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

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

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

Art. 32 of Telecommunications Code Telecommunications terminal equipment imported or manufactured in Tunisia and intended for marketing or public use, as well as radio terminal equipment, whether or not intended for connection to the public telecommunications network, are subject to prior authorisation. Decree No. 48-2020 regulates the terms and conditions of this authorisation. Art. 6 of Government Decree No. 48-2020 provides that these products must first be approved by type, brand and model by the Centre d'Etudes et de Recherche des Télécommunications (CERT, Telecommunications Research and Studies Center). Art. 11 states that the CERT is responsible, in collaboration with the bodies concerned in the field of telecommunications, for drawing up the technical requirements for approval and technical conformity.
The Tunisian Accreditation Council (TUNAC) evaluates and accredits conformity assessment bodies and it has implemented mutual recognition agreements with the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) and the European Cooperation for Accreditation (EA) for the accreditation of laboratories for analysis, testing, and calibration. Yet, it is reported that local testing is required for new approvals.

Arts. 9 and 87 of the Telecommunications Code ban the use of encryption and prescribe penalties of up to five years in prison for unauthorised use of such tools.

Art. 8 of Government Decree No. 2020-48 provides that any natural person or legal entity wishing to approve telecommunications equipment or radio equipment enabling the encryption of data exchanged over telecommunications networks is required to declare to the Centre d'Etudes et de Recherche des Télécommunications (CERT, Telecommunications Research and Studies Center) the technical characteristics of the encryption method. The CERT examines the content of the declaration, checks that it complies with the encryption method used in the equipment, and decides on the application for approval.

According to Arts. 14-18 of the Circular 2016-9 of the Central Bank of Tunisia on transfers for current operations, amended by Circular No. 2019-2, online cross-border purchases are limited to certain online telecommunication services listed in Annex 1, and it is not possible to purchase services not included in the list of Annex 1. The list of commercial operations for which a user can make a payment online is quite limited and does not include e-retail. Among the permitted activities, are the reservation of hotels abroad and the payment of tariffs for the import of goods. In addition, Art. 15 of Circular lets Tunisian residents with at least a high school diploma use a special "International Technology Card" for those online payments that are allowed with a maximum annual limit of TND 1,000 (approx. 320 USD) for specific online expenses. The Circular was amended by Circular No. 2019-2, updating Art.14, which set the highest annual limit for this special card at TND 10,000 (approx. 3,200 USD) for resident companies. Companies with the "startup" label have a maximum yearly allocation of TND 100,000 (approx. 32,000 USD).

Art. 8 of Decree-Law No. 14-1961 prohibits foreigners from engaging in certain specified business activities, such as wholesale distribution and retail trading, except where the Minister of Trade grants a waiver. Foreigners wishing to engage in commercial activity are required to obtain a foreigner’s trading permit from the Minister of Commerce. This applies to any form of provision of commerce, including e-commerce. This text has not been revised since 1985.

It is reported that there are restrictions on international payments due to Tunisia’s foreign exchange regulations as well as the non-convertibility of the TND. Tunisian credit cards are not approved for transactions in currencies other than the TND and, therefore, cannot be used for purchases made on foreign commercial internet sites. This prevents Tunisian residents from making transactions on international e-commerce sites such as eBay, Amazon, and AliExpress unless they obtain a “Digital Technology Charge Card” issued by the Government. This card was launched in 2015 by the Ministry of Communication Technologies and Digital Economy with Circular 2015-5 of the Tunisian Central Bank. The card can be obtained only by Tunisians with college degrees, and it allows cardholders to make online purchases of software, mobile applications, web services, and publications in support of entrepreneurial activities. Individual users are limited to TND 1,000 (approx. USD 377) in annual purchases (Art. 1). The program has been expanded to include Tunisian IT companies, which are allotted up to TND 10,000 (approx. USD 3,770) annually to purchase online services, including server hosting and freelance programming services.

It is reported that Tunisia does not implement any de minimis threshold, which is the minimum value of goods below which customs do not charge duties.

According to Art. 8.1 of the Decision of the National Telecommunication Authority No. 141-2013, local domain name registration including ".com.tn" is restricted and limited to the following eligibility criteria: legal entities constituted according to the Tunisian laws in force, holders or legal representatives of an international trademark registered in Tunisia, natural persons of legal age of Tunisian nationality or officially residents in Tunisia.

Decree No. 94-1744 was implemented by the Order of the Minister of Trade and Crafts of 15 September 2005, which amended the Order of the Minister of National Economy of 30 August 1994 to define the list of products subject to technical import control. Arts. 3–10 of the Decree establish a technical import control system, which varies depending on the nature of the product. There are three types of controls, generally conducted at the point of clearance before Customs authorises release:
- List A products are subject to systematic control;
- List B products require a certificate of compliance;
- List C products must meet specific technical specifications.
For List A products—such as telecommunications equipment and computers—technical control is systematic and may take different forms, including a desk review of documents, sample testing, physical inspection of goods, or laboratory analysis. However, reports indicate that the specific procedures for control are unclear, granting discretionary power to technical control authorities. Additionally, it is reported that controls are not based on risk analysis, Tunisian technical norms have not been notified to the WTO.

Arts. 5-9 of Circular 94-14 prohibits the export of foreign currency from Tunisia as payment for imports prior to the presentation of documents to the importer’s bank confirming shipment of the merchandise from the country of origin. In addition, the Central Bank of Tunisia prohibits Tunisian purchasers from using foreign currency to pay for specific imported goods until their banks confirm that they have sufficient foreign currency in their accounts. It is reported that these requirements are a source of confusion and difficulty for some foreign companies.

It is reported that customs processing remains cumbersome. The inconsistent application of customs processes within the Tunisian Customs Administration is reported to be a significant obstacle for importers. Risk management and other targeting activities are primarily conducted manually, involving the review of large volumes of entry documents in paper form.

Under Presidential Decree No. 2024-97 (30 January 2024), Tunisia extended the nationwide state of emergency until December 2024. The ongoing state of emergency has been in effect continuously since November 2015, and has been extended multiple times under the 1978 Emergency Decree (No. 78-50), which reportedly allows them to access electronic devices without a court order.