Art. L.1211-6 of the Commercial Code provides that any legal entity whose head office is located abroad and which undertakes a commercial activity in the Republic of Djibouti must, within one month from the start of this activity, require the registration of a branch in the Republic of Djibouti. This request is to be filed with the registry responsible for maintaining the Register of Commerce and Companies. The Code defines commercial activity as including e-commerce.

It is reported that government advertising is exclusively carried by state-controlled media, as there is no effective regulation in place governing advertising practices within the media.

It is reported that the government requires independent news and entertainment platforms to receive a special license from the Ministry of Communication and that this procedure makes the usage of social media difficult. It is also reported that the National Communication Commission, a branch of the Ministry of Communication, issues licenses to operate social media accounts and that it is selective in granting such licences.

It is reported that Djibouti has import restrictions in place on transceiver devices, which require authorisation from the Ministry of Communication, which is in charge of Posts and Telecommunications. A transceiver is a combination transmitter/receiver in a single package. While the term typically applies to wireless communications devices, it can also be used for transmitter/receiver devices in cable or optical fibre systems. For fibre optic transceivers, the most widely used HS Code is 851762, falling under “Machines for the reception, conversion and transmission or regeneration of voice, image or other data, including switching and routing apparatus”, a code included in the original Information Technology Agreement.

According to Art. L.1211-16 of the Commercial Code, any natural or legal person (of Djiboutian or foreign nationality) wishing to undertake commercial activities, including imports, is subject to registration in the Register of Commerce and must register with the Directorate-General of Taxation to obtain an importer's licence.
In addition, Art. 196 provides the conditions for the issuance or renewal of any import license, which must be subject to the production of the relevant proof of insurance document.

Art. 1 of Law No. 100/An/20/8Th L establishes the Djibouti Standards and Quality Agency (ADN), which ensures the development and approval of standards, the management of metrology-related matters, and the assessment of conformity to standards. However, it is reported that the ADN is not yet operational. In practice, the Sub-Directorate of Quality Control and Standards controls conformity in conjunction with the laboratory of the Djibouti Study and Research Centre (CERD) and issues marketing licences and certificates of conformity with Djiboutian technical regulations for the products concerned, following analyses carried out by CERD.

Djibouti has appended the World Trade Organization (WTO) Telecom Reference Paper to its schedule of commitments.

Art. 2 of Law No. 074/AN/20/8ème L provides for the establishment of the Multisectoral Regulatory Authority of Djibouti, which is a legal entity of public law, independent, with financial autonomy and management. The Authority is responsible for inter alia telecommunications and ICT.

It is reported that Djibouti has not joined any agreement with binding commitments to open transfers of data across borders.

Djibouti does not have a comprehensive regime in place for all personal data, but Art. 13 of the Constitution protects the secrecy of correspondence and all other means of communication.

A basic legal framework on intermediary liability for copyright infringement is absent in Djibouti's law and jurisprudence.

A basic legal framework on intermediary liability beyond copyright infringement is absent in Djibouti's law and jurisprudence.

It is reported that passport registration is required when buying a SIM card in Djibouti, a copy is taken in the shop.

It is reported that in 2021, Djibouti Telecom, the state-owned internet provider, blocked access to websites of the Association for Respect for Human Rights in Djibouti, a local NGO, and the independent streaming platform La Voix de Djibouti (LVD). Moreover, access to some social media has been restricted.

The indicator "6.2.4 - Government Internet shut down in practice" of the V-Dem Dataset, which measures whether the government has the technical capacity to actively make internet service cease, thus interrupting domestic access to the internet or whether the government has decided to do so, has a score of 3 in Djibouti for the year 2023. This corresponds to "Rarely but there have been a few occasions throughout the year when the government shut down domestic access to Internet."