The establishment of insurance intermediary companies, including insurance or reinsurance broker, insurance agent or life insurance producer, requires an authorisation which may only be granted to qualified Tunisian nationals and to legal persons in which qualified Tunisian nationals are in charge of their direction and management.
"Article 2: Within the meaning of this government decree, the following terms mean:
Authorizations: the prior approval granted by the administrative authority to the applicant fulfilling the legal conditions required for the exercise of the economic activity or for the realization of a project. The concessions granted by the competent authorities, the licenses subject to a call for tenders or the authorizations granted by the assembly of the representatives of the people within the meaning of the article 13 of the constitution.
[...]
Article 3: The exercise of economic activities related to the following sectors and provided for in Annex 1 of this Governmental Decree requires the prior approval of the competent administrative authority:
- natural resources and useful substances,
- land, sea and air transport,
- banks, finance, insurance and the financial market,
- dangerous or polluting industries,
- health,
- teaching,
- telecommunications,
- some commercial activities and some service activities.
Annex 1 of this Governmental Decree exclusively sets the detailed list of economic activities in the aforementioned sectors requiring an authorization as well as the deadlines, procedures and conditions for granting them.
[...]
Article 5: Annex 3 of this Governmental Decree establishes the list of administrative authorizations for the realization of a project, the deadlines, the procedures and the conditions for their granting provided for by the legislative and regulatory texts in force on the date of publication. of this government decree.
Annex 1: List of authorizations relating to economic activities, their deadlines, procedures and conditions for granting [...]
3. List of authorizations relating to the activities of the banking and financial sector, insurance and the financial market
20. Authorization to create insurance companies
Terms :
1. The company must be governed by Tunisian law.
2. It must take the form of a public limited company or a mutual company or an agricultural mutual fund.
[...]
21. Establishment of non-resident insurance and reinsurance business (under an agreement)
Terms :
1. Insurance against risks not taking place in Tunisia and insurance for persons not resident in Tunisia.
2. Approval of the Minister of Finance of the officer of the company or the branch.
3. Conclusion of an agreement with the Minister of Finance to benefit from the privileges.
[...]
22. Authorization to exercise the activity of insurance agent or to exercise the activity of life insurance producer
Terms :
1. Have Tunisian nationality.
[...]
23. Authorization to exercise the activity of insurance or reinsurance broker
Terms :
1. Have Tunisian nationality.[...]" (Decree No. 2018-417 of May 11 , 2018 relating to the publication of the exclusive list of economic activities subject to authorization and the list of administrative authorizations required for the realization of projects, the related provisions and their simplification.)
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"Art. 2. - Natural and legal persons, who do not have Tunisian nationality, may directly or indirectly exercise a commercial activity only under the conditions defined by the texts in force and the provisions of this decree-law.
Art. 3. - Legal persons have Tunisian nationality when they meet all of the following conditions:
1. be constituted in accordance with the laws in force and have their registered office in Tunisia;
2. have their capital represented at least 50% by registered securities held by Tunisian natural or legal persons;
3. have their board of directors, management or supervision, made up in majority by natural persons of Tunisian nationality;
4. have their presidency, their general direction or their management ensured by natural persons of Tunisian nationality.
For public limited companies, and in the event of dissociation between the functions of chairman of the board of directors and those of managing director, the managing director must have the status of resident within the meaning of the foreign exchange regulations in force.
In addition, Tunisian companies having their head office in Tunisia and in which the State or local public authorities directly or indirectly hold a capital participation.
[...]
Art. 8. - The exercise of the following activities, in any form whatsoever, and whatever the mode of their taxation [...] is, except exemption granted by the Secretary of State for Planning and Finance, prohibited to natural or legal persons, not possessing Tunisian nationality:
1- building manager;
2- commission agent, broker, commercial agent;
3- general or special agent of insurance companies;
4- concessionaire, consignee, general representative, general or sales agent, whatever the name under which this activity is carried out;
5- traveler, usher, sales representative. [...]" (Decree-Law on the conditions for exercising certain commercial activities (n° 61-14 of 30 August 1961), as amended by Law n° 85-84 of 11 August 1985, Articles 2, 3 and 8 [google translation])
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"CHAPTER I - INSURANCE COMPANIES AND REINSURANCE COMPANIES)
Section I. – Approval
Article 48.- Are considered as "insurance companies" and therefore subject to approval, all companies which engage, as a regular activity, in the subscription and execution of insurance contracts such as defined in article 1 of this code.
