Recent Changes to Be Rwanda Wise
A dated record of what has changed on Be Rwanda Wise. When the monthly check corrects an answer, the change is listed here once it has been reviewed and the pages have been updated. See how we check.
- Expanded Petroleum and Lake Kivu methane with the history of oil exploration rights in the Lake Kivu basin: the technical evaluation agreement held by Vanoil Energy (about 2007 to 2013), the 2016 tender and the exploration rights reported awarded to Ngali Mining in 2017, the 2018 pause, and RMB's January 2025 update on 13 prospective drilling structures. Investors are now advised to ask RMB whether any earlier right still affects a block.
- Also in that section: methane extraction concessions recorded by REMA (KivuWatt, Shema Power Lake Kivu, Gasmeth and Magma Energies), RMB's figures for methane output and Gasmeth's compressed natural gas project, the Kibuye Power 1 pilot, the lake's dissolved carbon dioxide (about 300 km³), and REMA's Lake Kivu Monitoring Division, which has monitored extraction safety and compliance with the Management Prescriptions since 2021.
- Corrected 58 answers so that they say the same as the fact-checked Doing Business in Rwanda guide. The new wording is the same in the app, on these guide pages and in the plain-text file of all 115 FAQs.
- FAQ 11: The Companies Law has no representative office category; protected cell and community benefit companies added.
- FAQ 14: The company code on the certificate serves as the TIN and RSSB number; no separate TIN application.
- FAQ 15: Every company needs at least one director ordinarily resident in Rwanda; the old answer said there was generally no such rule.
- FAQ 17: No non-commercial representative office regime exists; a foreign company's office registers as a branch.
- FAQ 18: Adds the 25% test, 14-day updates, annual confirmation and penalties; drops an unverified 2023 filing deadline.
- FAQ 19: Every non-dormant company is audited; the RWF 600 million figure was an RRA threshold, now RWF 1 billion.
- FAQ 20: Adds the Apostille Convention (in force for Rwanda since 5 June 2024, except with Germany).
- FAQ 21: Law N° 051/2023 took effect on 14 September 2023 with no transitional split; gaming companies now outside CIT.
- FAQ 22: Quarterly filing is the default up to RWF 200 million; no fuel exemption was removed.
- FAQ 24: RRA lists 16 treaty partners, not including the DRC; Angola, Benin, Congo (Brazzaville) and the Czech Republic added.
- FAQ 25: The target company, not every party, withholds on shares; the Investment Code exemption after 2025 is unsettled.
- FAQ 26: The digital services tax is not yet in operation and VAT was not applied to fuel; 2026 changes added.
- FAQ 27: Smaller employers declare PAYE quarterly, not monthly; casual, second-employer and benefit values added.
- FAQ 29: VAT and PAYE are quarterly by default up to RWF 200 million; certification threshold now RWF 1 billion.
- FAQ 30: Law N° 026/2019 was replaced by Law N° 020/2023; amicable settlement now under Directives N° 002/2024.
- FAQ 39: The 10% rate applies to interest on foreign loans; zone users have no special income tax rate.
- FAQ 41: Land is common heritage, not "state-owned"; a foreigner's lease or concession is allocated only for investment.
- FAQ 42: There is no annual lease fee; the recurring charge is immovable property tax.
- FAQ 43: Terms are fixed by land use (49 or 99 years), not nationality; the difference for foreigners is renewal.
- FAQ 46: RDB approval applies to State land; private plots need Kubaka permits, an EIA where listed and NLA approval of use changes.
- FAQ 49: Mortgages are searched on RDB's eMRS, not the land register; spousal consent and the 2025 power-of-attorney rule added.
- FAQ 53: The Code's visa promises have no published DGIE visa class or IremboGov service yet.
- FAQ 55: The Labour Code recognises only fixed-term and indefinite contracts; written-contract rules and 17 core elements added.
- FAQ 57: Private employers have no general duty to provide medical insurance; CBHI levy, deadline and penalty added.
- FAQ 58: Notice is 15 or 30 days; there is no statutory hearing; gross-misconduct and terminal-benefit rules added.
- FAQ 60: A labour market test applies to foreign hires since 2023; the 30% figure belongs to one regime only.
- FAQ 62: Regulations N° 89/2025 are dated 23 May 2025; fines, exemptions and Law N° 033/2026 added.
