What is TISEZA and Why Does It Matter for Foreign Investors?
Foreign direct investment in Tanzania is evolving rapidly in 2025 with the launch of the Tanzania Investment and Special Economic Zones Authority (TISEZA), the country’s new single gateway for investors.
If you are looking to invest in Tanzania in 2025 or 2026, there is one institution you need to understand before anything else: the Tanzania Investment and Special Economic Zones Authority, known as TISEZA. Established under the Investment and Special Economic Zones Act No. 6 of 2025, TISEZA is now the single entry point for all foreign and domestic investment in Tanzania — replacing both the Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) and the Export Processing Zones Authority (EPZA).
This is the most significant institutional reform to Tanzania’s foreign direct investment infrastructure in a generation. Understanding how TISEZA works, what it offers, and how to engage with it effectively is now a prerequisite for any serious investor entering the Tanzanian market.
What Happened to TIC? Why Was TISEZA Created?
The Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) was, until July 2025, the primary government body responsible for promoting and facilitating foreign investment in Tanzania. The Export Processing Zones Authority (EPZA) operated separately, overseeing investment in Tanzania’s special economic zones. The two bodies had overlapping mandates, which created inefficiencies and confusion for investors — particularly those whose projects spanned both SEZ and non-SEZ activities.
TISEZA consolidates all of these functions under a single authority. Investment promotion, investment facilitation, special economic zone development, national land bank management, and investor aftercare now all sit within TISEZA. The result, in theory, is a faster, clearer, and more responsive system for investors seeking to establish and grow operations in Tanzania.
What Does TISEZA Do? Key Functions for Foreign Investors
| TISEZA’s Core Functions Under the 2025 Act |
| ✔ Issues Investment Certificates to qualifying foreign and domestic investors |
| ✔ Manages Tanzania’s national land bank — providing access to investment-grade sites |
| ✔ Administers incentive packages including duty exemptions and tax reliefs |
| ✔ Oversees and licenses Special Economic Zones (SEZs) and Export Processing Zones |
| ✔ Provides investor aftercare — support for investors post-establishment |
| ✔ Digitises investment services through the Tanzania Electronic Investment Window (TeIW) |
| ✔ Coordinates with sector regulators (mining, energy, agriculture) on behalf of investors |
The Strategic Investment Threshold: USD 50 Million
One of the most important features of the TISEZA framework is the introduction of a strategic investment designation for projects with a capital value of USD 50 million or above. Projects meeting this threshold receive a materially different level of service: expedited approvals, enhanced incentive packages, direct engagement with senior government officials, and priority resolution of any regulatory bottlenecks.
For foreign investors in capital-intensive sectors — mining, infrastructure, agro-processing, manufacturing, and energy — the strategic investment designation is highly valuable. It provides not only procedural speed but also a degree of political visibility that can be critical in multi-stakeholder environments where government buy-in determines project viability.
Key threshold: USD 500,000 minimum capital for a TISEZA Investment Certificate (wholly foreign-owned or joint venture). USD 50 million for strategic investment designation and enhanced benefits.
The Tanzania Electronic Investment Window (TeIW): Faster Registration
A key practical improvement under TISEZA is the digitisation mandate. All investment registration, application tracking, and certificate issuance is being migrated to the Tanzania Electronic Investment Window (TeIW) — an online platform that allows investors to manage the entire registration process remotely.
The results so far are measurable: investment registration times have reportedly been reduced from 60 days to 30 days. While full implementation across all service lines is still in progress, the direction is clear. Tanzania is committing to a faster, more transparent investment facilitation environment — and TISEZA is the institutional vehicle for that commitment.
TISEZA and the National Land Bank: Solving Tanzania’s Land Access Problem
Land access has historically been one of the most significant practical obstacles for foreign investors in Tanzania. All land in Tanzania is vested in the President as trustee for citizens, and non-citizens cannot hold a right of occupancy directly. The National Land Policy 2023 introduced long-term lease access for foreign investors — with terms of up to 99 years now available for qualifying investment projects.
TISEZA is mandated to manage a national land bank — a curated registry of investment-grade parcels that have been pre-cleared for development, complete with verified title, planning status, and environmental baseline data. Accessing the land bank through TISEZA is significantly faster and lower risk than attempting to identify and secure land independently through local brokers or direct government engagement.
Important: TISEZA Does Not Replace Sector Regulators
A common misconception among new investors is that obtaining a TISEZA Investment Certificate is sufficient to begin operations. It is not. TISEZA operates as a coordination and facilitation layer — it is the interface between the investor and Tanzania’s regulatory environment, but it does not substitute for sector-specific approvals.
Mining investors still require licences from the Tanzania Mining Commission. Energy projects require approvals from EWURA. Agribusiness operations require licences from sector ministries. TISEZA’s role is to help navigate and coordinate these approvals — not to grant them. Investors must still engage with the relevant sector regulators as part of the establishment process.
How to Register with TISEZA: Practical Steps for Foreign Investors
| TISEZA Registration — Key Steps |
| ✔ Incorporate a company in Tanzania with BRELA (Business Registrations and Licensing Agency) |
| ✔ Prepare a business plan and investment proposal meeting TISEZA’s documentation requirements |
| ✔ Submit the application via the Tanzania Electronic Investment Window (TeIW) online portal |
| ✔ Receive an Investment Certificate confirming eligibility for TISEZA incentives |
| ✔ Access available incentive packages: duty exemptions, VAT reliefs, and SEZ benefits |
| ✔ Engage TISEZA’s investor support team for land bank access and sector approval coordination |
| ✔ For USD 50M+ projects: apply for strategic investment designation for expedited processing |
TISEZA represents Tanzania’s most ambitious attempt to streamline foreign direct investment facilitation since independence. For investors entering or expanding in Tanzania, early and proactive engagement with TISEZA — ideally before the investment is fully structured — is the single most effective way to reduce time-to-market, access available incentives, and build a compliant, durable operational foundation in one of East Africa’s most resource-rich economies.
Our legal team advises on TISEZA registration, investment structuring, and sector-specific regulatory compliance across Tanzania. Contact us for a consultation.
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