The Tunisian automobile market is showing a clear recovery, but consumers remain heavily penalized by some of the highest taxes in the world. According to Anouar Ben Ammar, general manager of an automobile sales agency, up to 50% of the price of a new vehicle corresponds to taxes imposed by the state.
Guest of the Midi Eco show this Thursday, Ben Ammar indicated that nearly 70,000 vehicles were registered in Tunisia at the end of September 2025 – including 47,300 new cars and 22,000 re-registrations. These figures mark a notable increase compared to 2024, when only 57,000 vehicles were registered in the same period.
This progression reflects, according to him, sustained demand despite the surge in prices and the complexity of the tax regime applied to the automobile sector.
A tax burden that weighs on buyers
Ben Ammar detailed the composition of the price of a vehicle in Tunisia: “Half of the amount paid by the customer corresponds to taxes,” he said, citing in particular consumption rights, VAT and corporate tax.
“For a car costing 100,000 dinars, at least 50,000 dinars go directly to the tax authorities.”
This tax pressure, considered “excessive” by professionals, slows down access to new cars and fuels the parallel market and second-hand imports.
The FCR regime, a breach that worries dealers
The official also sounded the alarm about the increase in imports of used vehicles under the FCR regime (Customs exemption for Tunisians residing abroad).
These cars, he recalled, are not subject to the same tax or regulatory conditions as those sold locally, which creates a distortion of competition to the detriment of Tunisian dealers.
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