Business
A 1997 companies law operating in a fragmented economy
The Commercial Companies Law of 1997 and the Investment Law of 2010 remain in force, but dual regulation from Sanaa and Aden makes compliance genuinely ambiguous.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — Commercial courts in both control areas. Separate company registries operate in Sanaa and Aden.
- Deadline — 30 days to challenge a shareholder resolution where courts function
- Deadline — 90 days to apply to annul an arbitral award
Governing law
- Commercial Companies Law, Law 22 of 1997
- Investment Law, Law 15 of 2010
- Commercial Arbitration Law, Law 22 of 1992
In practice
The central practical problem is duplication: a company may be registered in Sanaa, in Aden, or in both, and tax and customs are demanded by both administrations, so a business can face two sets of obligations for the same activity. The central bank split in 2016 produced two currencies in circulation at divergent rates, which affects contract pricing and enforcement directly. The 1997 and 2010 laws are conventional in content and remain formally applicable. Yemen is a New York Convention party. This entry is research because the operative regulatory position cannot be verified from open sources.