In a statement to Tunisienumerique.com, MPAli Zaghdoud, member of the Finance Committee in Parliament, explained that President Kaïs Saïed has two constitutional options after the transmission of the 2026 Finance Law adopted by the Assembly of the People’s Representatives.
Two options for the president of the Republic
Ali Zaghdoudstated that, once the 2026 Finance Law is forwarded by Parliament, the president of the Republic has two choices from a constitutional standpoint:
Either approve the 2026 Finance Law in its entirety and sign it,
Or reject the Finance Law as a whole and return it to the Assembly of the People’s Representatives for a second reading.
In the first case, he added, the law is signed by the head of state, published in the Official Journal of the Tunisian Republic (JORT) and thus becomes enforceable and binding.
In case of refusal: three-month provisional budget and second reading
In the event that the president of the Republic refuses to ratify the Finance Law, a provisional management budget would be implemented for a period of three months.
At the same time, the rejected Finance Law would be sent back to Parliament for:
a new reading and fresh examination,
adoption in a second reading,
then resubmission to the president of the Republic within a period not exceeding 45 days, in accordance with the applicable provisions.
A presidential refusal deemed unlikely
However, Ali Zaghdoud considers this scenario unlikely. He said he rules out the possibility that the head of state would refuse to sign, recalling that the points which had raised reservations from the minister of Finance were, according to him, the subject of a broad consensus during parliamentary discussions.
“I find it unlikely that the president will move towards refusing to ratify the 2026 Finance Law,” he explained, “given that even in our discussions with the minister of Finance on certain articles that had raised reservations, a general agreement was reached. I believe the president will act rationally, and the most likely outcome is that he will ratify the version of the 2026 draft Finance Law that has been sent to him.”
Thus, according to the MP, everything suggests that the 2026 Finance Law will follow its normal course, with promulgation expected after its official transmission to the president of the Republic.
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