The South African Reserve Bank’s Financial Surveillance Department published a statement on exchange controls and released nine draft circulars for public comment to implement further exchange control reforms announced in the 2026 Budget Review. The drafts primarily raise several transaction and travel-related limits, remove certain pricing constraints on inward foreign borrowing, and streamline operational approvals handled by authorised dealers. Proposed changes include increasing the single discretionary allowance for residents aged 18 and over from R1 million to R2 million per calendar year and raising the under-18 travel allowance from R200 000 to R400 000, with corresponding updates for authorised dealers in foreign exchange with limited authority and new source-of-funds verification requirements for transactions exceeding an aggregate value of R50 000. The drafts would also lift the per-transaction cap for foreign currency payments by credit or debit card for imports, services and subscriptions from R50 000 to R100 000, increase multiple miscellaneous transfer thresholds from R100 000 to R200 000, and raise the Rand banknote import and export limit from R25 000 to R100 000. For corporates, the package removes the exchange control interest rate criteria for inward foreign loans and foreign trade finance facilities, replacing it with a requirement that pricing be market related or normal in the relevant trade and maintaining Loan Reporting System reporting, while also delegating renewals of certain prior approvals for local settlement in foreign currency between residents over Customer Foreign Currency accounts to authorised dealers, excluding state-owned entities. Merchanting transactions would move to a uniform four-month settlement time lag, replacing the current jurisdiction-based limits. Comments are due by 17 March 2026 in the prescribed format, with no extensions. After considering submissions, the Financial Surveillance Department will issue final circulars, at which point the dispensations will become effective. Separately, a framework for the announced Synthetic Financial Centre dispensation is to be developed for public comment during 2026, and the National Treasury plans updated draft exchange control regulations for consultation to implement the capital flow management framework and a later crypto assets framework for cross-border activities.
South African Reserve Bank 2026-03-03
South African Reserve Bank opens consultation on nine draft exchange control circulars including a R2 million single discretionary allowance
The South African Reserve Bank's Financial Surveillance Department released nine draft circulars for public comment, proposing significant exchange control reforms as outlined in the 2026 Budget Review. Key changes include raising transaction and travel-related limits, removing pricing constraints on inward foreign borrowing, and streamlining approvals by authorised dealers. The drafts also propose removing exchange control interest rate criteria for foreign loans and delegating certain approval renewals to authorised dealers.