Tunisia - Visitor for business' allowed activities

1. Activities authorized as a visitor for business

If the visitor for business is an employee in a company, he is allowed to carry out only activities related to the mission to whom he is assigned in Tunisia; it means that he has to respect tightly what is certified in the letter of attachment signed by his company.

The said activities shall also be fitting his academic degrees and specialties; if he is assigned to a mission different from his specialty he has to present what proves that he conducted the same mission in his company of origin.

To be noted that when the Foreigner presents his application for a temporary visa he shall specify the reasons of his stay in Tunisia therefore he is allowed to carry out activities mentioned under these reasons, according to article 13 of the Decree n° 68-1968 of June 22, 1968 regulating the entry and the stay of foreigners in Tunisia.

In the event that the foreigner intents to conduct a business or carry out a commerce he shall, when applying for his visa, obtain an authorization from the competent authorities, according to the provisions of the same said decree.

2. Penalties for non compliance

Any employer having recruited a foreign worker shall register him within 48 hours on a special register in line with the model set by Order of the Minister of Employment. The said register shall be presented to Labour inspection agents at every request.

Any failure to present the said register or any other required document is punishable by a fine of 60 to 300 dinars. In case of recidivism, the penalty is doubled.

According to the provisions of Article 265 of the Labour Code, infringements of the provisions of the Labor Code related to the employment of a foreign worker contrary to legal requirements shall be punished by a fine of 12 to 30 dinars per day and per worker, as from the time the infringement began until the date when it was noticed.

Minutes prepared by Labour inspection agents shall specify the circumstances of the infringement and the date of its beginning notably based on documents provided by labor legislation and statements made by the company or the workers to the social security fund.

Foreign workers who violate the aforementioned provisions may be subject to an expulsion measure of the Tunisian territory by decision of the Director of the National Security Department. The decision also sets the deadline granted to the concerned workers to leave the country.

Foreign workers unduly employed should be suspended as from the observation of the infringement by the Labour inspection agents.

In case the employer does suspend the unduly employed workers, he incurs the double of the penalties provided in the article 265 of the Labor Code. The workers who continue to work despite the requisition notified by the labour inspection agents shall be punished by an imprisonment of 1 to 15 days and a fine of 120 to 300 dinars or one of the those two penalties.