Chad has not joined any free trade agreement committing to open transfers of cross-border data flows.

Law Law No. 007/PR/2015 on the Protection of Personal Data provides a comprehensive regime of data protection in Chad. The Law encompasses various aspects, including general notifications related to data processing, the rights of data subjects, security obligations, and contractual requirements for data controllers and processors. Additionally, relevant regulations can be found in Decree No. 075/PR/2019, which implements the provisions of Law No. 007/PR/2015, as well as in Law No. 008/PR/2015 concerning electronic transactions, and Law No. 009/PR/ on cybersecurity and cybercrime.

Art. 61 of Law No. 009 of 2015 on Cybersecurity and Cybercrime mandates operators of information systems to retain connection and traffic data for ten years. According to Art. 4, an information system means any isolated device or set of interconnected or related devices, ensuring by itself or by one or more of its elements, according to a program, an automated data processing. This is despite the sub-regional legislation of CEMAC, to which Chad belongs, providing for a maximum duration of two years, during which the States can allow operators to keep traffic data for security reasons.

Art. 51 of Law No. 009 of 2015 on Cybersecurity and Cybercrime mandates communications service providers to retain data that enables the identification of any person who contributed to content creation in services they provide for ten years. According to Art. 4, a communication service is a service consisting entirely or mainly of the provision of electronic communications, excluding the contents of audiovisual communication services). This is despite the sub-regional legislation of CEMAC, to which Chad belongs, providing for a maximum duration of two years, during which the States can allow operators to keep traffic data for security reasons.

Chad has not signed the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.

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

Chad does not have comprehensive trade secret legislation. Yet, there are provisions addressing disclosure, acquisition or use of confidential information in the course of industrial or commercial activities by third parties in Art. 6 of Annex VIII of the Bangui Agreement ratified by 17 French-speaking States, including Chad, since 2002.

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

Law No. 006/PR/2008 defines the regulation of foreign investment in Chad. It has been reported that certain sectors are closed or restricted de facto under this legislation. These include fixed telephony services, which are reserved for state enterprises. It is also reported that the only limit on foreign control is on ownership of companies deemed related to national security. Art. 11 stipulates that private investments are permitted in Chad, subject to specific provisions designed to ensure that the State's economic and social policy is respected, particularly regarding the protection of health, safety and public hygiene, social protection and environmental protection.

Groupe Sotel Tchad, the main fixed-line operator, is reportedly fully state-owned.

It is reported that Chad mandates functional and accounting separation for operators with significant market power (SMP) in the telecom market.

Airtel Chad and Tigo Chad have stated that they were obliged to comply with orders from the government to shut down the internet and limit access to social media in certain regions of the country for a period of 16 months. The operators stated that this obligation emanated from their license conditions with the ARCEP (the regulatory authority for electronic communications and postal services), which require them to cooperate with government authorities and, if necessary, restrict access to the networks in the interest of national security. The text of the agreements is not publicly available.

Chad has not appended the World Trade Organization (WTO) Telecom Reference Paper to its schedule of commitments.

Chad has a telecommunications authority: Electronic Communications and Postal Regulatory Authority (ARCEP). However, it is reported that this entity is not fully independent.

It is reported that the government employs a holistic, project-by-project approach in its investment screening mechanisms. However, no fixed criteria or standardised methodology have been made publicly available.