Côte d'Ivoire Rewrote Its Investment Code in 2024. The Official Fact Sheets Did Not.
Since Ordinance No. 2024-857 of 30 September 2024, full customs exemption at set-up applies only to category 1 sectors; every other eligible sector gets 50%. Suspended VAT must be paid back, and the excluded list is longer.
The public-service portal page dates from 2016 and the CEPICI sheet shows 2018 thresholds, so a business plan built on them overstates the benefit. Redo the customs and VAT lines before you file.
Search for "investment approval Côte d'Ivoire" and you will land on a clean official page on the public service portal. It has one flaw: it was last updated on 8 November 2016.
Since then the Investment Code was rewritten in 2018, amended in 2019, and tightened again by Ordinance No. 2024-857 of 30 September 2024. The page has not moved.
The problem is not the page. It is the business plan built on top of it.
What the 2024 ordinance cut
Customs. During the set-up phase, an approved project imports its equipment, machinery and first batch of spare parts on favourable terms. Since 2024, the full exemption applies only to category 1: agriculture, health, agro-processing of local raw materials, secondary and tertiary wood processing, large hotels. Every other eligible sector gets a 50% reduction. Half, not all.
VAT. It is still suspended during set-up. At the end of that phase it becomes payable. It is no longer a gift; it is a cash advance from the State, and the State will ask for it back.
Exclusions. Trade, banking, non-industrial buildings and the liberal professions were already out. The ordinance adds, among others: primary wood processing, cement plants, concrete batching plants, packaging of imported goods, imported packaging and gas cylinders, used vehicles, tarpaulin rental, warehouses, tobacco and alcoholic beverages.
The factory, yes. The container you repack and resell, no.
What did not change
Entry thresholds, excluding VAT and working capital: CFA 50 million for an SME, CFA 200 million for a large company. Below that, there is no approval, only the declaration regime, which grants operating-phase benefits alone.
The operating phase is unchanged since 2018. Category 1 gets exemptions on profit tax, business licence tax, property tax and the employer contribution, for five years in Abidjan, ten in regional capitals and fifteen elsewhere. Category 2 gets a tax credit on the amount invested, from 25% for a large company in Abidjan to 75% for an SME in zone C.
Geography pays more than sector. The code rewards leaving Abidjan; yet CEPICI reports that 53% of the amounts approved in 2025 stayed there.
Two official sheets, two answers
The public service page dates from 2016. CEPICI's own fact sheet, posted in February 2025, is newer but still shows 2018 thresholds for strategic projects: CFA 75 and 50 billion in zones B and C. The code in force says 100, 50 and 15 billion depending on the zone.
Two official documents, two answers, and neither matches the text. An investor who reads the wrong sheet files the wrong application, and finds out at the audit.
The approval circuit moved up a floor
The legal deadline for a decision is still 21 days. From when? The implementing decree counts from filing; CEPICI's FAQ counts from a complete file. The gap between the two is however long it takes to be told a document is missing.
Since 2024, the certificate is no longer signed by CEPICI's director general but jointly by the ministers in charge of Industry and of the Budget. A higher floor sees further, and the lift takes longer.
Filing is still physical: three bound copies and a USB key at the one-stop shop in Cocody, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., no appointment. I found no online filing platform for approvals that actually works.
The side the brochure leaves out
The approval is paid for later. The 2024 ordinance raised penalties: CFA 200,000 to 500,000 for an SME, CFA 1 to 5 million for a large company, and up to six months' suspension of benefits. If the approval is withdrawn, the suspended VAT and unpaid duties are reimbursed. A company that cannot be found at its address, assets diverted to another use, a project moved without authorisation: each can be enough.
Site inspections are coming. In September 2026 CEPICI held a workshop on "rationalising" its verification visits.
The pipeline is thinning. CFA 1,000 billion approved in 2023, 741 billion in 2024, 813 billion in 2025, or 54% of the target. CEPICI names three causes itself: scarce industrial land, sectors excluded from the code, and the cost of energy.
The rules move mid-game. The code has been rewritten twice in six years. The IMF is pushing for fewer exemptions and tighter control of VAT deferrals. The US State Department's 2026 Investment Climate Statement says CEPICI plans another revision to align the code with the 2026-2030 National Development Plan.
For the record
Consulting, market research and IT services are excluded from the code by its implementing decree. Ours included. We have nothing to ask CEPICI for, which may be why we read it without rose-tinted glasses.
What to redo before you file
If your business plan predates 2024, fix three lines: customs at 50% if you are in category 2, suspended VAT booked as a liability at the end of set-up, and a budget for inspections.
If any part of your activity involves imports, check the 2024 exclusions line by line. Packaging an imported product is not processing it.
If you are choosing between Abidjan and the interior, run the numbers on the operating-phase grid, not on rent alone.
Before quoting a figure, read the text, not the fact sheet. The map is not the road.
Come with your business plan; leave knowing which line predates 2024.
What I could not verify
- The official cost of an approval file: not published anywhere.
- Actual processing times beyond the 21 legal days: no public figure.
- The ratification law for Ordinance No. 2024-857: not found.
- A new implementing decree: a workshop was held in February 2025, but Decree No. 2018-647 is still the only one online.
- The number of approvals withdrawn or suspended: no public figure.
Sources
- Ordinance No. 2024-857 of 30 September 2024 amending the Investment Code, as published by CEPICI.
- Ordinance No. 2018-646 of 1 August 2018 (Investment Code) and Ordinance No. 2019-1088 of 18 December 2019.
- Decree No. 2018-647 of 1 August 2018, implementing the Investment Code, notably article 3 (excluded activities).
- Côte d'Ivoire public service portal, "Régime d'agrément à l'investissement", updated 8 November 2016.
- CEPICI, approval fact sheet (February 2025), Investment Code page and FAQ.
- CEPICI, 2025 annual report and first-half 2026 review: approved amounts, target, concentration in Abidjan.
- IMF, fifth review of Côte d'Ivoire's programme, February 2026.
- US Department of State, 2026 Investment Climate Statement: Côte d'Ivoire.
- Invest Time, September 2026: CEPICI workshop on verification visits.
A reading of public texts, not legal advice. Written in Abidjan; texts reread on 18 October 2026.
Questions people ask
Does Côte d'Ivoire's investment approval still give a full customs exemption in 2026?
Only in category 1 (agriculture, health, agro-processing of local raw materials, secondary and tertiary wood processing, large hotels). Since Ordinance No. 2024-857, other eligible sectors get a 50% reduction on set-up imports.
What is the minimum investment to get CEPICI approval?
CFA 50 million for an SME and CFA 200 million for a large company, excluding VAT and working capital. Below that, only the declaration regime applies, with operating-phase benefits alone.
How long does CEPICI take to decide on an investment approval?
The legal deadline is 21 days. The implementing decree counts from filing; CEPICI's FAQ counts from a complete file. Since 2024 the certificate is signed jointly by the ministers of Industry and of the Budget.
Are consulting and IT services eligible for the Investment Code?
No. Decree No. 2018-647 (article 3) excludes consulting, market research and IT services from the code.
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