Like the oil sector, Tunisia’s salt industry had long been surrounded by suspicions of malpractice that were difficult to bring to light, often avoided for fear of implicating foreign investors. These issues remained largely hidden until the tax authorities stepped in.
The investigation was launched by the Investigation and Anti-Tax Evasion Brigade (BILCEF), commonly known as the “Tax Police,” which opened a large-scale probe into suspected price manipulation and tax evasion in Tunisia’s salt production and export sector.
According to a senior source at the Ministry of Finance quoted by TAP, the alleged practices could cost public finances hundreds of millions of euros annually.
The same source described the findings gathered since early 2026 as “shocking and damning.” Investigators uncovered a suspicious revenue scheme in which foreign companies operating in Tunisia allegedly sold extracted salt to their parent companies or offshore shell companies at extremely low prices, far below real market value.
The salt was then reportedly resold internationally at global market prices, sometimes twice as high, allowing massive profits to be transferred abroad at the expense of Tunisia’s treasury and balance of payments.
14 foreign-owned companies under scrutiny
Current inspections and audits target 14 companies operating saltworks, whether already producing or still in preparation phases, most of them foreign-owned. These multinationals control the bulk of Tunisia’s salt wealth, with total annual production estimated at around 2 million tons, mainly exported as table salt and industrial de-icing salt.
BILCEF operations now cover more than 20 production sites and strategic subsidiaries along Tunisia’s coastline, particularly in the governorates of Sfax, Medenine, Gabes, Monastir, Mahdia and Sousse. Investigators have begun seizing and reviewing financial and logistics records covering the past twenty years.
To conceal capital outflows, declared prices in Tunisia allegedly remained far below international market realities. For comparison, wholesale industrial or de-icing salt prices range between €0.15 and €0.40 per kilogram, while ordinary table salt sells for €0.50 to €1.50 per kilogram.
Artisanal sea salts can fetch between €7 and €15 per kilogram, while luxury salts such as Fleur de Sel may exceed €55 per kilogram on global markets.
Curbing tax evasion
Faced with these disparities, Tunisia is relying on Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development rules. A pioneer in the Arab and African regions, Tunisia incorporated international transfer-pricing standards into its tax legislation, requiring scientific pricing methods for intra-group transactions to combat tax evasion.
The Ministry of Finance stressed that this accelerated audit campaign is part of broader investigations into the governance of Tunisia’s natural resources, particularly the oil and salt sectors.
Officials emphasized that the controls are not intended to discourage investors or harm the business climate, but rather to enforce international agreements and protect the state’s historical and financial rights.
Created in October 2017 and operational since January 2018, BILCEF is a specialized branch of the General Directorate of Taxes operating under the supervision of prosecutors attached to the courts of appeal.
It conducts investigations nationwide into serious tax crimes, either through judicial referrals or on its own initiative. The brigade had already made headlines in late 2025 after uncovering around 1.8 billion dinars in tax evasion in Tunisia’s alcohol manufacturing and trade sector.
