Egypt’s Article 11 Investment Incentives: What Investors Must Do Before October 28, 2026

What Article 11 Offers

Article 11 grants eligible projects a deduction from taxable net profits, calculated as a share of the project’s investment cost. The percentage depends on where the project is located:

• Sector A (50%): the geographic areas most in need of development, which GAFI’s guide lists as including South Giza, Upper Egypt, the border governorates, and the Suez Canal region governorates.
• Sector B (30%): all remaining areas of the country.

Two limits apply in every case. The total incentive cannot exceed 80% of the capital paid up until operations begin, and the deduction period cannot exceed seven years from the start of operations.

Eligible sub-sectors are set by Prime Minister decrees. The most recent, Decree No. 503 of 2026 issued in February, broadened the industrial activities that qualify and tied them to the Sector A and Sector B zones.

The Deadline: 28 October 2026

The Investment Law originally required a project company to be incorporated within three years of the Executive Regulations taking effect. That period was extended in stages, and GAFI’s guide confirms that Prime Minister Decree No. 1 of 2024 extended it to 28 October 2026. The law caps the cumulative extension at nine years, which suggests a further extension by decree alone is unlikely. We have not found any announced extension beyond this date, but investors should confirm the current position with GAFI before relying on any assumption either way.

The test is the date of incorporation. A project company incorporated after the cut-off does not qualify for the Article 11 special incentives, however strong the project is.

Eligibility Conditions Beyond the Date

Meeting the deadline is necessary but not sufficient. The conditions in GAFI’s guide also require that:

1. The project is run through a new company or establishment. Article 11 is aimed at new projects, not rebranded existing ones.
2. The company keeps regular accounts. If it operates in more than one zone, it must keep separate accounts for each zone to claim each percentage.
3. No assets of an existing business are reused. Shareholders, partners, and owners must not contribute or use tangible assets of a company that already existed when the law took effect, and must not liquidate such a company to set up the new project. A violation cancels the incentives, and the company must pay all taxes due.

The third condition is the one most often overlooked in restructurings, and it deserves a careful look before any asset transfer into a new entity.

Other Incentives That Do Not Depend on This Deadline

Missing the Article 11 date does not mean losing every incentive. Several others run on separate terms.

The Article 11 bis cash incentive for industrial projects. Qualifying industrial projects can receive a cash incentive of 35% to 55% of the tax they pay, with the rate tied to foreign financing: 35% where foreign currency from abroad covers at least 50% and up to 75%, 45% for 75% to 90%, and 55% for 90% or more. The project must sit in Sector A, a remote area, a new urban community, or an industrial, investment, or technological zone, and must start operations within six years of the article taking effect, with a possible extension of up to six more.

General incentives. Incorporation documents, credit facilities, and pledge contracts are exempt from stamp duty and notarization and registration fees for five years from commercial registration. A unified 2% customs duty applies to machinery and equipment imported to set up the company. These apply to projects incorporated before or after the law took effect, other than free zone projects.

Additional incentives. By Cabinet resolution, qualifying projects can receive benefits such as free land allocation for strategic activities, usufruct fee exemption of up to ten years, and state coverage of up to 50% of utilities consumption costs for up to ten years.

The Golden License. Strategic and national projects can obtain a single comprehensive approval to establish, operate, and manage the project, including construction permits and property allocation.

Expansions of existing projects. Under Law No. 141 of 2019, expansions of existing projects can benefit from the Article 11 and Article 13 incentives, limited to the increase in production the expansion generates and supported by separate accounts.

What to Do This Week

If you are close to launching a project in Egypt, the practical steps are:

• Confirm your sector and zone. Check your activity against the current Prime Minister decrees to see whether it qualifies, and in which sector.
• Review your documents now. Foreign shareholder documents typically need legalization and certified Arabic translation, and that step, not the GAFI filing, is usually what delays incorporation.
• Check the asset-reuse condition. If the new company will take over anything from an existing business, get advice before the transfer.
• Plan for the alternatives. If incorporation by 28 October is not realistic, map which of the other incentives above fit your project instead.

Our Corporate team advises foreign and local investors on structuring projects to qualify for Egypt’s incentive regimes. For a broader view of the legal framework, see our guide to foreign investment in Egypt, or review our startup and business setup packages if you are ready to incorporate. To discuss your project before the deadline, contact our team.

This article is for general informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice. Incentive eligibility depends on the facts of each project, and the position may change. Further detail is available in GAFI’s Investment Incentives in Egypt guide (September 2026). Please contact Al Majidi Law Firm for advice on your specific project.