GET STARTED

Invest in
Ethiopia

Ethiopia boasts a variety of investment opportunities across 11 regions. The EIC is here to facilitate and streamline your investor journey.
Facilitating doing business for you is our business.
Investing in Ethiopia—a step forward to real investment returns.

We are committed to making your investment experience the smoothest it can be. We have taken an investor perspective in the steps laid out below to get you started.

Select the path you want to take and start your journey here.

Investment Process

  • Start Your Company as a Sole Investor
  • Establish a PLC, Joint Venture, or Share Company
  • Open your branch in Ethiopia
  • Set-up in one of our SEZs
  • Develop an SEZ
  • Start Your Company as a Sole Investor

    STEP ONE – GATHERING INFORMATION
    Collect information from our investment promotion experts about the investment opportunity, requirement for entry, necessary documentation, authentication, etc.

    STEP TWO – APPLY FOR AN INVESTMENT PERMIT
    Collect an investment permit application form, fill and submit the form with accompanying documents to one of our officers for processing

    STEP THREE – OPEN FOREIGN CURRENCY ACCOUNT
    Get permission letter from EIC to open a foreign currency account and open the account at the National Bank of Ethiopia

    STEP FOUR – TRANSFER THE INVESTMENT CAPITAL
    Transfer/deposit the intended investment capital (at least the minimum capital required per the investment proclamation) in the FX account

    STEP FIVE – GET YOUR INVESTMENT PERMIT
    Show your credit advise and submit a picture. Then, secure your investment permit from our licensing and registration desk. Congratulations!

    Tips:

    • Be aware of documents that need to be authenticated by a notary office, embassies and the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoA, AoA, minutes/resolutions, Certificate of Origin, Power of Attorney, etc.).
    • Ensure the processor has the right and full authority to execute the processing.
  • Establish a PLC, Joint Venture, or Share Company

    STEP ONE – GATHERING INFORMATION
    Collect information from our investment promotion experts about the investment opportunity, requirement for entry, necessary documentation, authentication, etc.

    STEP TWO – PREPARE COMPANY FORMATION DOCUMENTS
    Prepare Memorandum of Association and Articles of Association along with each shareholder info

    STEP THREE – APPLY FOR AN INVESTMENT PERMIT
    Collect an investment permit application form, fill and submit the form with accompanying documents to one of our officers for processing

    STEP FOUR – SELECT A COMPANY NAME
    Propose three company names, verify availability, and secure approval.

    STEP FIVE – AUTHENTICATECOMPANY FORMATION DOCUMENTS
    Update the company formation documents based on the new name and get them authenticated,

    STEP SIX – OPEN FOREIGN CURRENCY ACCOUNT
    Get permission letter from EIC to open a foreign currency account and open the account at the National Bank of Ethiopia

    STEP SEVEN – TRANSFER THEINVESTMENT CAPITAL
    Transfer/deposit the intended investment capital(at least the minimum capital required per the investment proclamation) in the FX account

    STEP EIGHT – SECURE A TIN NUMBER
    Process your TIN number (an authenticated lease agreement is needed)

    STEP NINE – GET YOUR INVESTMENT PERMIT
    Show your credit advise, lease agreement and submit a picture. Then, secure your investment permit from our licensing and registration desk. Congratulations!

    Tip:

    • Be aware of documents that need to be authenticated by a notary office, embassies and the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoA, AoA, minutes/resolutions, Certificate of Origin, Power of Attorney, etc.).
    • Ensure the processor has the right and full authority to execute the processing.
    • Ask for sample company formation documents at our licensing and registration desk.
  • Open your branch in Ethiopia

    STEP ONE – GATHERING INFORMATION
    Collect information from our investment promotion experts about the establishing a branch, requirements for entry, necessary documentation, authentication, etc.

    STEP TWO – APPLY FOR AN INVESTMENT PERMIT
    Collect an investment permit application form, fill and submit the form with authenticated parent company documents and other files to our officers

    STEP THREE – OPEN FOREIGN CURRENCY ACCOUNT
    Get permission letter from EIC to open a foreign currency account and open the account at the National Bank of Ethiopia

    STEP FOUR – TRANSFERTHE INVESTMENT CAPITAL
    Transfer/deposit the intended investment capital (at least the minimum capital required per the investment proclamation) in the FX account

    STEP FIVE – GET YOUR INVESTMENT PERMIT
    Show your credit advise and submit a picture. Then, secure your investment permit from our licensing and registration desk. Congratulations!

    Tip:

    • Be aware of documents that need to be authenticated by a notary office, embassies and the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoA, AoA, minutes/resolutions, Certificate of Origin, Power of Attorney, etc.).
    • Ensure the processor has the right and full authority to execute the processing.
    • Ask for sample company formation documents at our licensing and registration desk.
  • Set-up in one of our SEZs

    Here is your opportunity to ‘plug and play’!

    STEP ONE – GATHER INFORMATION
    Collect information from our investment experts about joining one of our SEZs, requirements for entry, necessary documentation, authentication, etc.

    STEP TWO – MAKE YOUR APPLICATION AT EIC
    Collect the application form, fill and submit the form with authenticated documents and necessary files to our officers

    STEP THREE – SIGN MOU WITH EIC
    The Ethiopian Investment Board (EIB) will review your application and approve the investment project

    STEP FOUR – OPEN FOREIGN CURRENCY ACCOUNT
    Get permission letter from EIC to open a foreign currency account and open the account at the National Bank of Ethiopia

    STEP FIVE – TRANSFER THE INVESTMENT CAPITAL
    Transfer/deposit the intended investment capital (at least the minimum capital required per the investment proclamation) in the FX account

    STEP SIX – SECURE AN INVESTMENT PERMIT
    Show your credit advice and submit a picture. Then, secure your investment permit from our licensing and registration desk.

    STEP SEVEN – SIGN LEASE AGREEMENT WITH THE SEZ DEVELOPER
    Negotiate and sign an agreement to secure your shed/working space from the SEZ developer

    STEP EIGHT – HANDOVER AND GET STARTED
    Receive your shed from the SEZ developer and get started with your operation.

    Tip:

    • Be aware of documents that need to be authenticated by a notary office, embassies and the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoA, AoA, minutes/resolutions, Certificate of Origin, Power of Attorney, etc.).
    • Ensure the processor has the right and full authority to execute the processing.
    • Ask for sample company formation documents at our licensing and registration desk.
  • Develop an SEZ

    Would you like to engage in developing an SEZ? Take note of the following steps.

    STEP ONE – GATHER INFORMATION
    Collect information from our investment experts about constructing SEZs, requirements for entry, procedures, necessary documentation, authentication, etc.

    STEP TWO – MAKE YOUR APPLICATION AT EIC
    Collect the application form for SEZ development, fill and submit the form with authenticated documents and necessary files to our officers

    STEP THREE – GET APPROVAL FROM THE ETHIOPIAN INVESTMENT BOARD (EIB)
    The Ethiopian Investment Board (EIB) will review your application and approve the investment project

    STEP FOUR – SIGN MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING WITH EIC
    SEZ developers will sign a Memorandum of Understanding that underlies the scope of the project with EIC

    STEP FIVE – REGISTER AND GET STARTED
    Once MoU is signed, SEZ developers go through the formal registration process to secure an investment permit

    Tips:

    • Be aware of documents that need to be authenticated by a notary office, embassies and the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoA, AoA, minutes/resolutions, Certificate of Origin, Power of Attorney, etc.).
    • Ensure the processor has the right and full authority to execute the processing.
    • Ask for sample company formation documents at our licensing and registration desk.

DISCOVER

Latest News and Events