Somalia is not a signatory of the 1996 World Trade Organization (WTO) Information Technology Agreement (ITA) nor the 2015 expansion (ITA II). Somalia is not a member of the WTO but holds observer status.

Art. 34 of the Public Procurement, Concessions and Disposal Act establishes a margin of domestic preference. A Procuring Entity may grant a margin of domestic preference in the evaluation of bids under open competitive bidding to (a) Bids offering goods that are manufactured, mined, extracted, or grown in the Federal Republic of Somalia when compared to bids offering goods manufactured, mined, extracted or grown in a foreign country; and (b) Bids by domestic contractors when compared to bids offered by foreign contractors. The margin of domestic preference shall be 15% for goods and 10% for contractors, which shall be stated in the bidding documents.
When there is an interest in the development of a target group of providers, a community, or a sub-sector of the economy, the Procuring Entity may decide to limit participation by applying a preference scheme in its procurement proceedings.

Somalia is not a party to the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA), nor does it have observer status.

The Foreign Investment Law of 2015 of the Republic of Somalia does not impose restrictions on foreign equity ownership.

Art. 19 (f) of Law No. 001/2021 stipulates that to register a foreign company branch in Somalia, the names and passports of the director or directors of the foreign company based in Somalia must accompany the company registration application documents. This suggests that, in order to register a foreign company in Somalia, some directors should be based in Somalia.

According to the 2015 Foreign Investment Law, all foreign investors are required to obtain a certificate from the Foreign Investment Board in order to invest in the country. Pursuant to Art. 8, foreign investors must complete the investment application form at the Ministry of National Planning and submit it by registered mail to the Foreign Investment Board. As provided in Art. 9, the Board must notify the applicant of its decision within sixty days of receiving a complete application, and any approval is formalised through the issuance of a foreign investment certificate, which is valid for 24 months from the date of issuance.

The Consumer Protection Act 2020 (No. 7) and the Electronic Transactions Act 2019 (No. 11) provide a comprehensive framework for consumer protection that also applies to online transactions. Although online purchases are not explicitly mentioned in the Consumer Protection Act, the law seems to apply to the supply of all goods and services in trade or commerce in the country, according to Section 1 of the Act. On the other hand, Sections 13-21 of the Electronic Transaction Act specifically make provisions for consumer protection in electronic transactions.

Sierra Leone has signed but not ratified the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Contracts.

Sierra Leone has adopted national legislation based on or influenced by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Electronic Commerce.

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

Sierra Leone does not apply the de minimis rule, that is the minimum value of goods below which customs do not charge duties. According to Section 24 of the Customs Act, levies are charged and collected on all goods imported into the country. Also, the value of an imported good is not a criterion for exemption, according to Section 11 of the Goods and Services Tax Act. It is, however, reported that there is an informal threshold of USD 100.

Section 22 of the Telecommunications Subscribers Regulations noted that subscribers' personal information may be released to law enforcement agencies with a written request from a senior officer of the security/law enforcement agency. The request has to be sent to the Commission stating the information needed and the purpose, according to Section 24. There is no specific provision that this request has to go through a judicial process.

The Electronic Transactions Act establishes a safe harbour regime for intermediaries for copyright infringements. Section 22 of the Act exempts intermediaries from the legal responsibilities and liabilities associated with any illegal and harmful activities performed by their users on their platforms or through their networks if they are unaware of these activities, do not financially benefit from the activities, and if they remove/restrict the content within a reasonable amount of time after discovering the activities.