Pursuant to Arts. 1 and 2 of Resolution No. 008-2022 issued by COMEX, imports classified under "Category B" must be below the annual limit of USD 1.600 in FOB value per fiscal year. Category B refers to consignments weighing no more than four kilograms and with an FOB value not exceeding USD 400, or its equivalent in another currency, provided that such goods are not intended for commercial purposes.

From 16 June 2025, COMEX Resolution No. 006-2025 amended the tariff schedule established by COMEX Resolution No. 002-2023. It replaced the 0% tariff for Category B courier parcels under subheading 9807.10.30.00 with a fixed customs duty of USD 20 per parcel.
The limits of USD 400 FOB and 4 kg per parcel remained unchanged, and Art. 2 expressly retained the annual limit of USD 1,600 FOB per recipient established by COMEX Resolution No. 008-2022. As every Category B courier parcel became subject to duty, the regime ceased to constitute a customs-duty de minimis regime.

According to Art. 415 of the Companies Law, foreign companies must appoint at least one representative to carry out all legal acts and businesses that are destined to take effect in the national territory. This representative must be able to answer the demands and comply with the obligations. In addition, they must constitute in Ecuador a capital destined for the activity to be developed.

The Consumer Protection Law and Law No. 67 establish a comprehensive regulatory framework for the protection of consumers, which extends to transactions conducted in digital environments. Chapter III of Title III of Law No. 67 concerns the rights of users or consumers of electronic services.

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

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

Art. 8 of the Regulation to the Electronic Commerce Law provides that the provision by third parties of any type of electronic services, including the sending and receiving of electronic communications, the hosting of databases, the electronic registration of data, the hosting of websites on electronic media or other similar or related services, does not give rise to liability on the part of the service provider for the content of data messages. Liability rests exclusively with the owner of the information.

Art. 37 of "Regulations Governing Subscribers to Telecommunications and Value‑Added Services" establishes that, for the provision of services under a prepaid modality, the service provider must, prior to activation, adopt all necessary measures to ensure the full identification of the subscriber or client, who must at minimum provide their full name, national identity card number, or passport number in the case of foreign nationals, together with any additional information required for verification under the applicable regulations. Art. 5 further provides that the mechanisms or procedures for contracting supplementary services, whether in prepaid or postpaid form, must be set out in the standard service agreements (adhesion contracts), and these mechanisms must ensure the full identification of the subscriber or client when accepting the conditions proposed by the provider. For postpaid services, any means that reliably guarantee full identification and acceptance of the relevant terms and conditions by the contracting parties shall be deemed valid.

Ecuador has adopted the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.

Ecuador has adopted the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty.

The Organic Code on the Social Economy of Knowledge, Creativity and Innovation, together with the Organic Law on Regulation Against Unfair Competition, establishes a robust framework for the effective protection of trade secrets. The protection of commercial secrets is also recognised in Andean Community Decision No. 486.

There is an obligation for passive infrastructure sharing in Ecuador to deliver telecom services to end users. It is practised both in the mobile and fixed sectors. The Organic Communication Law and complementary technical regulations are the theoretical frameworks for passive infrastructure sharing in Ecuador. According to Art. 3 of the Technical Standard for Shared Use of Physical Infrastructure of the General Telecommunications Regime Services, services providers related to the telecommunications sector have the obligation to share their physical infrastructure.

The Corporación Nacional de Telecomunicaciones (National Corporation of Telecommunications) is the dominant provider of fixed telecommunication services and is fully owned by the Ecuadorian Government. It was created by Executive Decree No. 218, which specifically establishes that the Ministry of Telecommunications and the Information Society, representing the State, is the sole shareholder.
La Empresa Pública Municipal de Telecomunicaciones, Agua Potable, Alcantarillado y Saneamiento de Cuenca (Etapa EP, Municipal Public Company of Telecommunications, Drinking Water, Sewage and Sanitation of Cuenca), created by a January 2010 ordinance, is another case in which the telecom operator is a state-owned enterprise. Initially created in February 1948 as Empresa Municipal de Electricidad, Agua Potable y Teléfonos (EMLAT), ETAPA EP provides municipal internet and fixed, wireless and public telephone services.

It is reported that Ecuador does not mandate functional separation for operators with significant market power (SMP) in the telecom market. However, it is reported that there is an obligation of accounting separation. Under Arts. 24 and 32 of the Organic Law on Telecommunications, telecommunications providers must submit regulatory-administrative accounting by service when required by ARCOTEL, and ARCOTEL may impose cost or regulatory accounting obligations on operators with market power or preponderance. Functional separation is not required.

Art. 40 of the Organic Communications Law provides that for the granting and renewal of licenses for the provision of telecom services, the Agency on Telecommunication Regulation and Control (Agencia de Regulación y Control de las Telecomunicaciones, ARCOTEL) will consider the need to address: technological development, market evolution, the National Telecommunications Plan, the needs for the sustained development of the sector and of the State and universal access to information and communication technologies, as well as the effective satisfaction of the public or general interest.
Art. 40 also establishes that in the case of applications for the granting of new licenses, it must be evaluated whether any company or group of companies related to the applicant of the license provides the same service or similar services and the effects that the granting of the new license required could have on the market. For this purpose, a sworn statement must be submitted. In this regard, Art. 24 of the Telecommunications and Frequencies Enabling Titles Regulation provides that no license for the rendering of telecommunications services shall be granted to natural or juridical persons who have a valid license for the rendering of the same service of the general telecommunications regime, without prejudice to the application of the criteria set forth in Art. 40 of the Organic Law of Telecommunications.