Somalia has not adopted the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Commerce.

Somalia has not adopted the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Signatures.

Somalia lacks a consumer protection law.

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

Art. 19 (g) of the Regulation of Company Law No. 001/2021 requires that there should be legal representative of the foreign company based in Somalia.

The Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Act mandates financial institutions to verify and authenticate the identities of their clients and to notify the relevant authorities of any doubtful transactions. As stated in Art. 9 of the Act, financial institutions are obligated to evaluate and manage the risks of money laundering and terrorist financing associated with all financial products and services, including remote transactions and innovative technologies, for all types of clients. It is reported that, as a result of the regulation, the agencies that are based outside of Somalia are confronted with high challenges when transferring money into Somalia as they are heavily scrutinized. The banks, including those in Kenya where most NGOs that operate in Somalia are based, are being encouraged to become stricter when transferring funds to Somalia.

The country lacks a de minimis threshold, which is the minimum value of goods below which customs do not charge duties and taxes.

Regulation 001/2021 (Table 3) imposes a cost of USD 300 for the service license "Internet and ICT Services". A government website also states that there is a specific license for "E-Commerce" (USD 300).

Art. 24 of the Mobile Money Regulation states that the Central Bank may from time to time and in consultation with mobile money service providers set transaction limits for mobile money service providers, their agents and consumers including daily and periodic limits.

According to the V-dem dataset, for the variable "v2smgovshut_osp" Somalia showed a 3.066 out of 4, indicating there have been a few occasions throughout the year 2021 that the government shutdown domestic access to Internet.

Regulation 001/2021 (Table 3) imposes a cost of USD 300 for the service license "Internet and ICT Services". A government website also states that there is a specific license for "Website Newspaper" (USD 300).

It is reported that the Government of Somalia and the regional administration of Somaliland have blocked web content and platforms several times during the last years. In 2017, the Somaliland electoral commission asked telephone companies to block over a dozen social media platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, to prevent hate speech and fake news, while additional reports of blocking of independent news are found in 2019. In 2019, the Somali government temporarily blocked social media platforms during high school exams to prevent cheating and exam leaks. The blocking took place for 5 days and affected social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, and YouTube.

Art. 24 (b) of the Media Law Ref: 075/07 stipulates that it inadmissible is to print, publicize or reproduce written materials, literature, pictures and films without the reception of approval from the person directly concerned. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), the Media Law gives the government broad powers to control and censor the media.

In Somalia, there is no safe harbor that protects intermediaries from liability in case of any unlawful activity of the users other than copyright infringement.