Despite Law No. 1/021 of December 2005 complies with international standards for the protection of copyright, on a practical level, it is reported that the implementation of this law is still poor and enforcement measures are lagging behind. The Penal Code and Code of Criminal Procedure outline the specific penalties for IP infringement, as stated in the copyright law Arts. 91-94. Nonetheless, as of 2021, Burundi still does not have any sanctions applied in case the rights under the intellectual property law are infringed upon.

Burundi has ratified the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.

Burundi has not signed the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty.

Burundi does not have a comprehensive framework in place that provides effective protection of trade secrets, but there are limited measures addressing some issues related to them. These relate to confidential information set out in Law No. 1/13 of July 28, 2009, on Industrial Property in Burundi, with respect to traditional knowledge, established in Sections 254-264 and the preservation of manufacturing or trade secrets by judicial officers in patent court cases (Section 418). In addition, Law No. 1/06, of March 25, 2010, on the Legal Regime of Competition, deals with secrecy or confidentiality requirements for investigators to preserve business/trade secrets they access or acquire from entities during investigations (Sections 15-16).

It is reported that there is an obligation for passive infrastructure sharing in Burundi to deliver telecom services to end users. Moreover, passive infrastructure sharing is practised in the mobile and fixed sectors based on commercial agreements.

Burundi is not a signatory of the 1996 World Trade Organization (WTO) Information Technology Agreement (ITA) nor the 2015 expansion (ITA II).

Under Art. 3 of the Terms and Conditions for Domain Name Registration and Support in the ".bg" Zone and the Sub-Zones, only Bulgarian and EU natural and legal persons can register a ".bg" domain, as well as foreigners with a right for permanent residence on these territories. Entities that do not meet these conditions must act through a representative that does.

The Consumer Rights Directive 2011/83/EU provides an updated framework aimed at encouraging online sales. The Directive has been implemented by the Consumer Protection Act of 25 July 2014. This includes comprehensive obligations to inform consumers about distance sales, a right to withdraw and rules on the recognition of digital signatures.

Bulgaria has not signed the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Contracts.

Bulgaria has not adopted national legislation based on or influenced by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Electronic Commerce.

Bulgaria has not adopted national legislation based on or influenced by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Electronic Signatures.

The Directive 2000/31/EC (E-Commerce Directive) is the legal basis governing the liability of Internet Services Providers (ISPs) in the EU Member States and includes a conditional safe harbour. Not all Member States have transposed the relevant articles consistently, leading to divergent national case law that could cause legal insecurity on an EU level.
In Bulgaria, Arts. 13-16 of the Electronic Commerce Act exclude intermediary liability in a broad range of cases, including cases where the provider has no knowledge of the transmissions, has not initiated it or has not modified it. The law implements the Directive 2000/31/EC.

It is reported that Bulgaria imposes an identity requirement for SIM registration. Anyone wanting to purchase a SIM card has to provide their national ID card or a passport in case of foreigners to activate a new prepaid SIM card.

Art. 17 of Directive 2019/790 on Copyright in the Digital Single Market (DSM Directive) mandates that providers of content-sharing services seek authorisation from rights holders and implement technical solutions to remove and prevent unauthorised uploads by their users (so-called upload filters), under penalty of losing their liability safe harbour. Further arrangements are envisaged for complaints and dispute resolution mechanisms. Such upload filters are reported to be a significant cost for online platforms. Graduated exemptions are expected to be put in place for new providers active in the EU for less than three years with a turnover under EUR 10 million, and with fewer than five million users. The provision is subject to a challenge in the Court of Justice by Poland (C-401/19). Bulgaria has not yet implemented the Directive 2019/790.