Algeria: royalties and taxes on crude oil under Law 19-13

Last checked: 20 October 2026 · Levies by country

Algeria taxes crude oil under Law No. 19-13 of 11 December 2019 on hydrocarbon activities ¹. The law allows participation, production sharing and risk service contracts. Sonatrach holds at least 51% of participation contracts ². The agency ALNAFT collects the hydrocarbon royalty and passes it to the tax administration ². As reported by TSA in November 2019, the drafting team said the law sets a 10% royalty, a petroleum income tax of 10% to 50% and a 30% income tax ³.

Main law: Law No. 19-13 of 11 December 2019 on hydrocarbon activities ¹
Published: Journal Officiel No. 79, 22 December 2019 ¹
Contract types: Participation, production sharing, risk service ²
Sonatrach minimum stake, participation contracts: 51% ²
Royalty collector: ALNAFT, which passes it to the tax administration ²
Royalty rate, as reported: 10% ³
Petroleum income tax (TRP), as reported: 10% to 50% ³
Complementary tax on results, as reported: 30% ³

The law and the agencies

Law No. 19-13 of 11 December 2019 governs hydrocarbon activities in Algeria. It was published in Journal Officiel No. 79 on 22 December 2019 ¹. Chabi Ouardia of TSA reported on 16 November 2019 that the new law was to take over from the 2005 hydrocarbons law, Law 05-07 as amended ³.

The law gives the national agency ALNAFT the task of collecting the hydrocarbon royalty and paying it to the tax administration ². ALNAFT grants prospecting authorisations and approves development plans ². The regulator ARH handles technical rules, safety, environment and tariffs ².

ALNAFT's funding includes 0.5% of the royalty proceeds referred to in Article 167 of the law ¹.

Contract types and who pays tax

Article 76 of Law 19-13 sets three contract forms. They are the participation contract, the production sharing contract and the risk service contract ².

Participation contract: Sonatrach, the national company, holds a minimum of 51% (Article 92). The hydrocarbons produced are taxed under the regime that applies to each party (Article 79) ².
Production sharing contract: hydrocarbons become the property of the national company at the measurement point. The national company pays the taxes that apply to it (Article 83) ^1,2.
Production sharing and risk service contracts: the foreign partner's remuneration is subject to the tax on remuneration set in Article 193 (Articles 83 and 86) ¹.
Early production is subject to the flat-rate royalty set in Article 198 (Article 111) ².

Tax rates, as reported

Toufik Hakkar led the working group that drafted the law. He gave the rates in an interview with the official news agency on 16 November 2019, as reported by Chabi Ouardia of TSA the same day ³. The rates below are from that report on the bill, before the upper house of Parliament voted ³.

Toufik Hakkar said the total tax burden on Sonatrach and its partners falls from 85% under the 2005 law to about 60% to 65% under the new law. He said no tax was abolished ³.

Tax	2005 law	Law 19-13
Royalty on production ³	5% to 20% ³	10% fixed ³
Petroleum income tax (TRP) ³	20% to 70% ³	10% to 50% ³
Complementary tax on results (ICR) ³	19% to 80% ³	30% fixed ³

Where to read the law

The official text is in Journal Officiel No. 79 of 22 December 2019, on the website of the Secretariat General of the Government ¹. FAO's FAOLEX database hosts a copy of the same issue ².

Common questions

What is Algeria's oil royalty rate?

As reported by TSA on 16 November 2019, the drafting team said Law 19-13 sets a fixed 10% royalty, down from 5% to 20% under the 2005 law ³.

Who collects the hydrocarbon royalty in Algeria?

ALNAFT collects the royalty and pays it to the tax administration, under Law 19-13 ².

Does Sonatrach pay tax for its partners?

Under a production sharing contract, Sonatrach takes ownership of hydrocarbons at the measurement point and pays the taxes that apply to it. The foreign partner pays tax on its remuneration ¹.

What stake must Sonatrach hold?

At least 51% of a participation contract, under Article 92 of Law 19-13 ².

Rules and fees change. Check the official site linked above before you apply or pay. Spotted an error? Email [email protected] with the official link.

Sources

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