United States Department of State

Iraq United States Department of State

The GOI has publicly stated its commitment to attract foreign investment, and has taken several steps to improve the investment climate in Iraq. The current administration, led by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, committed to diversifying Iraq's economy to be less reliant on oil revenues, restructuring SOEs, modernizing the financial sector, and reducing bureaucratic bottlenecks. The GOI also pledged to publish investment opportunities and to provide foreign investors preferential terms and conditions. The government is exploring financing for long-term development projects, rather than relying on the established practice of funding investments entirely from current annual budget outlays. According to Iraqi law, a foreign investor is entitled to make investments in Iraq on terms no less favorable than those applicable to an Iraqi investor, and the amount of foreign participation is not limited. However, Iraq's National Investment Law limits foreign direct and indirect ownership of natural resources, particularly the extraction and processing of any natural resources. Further restrictions apply to the ownership of banks and insurance companies. Otherwise, there are no laws or practices that explicitly discriminate against foreign investors.