Tunisia is a geographically small North African country with big potential. With 12.432 million people, it’s one of Africa’s smaller countries by population as well, thanks to the deserts that cover its southern half. At the same time, Tunisia has a significant GDP of $56.29 billion, with another 1.4% growth expected in 2025. The country has been an important center for trade since antiquity and currently does most of its trade with the EU. While it produces a lot of agricultural products, phosphates, iron ore, and clothing, oil and gas have become increasingly important factors in Tunisia’s economy in recent decades. There are over 4.246 million workers who are largely employed in services and are becoming increasingly skilled and well-educated every year, making them highly attractive to employers.

At the same time, employers can have a difficult time hiring and managing local workers and taking care of their needs. Differences in culture, languages, and regulations can make these tasks challenging, especially when employers are trying to find the right people with the right skills to hire. Both employers and employees can struggle to find the right fit. Employers need to find ways to ensure that the people they hire really have the skills they claim, while employees need to ascertain whether or not their employers will live up to their promises.

Using probation periods is one way to reduce these and other concerns, and to help both sides feel secure in their choices. In this guide, we’ll explain what a probation period in Tunisia is and why using them can be a good policy for your organization.

Definition of a Probation Period in Tunisia

In Tunisia, a probation period is an initial period of time that starts when a new employee begins working for an employer. This is a time used by both the employer and the employee to judge whether their employment agreement will be successful over the long term. It’s also a time when protections are reduced so that both sides have more flexibility if they want to terminate their agreements.

For the employer, a probation period provides the opportunity to evaluate a new employee’s performance on the job and compare that to the claims they made in the application and interview stages. This lets the employer decide whether or not the employee truly has the skills and aptitudes needed for the job. It also provides an opportunity to observe how they interact and collaborate with their supervisor and coworkers and to judge whether these working relationships will be positive. Finally, many employers use probation periods to work intensively with new hires, helping to train them in their tasks and build their skills so they can quickly become fully productive team members. 

For employees, a probation period also provides an opportunity for evaluation. They test out their new positions to see if they’ll be happy and successful in them, and also to ascertain whether or not they can work effectively with their colleagues. Employees also get to experience the cultures of their employing organizations and decide if they’re a good match for their personalities and working styles. Finally, new employees get a chance to judge whether or not the working conditions and benefits they were promised during recruitment are provided by their employers.

During probation periods in Tunisia, both the employer and employee can terminate their employment agreements at any time if they perceive that they won’t be successful. If neither party does so and the probation period comes to its prescribed end, however, it will be considered successful, and the worker will be considered a full employee.

Lengths of Probationary Periods in Tunisia

The lengths of probationary periods in Tunisia used to depend on the type of employee involved, with employers able to place executives on probation for up to one year. However, this was changed recently with the publication of Law No. 2025-9 of 21 May 2025. According to this new law, the maximum duration of a probationary period in Tunisia is six months. However, probationary periods can be extended once, which means that the effective limit for probation is actually 12 months. Collective agreements have a big influence on how long these periods last for different industries and types of workers, and many limit probation to shorter periods.

It’s also important to note that once an employee has been hired and put on probation for a type of job, they cannot be required to pass another probationary period if they are re-hired in the future by the same employer.

Legal Considerations of Probation Periods in Tunisia

While the Labor Code 1966 defines many of the regulations related to employment in Tunisia, probation periods are defined and characterized in the Framework Collective Agreement 1973 and Law No. 2025-9. These instruments define the rights of employees and employers during probation periods as follows:

Pay and Working Conditions

In Tunisia, workers are generally hired on contracts to work five days and 40 regular hours a week, or six days and 48 hours a week. When they work overtime, employees must be paid more than their regular wages. Employees on 40-hour schedules must be paid at least 125% of their normal wages for their first eight hours of overtime in a week and 150% for additional hours. Workers on 48-hour schedules must be paid at least 175% of their normal wages for overtime. For all workers, workweeks cannot exceed 60 total hours. These rules are the same for employees on probation as for full employees.

Probationary workers are also protected by a federal minimum wage like their fully-employed counterparts. As of 1 January 2025, and remaining in force in 2026, agricultural workers must be paid a minimum of TND 20.32 per day. Non-agricultural workers on a 40-hour workweek must be paid at least TND 448.238 per month, while those on a 48-hour workweek must receive a minimum of TND 528.320 per month.

Termination and Notice

In many countries, employers and employees can terminate their agreements at will during probationary periods, but this is not the case in Tunisia. Instead, if either party wishes to terminate their agreement, they can do so by providing notice in writing of at least 15 days. If the employer is providing the notice of termination, they must state the reason for the termination to justify it. However, they can state a lack of skills or poor performance as a reasonable justification.

After probation periods are successfully completed, it becomes slightly more difficult to terminate contracts. Instead of 15 days, the notice period is extended to at least 30 days, giving time for the notified party to make necessary changes.

Vacation / Holidays

Tunisia typically celebrates 15 public holidays per year of national and religious (Islamic) significance. However, while civil servants are normally entitled to all of these public holidays, workers in the private sector are only guaranteed six paid public holidays. Whether or not they’re on probation, workers receive time off with pay on these days. If they must work, however, employees have to be paid 200% of their normal wages.

Tunisians are also entitled to 12 working days of annual leave, with this allowance increasing by one day for every five years of service to a maximum of 18 days. These leave days are accumulated at the rate of one day per month worked, so even probationary workers can accumulate annual leave.

Benefits of Probation Periods in Tunisia

Probation periods are widely used in Tunisia because they offer benefits to both sides in employment agreements, including:

  • For Employees

The chance to resign by giving less notice than under normal circumstances.

The ability to try a new position and judge their fit within an organization.

The opportunity to assess the working conditions and benefits provided by the employer.

  • For Employers

The ability to evaluate a worker on the job and to assess their ability to fulfill the obligations of their role.

Time to focus on building the skills and abilities of new workers.

The ability to terminate workers with a shorter notice period than after probation.

Conclusion

Employers generally choose to use probation periods in Tunisia because they offer more flexibility and the ability to terminate workers more rapidly than usual. However, probation also provides employees with the same flexibility and other benefits. These periods let both sides check their employment decisions and can lead to greater long-term employment success.

Frequently Asked Questions

No, probation isn’t mandatory by law, though it can be required by some collective agreements.

Essentially, yes. While employers must give reasons for dismissing workers during probation, reasons such as a lack of skill or poor productivity are considered justified.

While their lengths can vary by industry and employee type, the maximum length of a probation period is six months. However, if the employer wants to give an employee more time to prove themself, they can renew the probation period once, leading to a total of 12 months.