Special Economic Zone (SEZ) is an area designated by the Ethiopian Investment Board under Proc. 1324/2024, and may include industry parks, free trade and logistics zones, science and technology parks, service parks, agriculture and livestock zones, and similar investments. The Foreign Exchange Directive covers both SEZs and industrial parks not designated as SEZs.
- Industrial Parks not designated as SEZs
Trade in foreign currency: an investor may buy or sell, in foreign currency, raw materials or inputs manufactured by another investor within the same or different industrial park. Banks may issue interim export and import permits to an investor in industrial parks to sell or buy product raw materials or inputs manufactured to another investor within an industrial park or another investor in other industrial park.
Salary payment in foreign currency: an investor may pay the salary of its foreign employee in foreign currency.
- SEZs
Companies in SEZs that generate exports and earn foreign currency are entitled to foreign currency are entitled to retain 100% of their FX earnings. They are required to repatriate the full value of their foreign exchange earnings. Companies in SEZs are permitted to transfer foreign currency abroad for both current and capital account transactions. Companies in SEZs can also conduct transactions in foreign currency within the same zone.