– Service exporters now able to retain forex earnings in full
The National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) has introduced an amendment to its foreign currency directive allowing service exporters to retain 100 percent of their export proceeds in a forex retention account indefinitely.
The directive, signed and approved by Governor Eyob Tekalign (PhD) today, lifts several restrictions on access and use of forex.
Beginning tomorrow, commercial banks will no longer require visa and travel documents to put foreign currency on internationally recognized debit cards belonging to account holders. The amendment scraps minimum requirements for opening forex accounts, leaving it to banks’ discretion.
From The Reporter Magazine
Requirements for cash notes declaration for an authorized dealer to accept or purchase or deposit an amount exceeding USD 10,000 or its equivalent in any other currency have also been rescinded.
Banks are now authorized to approve investor profits or dividends from recognized and registered foreign investments to remit dividends abroad, and are entitled to offer private forex loan guarantees that do not exceed 10 percent of the bank’s total capital.
Guarantees are considered loans, and are therefore governed by the single borrower limit directive.
From The Reporter Magazine
The NBE no longer requires a declaration for amounts exceeding USD 10,000 upon border entry, during exchange at a forex bureau, or when depositing into a forex account.
Exporters are entitled to obtain a permit for foreign currency sent from any party from abroad, as long as the parties can present a valid agreement, according to the new directive.
It also enables forex bureaus to provide forex for immigration or licensing fees locally and limits bureaus to holding no more than 25 percent of their capital in FX cash, with any excess at the end of each month to be sold to commercial banks.
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