In a move that signals a potential shift in North Africa’s financial landscape, the Tunisian Parliament adopted a pivotal amendment to the 2026 Finance Law on Tuesday, December 2, 2025. The new article authorizes Tunisian residents to open foreign currency bank accounts — a privilege previously restricted to non-residents and specific corporate entities.

The text was approved with 69 votes in favor, 17 abstentions, and 17 votes against.

This legislative change represents a break from decades of strict foreign exchange controls in Tunisia, where the circulation of foreign currency has historically been tightly policed to protect the Tunisian dinar. For the country’s tech ecosystem, which has long lobbied for the right to hold assets in Euros or Dollars, the vote addresses a critical bottleneck.

The “Digital” Driver

The primary catalyst for this reform is the undeniable reality of the digital economy. MP Yassine Mami, a co-sponsor of the bill, framed the legislation as a necessary catch-up mechanism for institutions that have lagged behind the market.

“Opening foreign currency accounts for Tunisians residing in Tunisia is an important step in encouraging ambitious young people who want to work legally, especially those operating in the digital sector,” Mami stated following the vote

For years, Tunisian freelancers and remote workers have generated income via international platforms like Upwork and various design or coding marketplaces. However, receiving payments has been a logistical nightmare due to the lack of full PayPal integration and banking restrictions. Many professionals were forced to:

• Use expensive intermediaries to repatriate funds.
• Keep funds in offshore digital wallets (often in a legal gray area).
• Relocate purely to access standard banking tools.

The measure implements Article 18 of Law №76 of 1976, the statute that restructures and codifies the country’s foreign exchange and foreign trade regime. The objective is to streamline procedures and update the legal framework. Under the new law, individuals can receive payments directly in foreign currencies and choose whether to convert them to dinars or hold them. Proponents argue this will channel informal flows into the formal banking system, strengthening the country’s reserves rather than fueling the black market.

A Reversal of the 2024 Rejection

The approval comes just one year after a similar measure was defeated. In November 2024, during debates on the 2025 Finance Bill, a comparable proposal (Article 67) was rejected by a narrow margin (51 against, 48 for).

At the time, Finance Minister Sihem Boughdiri Nemsia strongly opposed the measure. Her arguments reflected the traditional anxieties of the Central Bank of Tunisia (BCT):

1. Parallel Market Risks: Fear that resident forex accounts would encourage speculation against the dinar.
2. Money Laundering: Concerns over the traceability of incoming funds.
3. Remittances: The potential reduction in immediate conversion of diaspora funds, which are vital for the national balance of payments.

The reversal in 2025 suggests that the need to stimulate the local economy and retain digital talent has finally outweighed the fear of monetary instability.

The Startup Reality Check

While the legislative vote is a victory, the practical implementation remains the true test. Tunisia’s Startup Act of 2018 was globally lauded for offering tax breaks and “leave for business creation,” but it also promised easier access to foreign currency — a promise that many founders say went unfulfilled.

Yahya Bouhlel, co-founder of the edtech startup GoMyCode, which has expanded across Africa and the Middle East, has previously highlighted the disparity between policy on paper and banking reality.

“Going international for a Tunisian startup is almost impossible,” Bouhlel noted in previous discussions regarding the ecosystem. 

Despite having “Startup Label” status, which theoretically grants the right to a foreign currency account, companies often face months of bureaucratic delays seeking BCT approval. Consequently, GoMyCode established its headquarters in the Netherlands to facilitate fundraising and foreign shareholder management, while maintaining operations in Tunis.

The new law aims to remove the need for such circumvention, potentially allowing startups to keep their fiscal HQs domestic.

What Comes Next?

The ball is now in the court of the Central Bank of Tunisia. The law requires the BCT to draft the implementation circulars that will define:

• The caps on amounts that can be held.
• The specific eligibility criteria for “residents.
• Compliance mechanisms for banks to verify the source of funds.

Parliamentary sources indicate this is part of a broader package intended to modernize international payment regulations. However, banks must now adapt their compliance frameworks to manage these accounts without stifling the user experience.

For the thousands of Tunisian developers, designers, and consultants working globally, the vote is a sign that the state is finally ready to acknowledge their economic contribution. As MP Mami noted, it is a move to let young Tunisians “fully participate in the global digital economy without the obstacles that previously hampered their progress.”