Libya's Minister of Economy in the Government of National Unity, Souheil Abouchiha, has banned the use of foreign drivers to carry goods within Libya, in a decision published on Monday, 19 October. The measure applies to lorries and other vehicles used for freight.
The text covers both transport carried out for a client and transport carried out for the needs of the employer, where the activity falls under Libyan legislation. It thus places in the same category carriers working for third parties and companies that organise their own deliveries.
Decision number 532 of 2026 takes effect from the date of its signature, 19 October. Its third article tasks the competent authorities with implementing it, without providing for a transitional period in the signed text.
The ministry presents the ban as a measure to organise road transport and bring it into line with labour market rules, the Libyan state news agency LANA reports. It concerns drivers assigned to freight transport, not all jobs held by foreigners.
The text relies in particular on the Labour Ministry's decision of 2021 governing the use of foreign labour, and cites its provisions on the driver profession.