manufacturing;
- Computer-assisted maintenance management CMMS;
- Computer-assisted production management CAPM;
- Quality;
- Computer assited design CAD;
- Cutting.
- Implementation of integrated software;
- Methods office;
- HACCP certification (analysis of hazards and critical points for their control);
- ISO certification;
- Products Certification to meet Tunisian and foreign standards;
- European Commission CE labelling;
- Accreditation laboratories;
- Equipment calibration;
- Software acquisition of:
- CAM computer- assisted manufacturing;
- Management of computer-assisted maintenance CMMS;
- Computer-assisted production management CAPM;
- Quality;
- Computer aided design CAD;
- Computer assisted drawing CAD;
- Cutting;
- Integrated.
- Accreditation assistance
- Set-up of a HACCP system (analysis of hazards and critical points for their control);
- Set-up of an SMS security management system;
- Set-up of an EMS environment management system;
- Set-up of a QMS quality management system;
- Websites;
- Project management operations;
- Remote monitoring and control systems;
- On duty health care (Veille sanitaire)
R&D expenditure
A 50% grants for approved research and development expenses up to 300 thousand TND.
List of R&D expenses
- Preliminary studies to develop new products or new production models;
- Carrying out models and related technical experiments, as well as field tests;
- Acquisition of scientific equipment to carry out development research projects;
- Granting patents.
Expenses on employee training leading to skills certification
70% of the cost of training Tunisian employees leading to skills certification in accordance with international standards with an annual limit of 20 thousand TND for each company.- 50% of the value of the approved investment components with a limit of three hundred thousand (300,000) TND.
- This new grants is granted to anti-pollution and environmental investments, in particular :
- Water and atmospheric pollution control projects caused by the company’s activity
- Projects adopting clean and non-polluting technologies in order to reduce the causes of pollution or to control the exploitation of resources
- Collective decontamination equipment to public or private operators, commissioned by companies with the same activity or causing the same type of pollution.
- Investment grants of 15% (medium and large projects) and 30% (small projects) with a ceiling of 1 M TND.
- Total 100% deduction of the tax base for 10 years and 10% after that period
List of services related to agriculture and primary processing activities
Agricultural activities services
- Enhancing plant or animal by-products
- Artificial insemination
- Veterinary surgeries and clinics
- Veterinary and agricultural laboratory tests
- Agricultural advice
- Milk collection
- Cereals collection and storage
- Seeds packaging and marketing
- Preparation of the land, harvest, plants harvest, protection and treatment
- Aerial spraying for insecticides and pesticides for crops and arboriculture
- Wells drilling and water prospection
- Storage of locally produced roughage
- Mobile units for the management and maintenance of agricultural hydraulic networks
- Mobile agricultural equipment maintenance units
- Mobile plant treatment units to supply inputs for production and harvesting
- Refrigerated transport of agricultural products
Fishing related services
- Assembly of equipment and fishing materials
- Distribution of fishery products through integrated circuits
- Veterinary bacteriological and chemical laboratory tests
- Ice makers
- Refrigerated transport of fishery products
- Production tools cleaning
- Mobile maintenance units for fishing equipment and materials
Primary processing of agricultural and fishing products
- Processing of fresh milk in production areas, excluding yogurt production
- Cheese production from locally sourced fresh milk
- Canning and semi-preserving of fruits, vegetables, and fishery products, excluding olives
- Semi-preservation of table olives using modern processing methods
- Production of tomato derivatives
- Extraction of essential and aromatic oils
- Packaging of agricultural and fishery products
- Olive oil extraction
- Olive oil packaging
- Egg processing
- Production of packaged and processed organic foods
- Production of juice from fresh fruits
- Industrial slaughtering of animals
- Meat processing units
- Sawing, packaging, and processing of forestry products