e-TafaknaA partnership agreement, or cooperation agreement, sets the terms of a collaboration between two companies that remain legally independent. It is used for a joint project, a combined offer or shared resources, without setting up a new company.
What every template should include before you sign.
Full identification of each company (legal form, registered office, registration) and of the person signing. The signatory's authority is checked in the articles of association or a written delegation.
Precise description of the project, the products or services concerned and the territory. A vague scope is the most common source of disputes.
A clause stating that the agreement creates no company, no legal entity and no agency between the parties. Each party remains liable for its own commitments to third parties.
List of what each party provides: staff, know-how, customers, tools, funding. Deliverables and deadlines are set for each party.
Rules on who bears which expenses and how each party is paid. Invoicing between partners and payment terms are set out in writing.
Steering committee, named contacts, meeting frequency and decision rules. A deadlock procedure prevents the project from stalling.
Each party keeps its pre-existing rights, and ownership of joint creations is settled from the start. A confidentiality obligation covers the information exchanged.
Term, notice period, termination for breach, and what happens to ongoing projects, data and shared customers when the agreement ends.
Choice of governing law, courts or arbitration, with prior mediation where relevant. This is essential when the companies are based in different countries.
Pick a country: key points, formalities and reference texts.
An innominate contract governed by the general law of obligations, limited by competition law and, where staff are seconded, by the Labour Code.
All templates in Tunisia
No specific regime: the agreement falls under the general law of obligations in the Civil Code.
All templates in Algeria
The agreement is governed by the Code of Obligations and Contracts (DOC) and creates no legal entity.
All templates in Morocco
An innominate contract governed by the Civil Code, with a risk of recharacterisation as a company and limits set by competition law.
All templates in Egypt
In Lebanon, the 1932 Code of Obligations and Contracts is the general law that applies; the sharing of personal data falls under Law No. 81 of 2018.
All templates in Lebanon
In Iraq, Civil Code No. 40 of 1951 sets the general law of contracts, including the 7% cap on agreed interest.
All templates in Iraq
General contract law under the Civil Transactions Law, with strict limits under the Competition Law.
All templates in Saudi Arabia
A contractual joint venture with no legal personality, governed by the contract, the Civil Transactions Law and the Commercial Transactions Law.
All templates in the United Arab Emirates
A cooperation agreement that creates no new structure falls under the general contract rules of the Civil Code; the unincorporated joint venture, without legal personality, is provided for by the Commercial Companies Law.
All templates in Qatar
A cooperation agreement that shares profits and losses may amount to a joint venture company (muhassa), with no legal personality and no registration.
All templates in Oman
A cooperation agreement that creates no company is an unnamed contract governed by the Civil Code, which also regulates the mudaraba.
All templates in Yemen
A common-law country: no form is imposed on a cooperation agreement between companies.
All templates in Kenya
No specific regime: the agreement is governed by the general law of contract in the Civil Code and by freedom of contract.
All templates in France
The general law of contract applies; the rules specific to this contract remain to be clarified.
All templates in ItalySimple signature, OTP signature or TunTrust qualified signature (DigiGO, Mobile ID) in Tunisia.
See the signature levelsA partnership agreement organises cooperation between companies that remain independent; in Tunisia, Morocco and the UAE it creates no legal entity. In Egypt, the agreement may be recharacterised as a company where the parties contribute property or work to a joint project to share its results (Civil Code, art. 505), and a company contract must be in writing, failing which it is void (art. 507).
TunisiaAlgeriaMoroccoEgyptSaudi ArabiaUnited Arab EmiratesQatarOmanIraqYemenLebanonKenyaFranceItalyGeneral information, up to date at the date shown. It does not replace legal advice tailored to your situation.
