Bahrain Legislative Decree No. 48/2002 (the Telecommunications Law) sets out the legal and regulatory framework applicable to the telecommunications sector. Unless otherwise specified, references to 'articles' in this document refer to articles of the Telecommunications Law.

The Telecommunications Law establishes the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) as an independent public authority, with duties and powers including issuing licences to operators, monitoring and enforcement and, where appropriate, regulation of the terms, conditions and tariffs of interconnection and access services of dominant operators. The promotion of competition and the protection of consumer's interests are two core duties of the TRA. The Telecommunications Law includes a timetable for the liberalisation of the sector which has been implemented by the TRA.