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Albania Country Commercial Guide
Learn about the market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business conditions in albania, prepared by at U.S. Embassies worldwide by Commerce Department, State Department and other U.S. agencies’ professionals
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eCommerce
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Assessment of Current Buyer Behavior in Market

E-Commerce is in its infancy in Albania.  Although an increasing number of domestic retailers are introducing on-line shopping and number of internet users has grown significantly during the last few years, fueled also by COVID-19, Albanian buyers generally prefer to visit shops and the use of electronic payments is rare.

Albania is a predominantly cash economy, a major factor hampering faster development of e-commerce.  Cross border e-shopping remains in the early stages too, due to the low use of credit cards, low purchasing power, and the high cost of shipping. Additionally, many foreign online merchants either do not ship to Albania or charge prohibitively high shipping charges. In 2016, the GOA reduced from 150 euros to 22 euros the de minimis amount, which had a negative impact on cross-border online shopping.

Local eCommerce Sales Rules & Regulations

The E-commerce Law 10128, the Electronic Signatures Law 9880 along with the law on Consumer Protection 9902 comprise the legal framework regulating the e-commerce activities in Albania. There is no need for a license to conduct e-commerce. 

Local eCommerce Business Service Provider Ecosystem

E-commerce is offered by a limited number of domestic merchants. Although the use of credit cards is growing, their use is limited outside of major hotels, restaurants, and department stores.

The use of cell phones to pay for goods and services is developing but not widespread. The use of mobile phones is currently limited for mobile banking and is used mostly by businesses while the limited pool of individual users uses it only to pay utility bills.

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Global Business Navigator Chatbot Beta

Welcome to the Global Business Navigator, an artificial intelligence (AI) Chatbot from the International Trade Administration (ITA). This tool, currently in beta version testing, is designed to provide general information on the exporting process and the resources available to assist new and experienced U.S. exporters. The Chatbot, developed using Microsoft’s Azure AI services, is trained on ITA’s export-related content and aims to quickly get users the information they need. The Chatbot is intended to make the benefits of exporting more accessible by understanding non-expert language, idiomatic expressions, and foreign languages.

Limitations

As a beta product, the Chatbot is currently being tested and its responses may occasionally produce inaccurate or incomplete information. The Chatbot is trained to decline out of scope or inappropriate requests. The Chatbot’s knowledge is limited to the public information on the Export Solutions web pages of Trade.gov, which covers a wide range of topics on exporting. While it cannot provide responses specific to a company’s product or a specific foreign market, its reference pages will guide you to other relevant government resources and market research. Always double-check the Chatbot’s responses using the provided references or by visiting the Export Solutions web pages on Trade.gov. Do not use its responses as legal or professional advice. Inaccurate advice from the Chatbot would not be a defense to violating any export rules or regulations.

Privacy

The Chatbot does not collect information about users and does not use the contents of users’ chat history to learn new information. All feedback is anonymous. Please do not enter personally identifiable information (PII), sensitive, or proprietary information into the Chatbot. Your conversations will not be connected to other interactions or accounts with ITA. Conversations with the Chatbot may be reviewed to help ITA improve the tool and address harmful, illegal, or otherwise inappropriate questions.

Translation

The Chatbot supports a wide range of languages. Because the Chatbot is trained in English and responses are translated, you should verify the translation. For example, the Chatbot may have difficulty with acronyms, abbreviations, and nuances in a language other than English.

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