- FAQ 63: Foreign-currency pricing without BNR permission is now fined; the exemption is for imports, exports and listed dealers.
- FAQ 64: Residents may borrow abroad freely, with no BNR recording by the borrower; local dollar loans limited by Directive N° 46/2026.
- FAQ 65: Foreign ownership alone does not trigger enhanced due diligence under Law N° 001/2025.
- FAQ 67: At domestic rates a branch and a subsidiary bear the same tax; differences come from treaties and incentives.
- FAQ 71: There is one Commercial Court and one Commercial High Court; small claims go to the Primary Courts; six months is a rule.
- FAQ 72: KIAC for Government contracts is a rule (Ministerial Instructions N° 612/08.11), not a report; reciprocity has no practical effect.
- FAQ 74: Rwanda acceded without reservations, so there is no reciprocity condition; set-aside within 30 days added.
- FAQ 75: There is no reciprocity test; exequatur under Article 250 of Law N° 22/2018 before the Commercial High Court.
- FAQ 76: Six treaties are in force; the old answer gave signature years and omitted the UAE and Singapore.
- FAQ 77: RDB's facilitation role is in Article 16(4); Government contracts must use KIAC.
- FAQ 80: Mortgages are registered on RDB's eMRS, not at the National Land Authority; insolvency ranking corrected.
- FAQ 82: Storage abroad and transfer abroad follow separate rules; DPO, representative and registration details added.
- FAQ 83: Adds the 48-hour and 72-hour breach deadlines, the full list of rights and the fine levels.
- FAQ 84: Exclusive rights arise only on registration (first to file); foreign applicants must use a Rwandan agent.
- FAQ 85: The 3% regime is for a registered investor operating as an IP company, with listed substance conditions.
- FAQ 87: Law N° 011/2026 replaced the 2012 law: 30-day notification, suspensory review, call-in power and fines.
- FAQ 89: EIA certificates are issued through RDB's One Stop Centre under Ministerial Order N° 003/MoE/25, not by REMA.
- FAQ 90: Adds the 2026 e-commerce licence; the digital services tax is not yet in operation.
- FAQ 97: All non-dormant companies are audited; the RRA certification threshold is now RWF 1 billion.
- FAQ 98: The target, not the seller, withholds the tax; register deadlines and the 2026 merger rules added.
- FAQ 99: Voluntary liquidation is under the insolvency law; removal from the register needs RRA's no-objection.
- FAQ 101: The 2024 Law saves existing licences but does not expressly preserve the 2019 regulations.
- FAQ 102: Ownership is vested by Article 3(a); Article 4 compensation does not use the expropriation law.
- FAQ 103: Small- and medium-scale mining licences and the radioactive minerals licence were missing.
- FAQ 105: RMB's 2019 Regulations reserve small-scale mines to Rwandans and require 40% local shareholding for medium-scale mines.
- FAQ 108: RMB runs the scheme in Rwanda with the iTSCi operators; export certificates and the 2024 RMI suspension added.
- FAQ 109: Adds the EU Conflict Minerals Regulation and the 2025-2026 EU and US sanctions; certificates do not clear sanctions.
- FAQ 110: The assessment certificate is issued through RDB, not REMA; the rehabilitation guarantee added.
- FAQ 112: Article 49 allows a free carried interest once a Ministerial Order is made.
- FAQ 113: Ownership is in Article 3(a); compensation is under Article 4, not the expropriation law.
- FAQ 114: Artisanal miners use the small-scale mining licence, not a quarry licence.
- FAQ 96 (later the same day): adds the 15% rate for suppliers that have not filed their previous income tax return and the exemption for holders of a tax clearance certificate (Articles 63 and 65 of Law N° 027/2022).
- These pages now link to the Doing Business in Rwanda guide, and their chat buttons say Ask Rwandabot.
- New guide: How to find a lawyer in Rwanda, and check them before you instruct.
- Reworded FAQ 100 (where to check the latest law and who can advise) and FAQ 115 (advice on a mining investment) to point to the Rwanda Bar Association’s roll and the new guide. Be Rwanda Wise does not currently list any lawyers.
- Added the how we check page and this page.
- New guide: Rwanda mining and mineral extraction law, with 15 new FAQs (101 to 115), bringing the total to 115 questions across eleven guides.
- Published the Rwanda investor FAQ guides (100 questions across ten guides), the useful links directory and the embassies directory.