"Companies specializing in reinsurance are considered to be companies which engage exclusively, as a usual activity, in the operations of acceptance and transfer of risks and which do not practice the subscription and execution of insurance contracts. are, therefore, subject, within a period of one month from the date of their constitution, to the obligation to inform the Minister of Finance and to send him a file, the content of which is fixed by decree. (Added by article 3 of law n° 2002-37 of April 1, 2002).
“Approval applications and information files are sent to the committee which examines them. To this end, he is authorized to request all the information and documents he deems necessary. (Paragraph 3 added by article 4 of law n° 2008-
8 of February 13, 2008)
Article 49.- Insurance companies are required to indicate, when applying for approval, the category or categories of insurance that they intend to operate.
The list of insurance categories is fixed by order of the “Minister of Finance on a proposal from the committee”(1).
[...]
Section V. – Non-resident insurance and reinsurance companies
Article 67.- Insurance or reinsurance organizations working mainly with non-residents and branches in Tunisia of foreign insurance and reinsurance organizations may be admitted to carry out insurance in Tunisia of risks other than those whose hedging must be carried out locally under article 44 of this Code.
These bodies may, by virtue of "an agreement concluded on the advice of the committee between the Minister of Finance and the insurer or reinsurer concerned",(1) benefit from the regime provided for by law no. 85-108 of 6 December 1985 encouraging financial and banking organizations mainly with non-residents.
The aforementioned agreement will determine in particular the scope of activity as well as the terms and conditions for granting the benefit of the said regime provided for by the aforementioned law and will be ratified by decree. (Paragraph 3 modified by article 5 of law n°2008-8 of February 13, 2008)
Article 68 - The organizations referred to in article 67 of the present Code as well as the reinsurance companies not having their head office in Tunisia and previously approved, must present for the acceptance of the Minister of Finance an agent specially proposed to the management of all the operations they propose to perform in Tunisia.
[...]
CHAPTER II - INTERMEDIARIES, INSURANCE ADJUSTERS AND DAMAGE COMMISSIONERS
Section I. – Intermediaries
Article 69.- Insurance operations may be presented to the public through the following intermediaries:
1) The insurance broker: The insurance broker is the person bringing together policyholders and insurance or reinsurance companies without being bound in the choice of these for the purpose of insuring or reinsure risks. The broker is the agent of the insured and is responsible towards him.
2) The insurance agent: The insurance agent is the person charged under a mandate to conclude insurance contracts in the name and on behalf of one or more insurance companies. He exercises individually or within the framework of a professional civil society.
3) The life insurance producer: the life insurance producer is the natural person, salaried or not, mandated by a company carrying out life insurance operations. The producer's activity is limited to the presentation of contracts and possibly the collection of premiums. The life insurance producer can only represent one insurance company.
[...]
Article 70.- With the exception of banking establishments, micro-finance institutions and the national post office, the persons referred to in article 69 of this code must prove that they possess a professional card and their registration in a register kept for this purpose by the departments of the General Insurance Committee, in order to be able to present insurance transactions. (Repealed and replaced by art. 9 of decree-law no. 2011-117 of November 5, 2011)
The register referred to in the preceding paragraph of this article comprises three sections according to the category of intermediaries.
These sections are:
- Section 1: Brokers and insurance brokerage firms.
- Section 2: Insurance agents and companies of insurance agents.
- Section 3: Life insurance producers.
Article 71.- The professional card referred to in Article 70 of this Code is issued by the “general insurance committee”(1) after consulting a commission whose composition and operating rules are fixed by decree.
Article 72.- Any insurance intermediary may hold only one professional card.
Article 73.- The professional card can only be granted to the natural person if he meets the following conditions:
1) Be of Tunisian nationality. [...]
The professional card can only be granted to legal persons if the natural persons in charge of their direction and management meet the conditions provided for in this article. [...]" (Law n° 92-24 of March 9, 1992, promulgating the insurance code, as amended [google translation])
Decree No. 2018-417 of May 11, 2018 relating to the publication of the exclusive list of economic activities subject to authorization and the list of authorizations administrative requirements for carrying out projects, the related provisions and their simplification [google translation]
Decree-Law on the conditions for exercising certain commercial activities (n° 61-14 of 30 August 1961), as amended by Law n° 85-84 of 11 August 1985, Articles 2, 3 and 8 [google translation]
Law n° 92-24 of March 9, 1992, promulgating the insurance code, as amended [google translation]
[<a href="https://www.pist.tn/record/76961?ln=en">Decree</a>],[<a href="https://www.pist.tn/record/106431?ln=fr">Decree-Law</a>],[<a href="https://www.pist.tn/record/113253?ln=en">Code</a>],[<a href="https://www.cga.gov.tn/fileadmin/contenus/pdf/Code_Assurance_Version_FR.pdf">Code_amend</a>]