Bolivia: technology regulation at a glance

Framework: BCB Resolución de Directorio N°082/2024 (lifted the crypto ban, authorizing virtual-asset operations via electronic payment channels) + ASFI Reglamento para Empresas de Tecnología Financiera (Resolución ASFI/540/2025), which defines Virtual Asset Service Providers (PSAV) and a regulatory sandbox. Oversight is shared by Banco Central de Bolivia (BCB), the financial supervisor ASFI, and the financial-intelligence unit (UIF).

Crypto is legal but not legal tender in Bolivia. After a decade-long prohibition, the BCB repealed its ban on 25 June 2024 (Res. 082/2024), permitting purchases/sales of virtual assets through authorized electronic channels. A dedicated supervisory framework is being built out: ASFI's 2025 fintech regulation defines VASPs and a sandbox, with a licensing-application deadline of 30 April 2026, while banks have begun offering regulated USDT custody.

Framework: Proyecto de Ley N° 178/2024-2025 (Senate-approved, pending Chamber of Deputies); AGETIC (Agencia de Gobierno Electrónico y Tecnologías de la Información y Comunicación) as interim digital governance authority

Bolivia has no enacted AI-specific law as of May 2026. The Senate approved a comprehensive AI bill, 'Promoción, Gestión y Uso de la Inteligencia Artificial' (Proyecto de Ley N° 178/2024-2025), on 22 October 2025, but the legislation remained pending before the Chamber of Deputies with constitutional debates ongoing into early 2026. In the absence of dedicated AI legislation, no unified national AI strategy or sector-specific AI rules are formally in force.

Framework: No comprehensive data-protection law enacted; constitutional habeas data (Art. 130, 2009 Political Constitution); sector-specific obligations under Law 164 (2011) and Supreme Decree 1793 (2013) for telecoms; AGETIC 2024 anteproyecto under legislative review; no dedicated supervisory authority

Bolivia lacks a comprehensive personal data-protection law as of May 2026. The 2009 Political Constitution enshrines a habeas data action and informational self-determination as fundamental rights, while Law 164 of 2011 and Supreme Decree 1793 of 2013 impose limited, consent-based data obligations exclusively in the telecoms sector. AGETIC prepared and formally presented a full draft personal-data protection law (anteproyecto) to the Plurinational Legislative Assembly in 2024, but it remains in socialization and has not been enacted.

Framework: Ley N° 393 de Servicios Financieros + Decreto Supremo N° 5384 (7 May 2025) and ASFI Resolution ASFI/540/2025 (Reglamento para Empresas de Tecnología Financiera), with BCB's Reglamento de Servicios de Pago e Instrumentos Electrónicos de Pago; supervised by ASFI and the Banco Central de Bolivia (BCB).

Bolivia has an in-force licensing regime for digital payments and fintech. Mobile-payment companies (ESPM) and electronic-card administrators (EATE) issuing electronic payment instruments are licensed and supervised by ASFI under the Financial Services Law (Ley 393), while the BCB operates a mandatory interoperable QR rail. In May 2025 the government enacted Decreto Supremo 5384, creating a dedicated 'Empresa de Tecnología Financiera' (ETF) licence, covering payments, blockchain, tokenized and virtual assets, that requires a constitution permit and operating licence from ASFI, with a regulatory sandbox and an adaptation deadline for existing fintechs.

Framework: Ley de Migración No. 370 (8 May 2013) and implementing Decreto Supremo No. 1923 (13 March 2014), administered by the Dirección General de Migración under the Ministry of Government

Bolivia has no dedicated digital nomad or remote-work visa. Remote workers can pursue legal long-term stay through the general temporary residency system (Residencia Temporal) by demonstrating financial self-sufficiency, with categories covering work, investor, and financially independent persons. Tourist entry (90 days) is commonly used in practice but does not legally authorise work.

Framework: Ley General de Telecomunicaciones, Tecnologías de Información y Comunicación (Law No. 164, 2011); Autoridad de Regulación y Fiscalización de Telecomunicaciones y Transportes (ATT); Agencia de Gobierno Electrónico y Tecnologías de Información y Comunicación (AGETIC)

Bolivia lacks any dedicated online safety, content-moderation, or platform-liability legislation. The primary digital governance instrument remains the 2011 Telecommunications and ICT Law (No. 164), which covers service licensing and basic ICT development but imposes no obligations on online platforms regarding content moderation, age verification, or harm prevention. A draft personal data protection law has been under congressional analysis since 2023 but has not been enacted.

Framework: Law No. 164 on Telecommunications (2011) and Supreme Decree No. 2514 (2015) establishing AGETIC and the CGII; Electronic Government Implementation Plan 2025-2028 (Supreme Decree No. 5468, 1 October 2025)

Bolivia has no comprehensive cybersecurity law; its operative framework is built on sectoral and public-sector-specific rules. AGETIC (the digital-government agency) operates the CGII national incident response centre, which mandates 24-hour incident reporting by all public entities. A national cybersecurity strategy is under development with EU/LAC4 support, and a data-protection bill remains pending in Congress.

Framework: Ley de Promoción de Inversiones No. 516 (2014); Código de Comercio; SEPREC (Servicio Plurinacional de Registro de Comercio), replaced FUNDEMPRESA as the commercial registry authority in 2022

Foreign investors may own 100% of most Bolivian companies and can register online through SEPREC, but the process still involves multiple sequential steps, notarisation, tax enrollment, and municipal licensing, typically taking 4-6 weeks. Strategic sectors (hydrocarbons, mining, broadcasting) carry significant state-ownership requirements or foreign-equity caps, and the overall investment climate is rated poorly due to bureaucratic complexity, weak judicial enforcement, and acute macroeconomic instability as of 2025-2026.