Starting a business in Morocco: foreigner's guide (2026)

Foreigners may hold 100% of a Moroccan company's capital in all unrestricted sectors. Exceptions include fisheries and maritime transport (foreign stake capped at 49%), the audiovisual/media sector, and agriculture (foreigners cannot own agricultural land, though up to 99-year leases are permitted). The Investment Charter explicitly codifies the right to full foreign ownership and free capital repatriation.

The SARL (société à responsabilité limitée) is the standard vehicle for foreign SMEs: minimum capital of MAD 1 (nominal), single shareholder allowed, no requirement for a Moroccan resident director. The SA (société anonyme) requires at least MAD 300,000 capital and five shareholders, and is mandatory for regulated activities and public-offering entities.

Registration is filed through one of Morocco's Regional Investment Centers, which consolidate the trade-register number, tax identifier (IF), professional tax, and CNSS social-security affiliation into a single submission. The Ministry reports an average processing time of approximately 4 days at the CRI once documents are complete.

The sequence is: (1) Obtain a 'Certificat Négatif' (name availability certificate) from OMPIC; (2) draft and notarize Articles of Association; (3) open a Moroccan bank account and deposit capital; (4) file with the CRI (trade register, tax, CNSS); (5) publish legal notices in a legal-notices journal and the Official Gazette within one month of trade-register entry. End-to-end typically takes 3–7 business days for a standard SARL.

Under the Investment Charter and Morocco's convertibility regime, foreign investors can freely repatriate net profits, dividends, and proceeds from the sale or liquidation of investments (including capital gains) in foreign currency, without limitation on amount or duration, after settlement of applicable taxes.

Framework Law 03-22, enacted December 2022 and operative from 2023, codifies statutory protections for both domestic and foreign investors: equal treatment, stability guarantees, investment incentives, and a 45% reduction in required administrative documents via simplification of 22 acts. Agriculture remains outside the Charter's scope and is governed by separate sectoral legislation.