How many urban properties in Tunisia still belong to foreign nationals? Of the 12,305 properties surveyed by the Ministry of State Property, all built or acquired before 1956, 7,645 have already reverted to the national estate. The remaining 4,660 stay subject to current Tunisian law.
How many properties still belong to foreign owners?
4,660 remain, still subject to current Tunisian law.
The Ministry of State Property has surveyed 12,305 urban properties built or acquired before 1956. Of these, 7,645 have already been transferred to the national estate.
That leaves 4,660 properties belonging to foreign nationals. Their management is by no means exempt from Tunisian law: it remains governed by the legislation in force in the country.
How is this property governed today?
The 4,660 urban properties still owned by foreign nationals do not fall outside Tunisia's legal framework. Their management, transfer and any sale remain subject to Tunisian law, which applies to this property just as it does to any other asset on national territory.
This is nothing new: it reflects rules that have long applied to these properties. Nothing in the available information points to any recent change or decision concerning them: Tunisian law simply continues to apply, as it does across all 4,660 properties surveyed.
What types of property are we talking about?
The Ministry of State Property and Land Affairs has clarified the nature of the land assets held by foreigners in Tunisia. According to details relayed by Basma Hammami, this property falls into two categories, which the ministry distinguishes in its count.
The first category covers agricultural properties, land intended for farming. The second concerns urban properties, which serve an entirely different purpose. This distinction between agricultural and urban property is drawn by the ministry itself.
These 4,660 urban properties, a legacy of a history predating 1956, are no legal grey zone: they remain subject to Tunisian law, just like any other asset on national territory. The survey carried out by the Ministry of State Property and Land Affairs, which has already transferred 7,645 of the 12,305 properties originally recorded to the national estate, comes alongside a distinction the administration is keen to maintain between agricultural and urban property: two separate land realities that, as Basma Hammami's explanations make clear, should not be confused.
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