Engaging a contractor in Tunisia means contracting with an individual or a company that invoices you, and the contractor settles their own tax. A Tunisian national working alone can register as an auto-entrepreneur with turnover up to TND 75,000 a year; others invoice under another form and pay income tax on a progressive scale up to 40%. The legal risk is classification: Law 2025-9 of May 2025 criminalised labour subcontracting, with fines of TND 10,000, doubled for legal entities. This guide covers the contractor’s status and tax, reclassification, the contract and the payer’s paperwork. Payments are on our Tunisia payouts page. It is general information, not legal advice.
The contractor’s status
Auto-entrepreneur. Created by decree-law 2020-33 of 10 June 2020 and substantially amended by the 2023 Finance Law, the regime is for a Tunisian national working alone, with annual turnover up to TND 75,000 (webmanagercenter.com, checked 2026-10-26). We did not confirm the current tax and contribution rates from an official text, so ask the contractor what they pay and what their registration covers.
Other forms. A contractor above the ceiling, a foreign national, or a company invoices under its own form. Ask for the registration details and an invoice for each payment.
The contractor’s tax
Resident individuals pay income tax on a progressive scale from 1 January 2025: 0% up to TND 5,000, 15% to 10,000, 25% to 20,000, 30% to 30,000, 33% to 40,000, 36% to 50,000, 38% to 70,000 and 40% above (PwC Tax Summaries, reviewed 2026-06-29, checked 2026-10-26). A social solidarity contribution is added on top. We found no Tunisian rule making a payer with no Tunisian entity withhold on fees paid to a resident individual; a Tunisian company paying a resident is a different case, so take local advice. A contractor quoting a net rate must cover their own tax.
Reclassification risk
Law 2025-9 of 21 May 2025, published on 23 May 2025, prohibits labour subcontracting and makes it an offence, with fines of TND 10,000, doubled for legal entities. Only service contracts that meet all three conditions are allowed: the services need professional knowledge or technical specialisation, they fall outside the beneficiary’s principal and permanent activity, and the workers are not placed under its direction or control (DLA Piper, checked 2026-10-26). Workers placed through subcontracting companies are treated as permanent employees of the beneficiary from 23 May 2025 (same source).
The law is aimed at placing workers with a beneficiary company, and a direct contract with an independent person is a different structure. The three tests are still the best guide to what an inspector will look at. Core product work, your hours and tools, a single client and an open-ended retainer are the facts that point to a job (contractor misclassification). Remote’s Tunisia page also warns that misclassification may lead to fines and penalties (remote.com, checked 2026-10-26). If the role is a job, hire through an EOR; see Employer of Record.
What to put in the contract
- A written services agreement scoped to deliverables, with the fee, currency, receiving account and who bears transfer charges.
- An invoice for every payment, matched to the payment reference.
- IP assignment in writing, naming the rights transferred. We did not verify Tunisia’s default rule for commissioned software, so do not rely on one; ask local counsel about formalities.
- Independence markers: the contractor’s own equipment and schedule, the right to work for others, a fee tied to deliverables, and no place in your reporting line.
Taxes and paperwork
The contractor’s side. Register in the form that fits, invoice each payment and declare income tax.
The client’s side. US payers collect a W-8BEN from an individual and file no 1099: pay for work done in Tunisia is foreign-source income (irs.gov, checked 2026-10-26), and Tunisia is on the IRS list of US income tax treaties (irs.gov, checked 2026-10-26). Keep the contract, invoices and proof of payment.
How to pay contractors in Tunisia
Wise delivers dinars to a Tunisian bank account identified by IBAN (wise.com, checked 2026-10-26), and a SWIFT wire is the alternative. Resident foreign currency accounts began on 1 January 2026 for individual Tunisian nationals, with Central Bank rules still pending (irbe7.com, checked 2026-10-26). Rails, costs and platforms are compared on our Tunisia payouts page.
Contractor of Record in Tunisia
A Contractor of Record is the contracting party for the contractor and reduces reclassification risk; it does not remove it. In Tunisia the work still has to look independent. The COR also collects invoices, keeps contracts consistent across a team and flags engagements that look like dependency. Read the liability clause in the contract rather than the product name. Where the role is a job, hire through an EOR instead. Compare providers in our COR rating.