Bank Domiciliation of Exports in Algeria: The Complete Guide

Bank domiciliation of exports in Algeria: when it is required, the bank file, exemptions, the 48-hour rule of 2026 and how the file is cleared.

In Algeria no export leaves without a bank behind it. Before the goods are cleared, the exporter has to domicile the sale with an authorised bank: the bank opens a file, gives it a number, and from that moment follows the operation until the goods have left and the foreign currency has come home. The domiciliation number then appears on the customs declaration, on the invoice and in every exchange with the bank.

For a first-time exporter this is often the step that causes the most delay, mostly because of incomplete files and contracts that do not match the rules on payment terms. This lesson explains what bank domiciliation is, which texts govern it, when you must do it and when you are exempt, what goes into the file, and how the file is followed up and cleared.

The rules below come from Banque d'Algérie Regulation 07-01 of 3 February 2007 as amended, from the information published by the Direction Générale des Douanes, and from Banque d'Algérie instructions issued up to August 2026. Your bank's internal procedure may add requirements: always ask for its checklist.

What is bank domiciliation?

Domiciliation of an export contract consists of opening a file at an authorised bank (an "authorised intermediary"), which assigns it a domiciliation number. The bank you choose becomes your domiciliation bank for that operation: it receives the payment, checks that the proceeds are repatriated within the deadline and reports to the Banque d'Algérie.

Under Article 29 of Regulation 07-01, domiciliation is a prerequisite to:

• any transfer or repatriation of funds related to the operation;
• any commitment (for example the opening of a letter of credit in your favour being processed by your bank);
• customs clearance of the goods.

Article 56 makes domiciliation compulsory for every export sold outright or on consignment, and Article 57 applies the same rules to exports of services.

What changed recently?

When must you domicile, and when are you exempt?

What must the base document contain?

Article 32 of Regulation 07-01 accepts several forms of base document: a contract, a pro forma invoice, a purchase order, a final purchase confirmation, or an exchange of correspondence. Whatever its form, Article 26 requires it to show:

A clear pro forma invoice signed by the buyer is enough for many small deals. For larger or repeat business, a proper international sales contract is safer.

What goes into the domiciliation file?

Each bank has its own list, but most export files contain:

1. The bank's domiciliation request form, signed and stamped by the exporter.
2. The base document (contract, pro forma, order or correspondence), signed by the buyer.
3. The final or provisional commercial invoice in the currency of the contract.
4. A copy of the commercial register extract covering the export activity, the NIF and the NIS.
5. Recent tax and social-security (CNAS or CASNOS) certificates.
6. Where relevant: the letter of credit advice, the export credit insurance policy or cover note (compulsory if the payment term exceeds 120 days), any prior export authorisation for regulated goods.

The bank checks the file, opens the domiciliation, assigns the number and stamps the invoice, which then becomes the "domiciled invoice" required by customs. It also gives you a domiciliation attestation for your records.

What happens after domiciliation?

• Customs. The domiciliation number is entered on the export declaration. After clearance, customs transmits the "bank copy" of the declaration (or the equivalent document) to the domiciliation bank, together with any rectifying documents.
• Repatriation. The buyer pays into your account with the domiciliation bank. The deadline is explained in repatriating export proceeds.
• Amendments. If the quantity, price, buyer or payment term changes, amend the file with the bank before shipping. A difference between the domiciled amount and the amount received leaves the file open.
• Clearance (apurement). The bank closes the file when it holds the customs document and the proof that the full amount has been repatriated. Files not cleared on time are reported, and non-repatriation can be prosecuted as an exchange-control offence under Ordinance 96-22 of 9 July 1996, as amended.

Banks must keep domiciliation files for at least five years, according to the summary of Regulation 26-02 published by legal information services. Keep your own copies for at least as long.

A worked example: olive oil to Marseille

A producer in Béjaïa sells 17,280 litres of extra virgin olive oil (1,440 cartons of 12 x 1-litre bottles on 18 pallets, one 20-foot container) to an importer in Marseille at EUR 7.60 per litre CIF Marseille, total EUR 131,328. Payment: 30% advance by transfer (EUR 39,398.40), 70% by documents against payment at sight (EUR 91,929.60).

• 2 March 2027. The contract is signed. The exporter submits the complete file to the bank on 3 March: contract, invoice, register extract, tax and social certificates. Under Instruction 07-2026 the bank must domicile by 5 March.
• 5 March. The bank domiciles the operation and stamps the invoice. Only now does the exporter tell the buyer to send the advance, which arrives on 8 March on the domiciled file.
• 18 March. The customs broker files the declaration with the domiciliation number. Customs also endorses an EUR.1, so the buyer can claim whatever EU–Algeria preference applies to olive oil (the buyer checks the rate and any tariff quota in the EU tariff).
• 20 March. The container sails from Béjaïa. The bank sends the documents to the buyer's bank for collection.
• 9 April. The buyer pays the balance against documents. The bank receives the customs bank copy, matches it with the two payments totalling EUR 131,328, and clears the file.

Common mistakes

• Receiving an advance before the file exists, so the bank cannot allocate it.
• Domiciling a contract whose payment term exceeds 120 days without export credit insurance, or exceeds 180 days at all.
• Different buyer names on the contract, the invoice and the transfer (a parent company paying for a subsidiary, for instance) without telling the bank.
• Shipping less than the domiciled quantity and not amending the file, which leaves a balance that looks unrepatriated.
• Assuming the 48-hour deadline applies to an incomplete file.

Putting it into practice

On Incoforms, the bank domiciliation request and attestation (Demande et attestation de domiciliation) is generated from the shipment and the company's bank details, so the buyer, goods, quantities, Incoterm and amounts match the commercial invoice and packing list produced from the same shipment. You then print or export it for your bank, and record the domiciliation number on the shipment for the customs declaration and the follow-up of payment.