Definitions
In the Currency and Exchanges guidelines for individuals, unless the context indicates otherwise:
ADLA means an Authorised Dealer in foreign exchange with limited authority, including Bureaux de Change, independent money transfer operators and value transfer service providers, who are authorised by the Financial Surveillance Department to deal in foreign exchange transactions as determined by the Financial Surveillance Department.
ADLA Manual means the Currency and Exchanges Manual for ADLAs issued by the Financial Surveillance Department to ADLAs under the powers delegated by the Minister of Finance. The ADLA Manual contains the permissions, conditions and limits applicable to the transactions in foreign exchange that may be undertaken by ADLAs and/or on behalf of their clients, as well as details of related administrative responsibilities.
Authorised Dealer means, in relation to any transaction in respect of gold, a person authorised by the Treasury to deal in gold and, in relation to any transaction in respect of foreign exchange, a person authorised by the Treasury to deal in foreign exchange.
Authorised Dealer Manual means the Currency and Exchanges Manual for Authorised Dealers issued by the Financial Surveillance Department to Authorised Dealers under the powers delegated by the Minister of Finance. The Authorised Dealer Manual contains the permissions, conditions and limits applicable to the transactions in foreign exchange that may be undertaken by Authorised Dealers and/or on behalf of their clients, as well as details of related administrative responsibilities.
CMA means the Common Monetary Area, which consists of Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa and eSwatini.
Cross-border foreign exchange transaction means the purchase or sale of foreign exchange with or for Rand.
Customs means Customs and Excise, a division of the South African Revenue Service.
Financial assistance includes the lending of currency, the granting of credit, the taking up of securities, the conclusion of a hire purchase or a lease, the financing of sales or stocks, discounting, factoring, the guaranteeing of acceptance credits, the guaranteeing or acceptance of any obligation, a suretyship, a buy-back and a leaseback, but excluding:
(i) the granting of credit by a seller in respect of any commercial transaction directly involving the passing of ownership of the goods sold from seller to purchaser; and
(ii) the granting of credit solely in respect of the payment for services rendered.
Financial Surveillance Department means the Financial Surveillance Department of the South African Reserve Bank (responsible for the administration of exchange control on behalf of the Treasury).
Foreign bank account means a foreign currency bank account conducted by residents with a bank outside the CMA in terms of the provisions of the Authorised Dealer Manual or a specific authority granted by the Financial Surveillance Department.
Foreign currency refers to any currency other than the currency that is legal tender in South Africa, excluding the currencies of Lesotho, Namibia, and eSwatini. Foreign currency includes any bill of exchange, letter of credit, money order, postal order, promissory note, traveler’s check, or any other foreign exchange instrument.
Foreign currency account is an account operated by residents (limited to natural persons and institutional investors) and non-residents through the nostro-administration of Authorized Dealers according to the provisions of the Authorized Dealer Manual or a specific authority granted by the Financial Surveillance Department.
Foreign direct investment is the objective of obtaining a long-term interest by a resident entity in one economy (the direct investor) in an entity located in another economy (the direct investment enterprise) outside of the investor’s home country. This interest implies a long-term relationship between the direct investor and the enterprise, with significant influence over its management. A direct investment enterprise is defined as an incorporated or unincorporated enterprise where a foreign investor owns at least 10% of the ordinary shares or voting power of the incorporated enterprise or the equivalent in an unincorporated enterprise.
Foreign nationals refers to natural persons from countries outside the Common Monetary Area (CMA) who are temporarily resident in South Africa, excluding those on holiday or business visits.
Gold, as referred to in Regulations 2 and 5, includes all forms of gold except wrought gold, as well as ingots, amalgam, scrap of gold, and scrap of gold bullion and trade scrap. Gold in Regulation 3 includes wrought gold and gold coins.
Immigrants are natural persons who have immigrated from countries outside the CMA with the intention of taking up or who have taken up permanent residence in South Africa.
Integrated form is the electronic or paper format of a contract between an Authorized Dealer or ADLA and its client, resulting in a balance-of-payments reporting obligation. It includes a declaration stating that the information provided is true and correct.
ITAC stands for the International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa, established under section 7 of the International Trade Administration Act, 2002 (Act No. 71 of 2002).
MRN is the Movement Reference Number issued by Customs once goods have been cleared.
Non-resident is a person (whether a natural or legal entity) whose normal place of residence, domicile, or registration is outside the CMA.
Non-resident Rand refers to Rand sent to or from a non-resident account, which may, in certain circumstances, be allowed elsewhere in the Authorized Dealer Manual as an acceptable payment mechanism instead of foreign currency. Non-resident Rand is not considered foreign currency; it is purely Rand held in a non-resident account or received from a non-resident source.
Non-resident Rand account refers to the Rand account of a non-resident conducted in the CMA.
Passenger ticket refers to a ticket issued for travel arrangements, including electronically issued tickets (e-tickets).
Rand is the monetary unit of South Africa as defined in section 15 of the South African Reserve Bank Act, 1989 (Act No. 90 of 1989).
Regulations refer to the Exchange Control Regulations, 1961, as promulgated by Government Notice R.1111 of 1961-12-01, and as amended from time to time.
Related party refers to a party in a transaction that has a direct or indirect interest in the other party and has the ability to control the other party or exercise significant influence over the other party in making financial and operating decisions, or when both parties are under common control. For the purpose of the Authorized Dealer Manual, this includes transactions between parties that belong to the same group of companies, such as a parent, subsidiary, fellow subsidiary, and/or an associate company.
Reporting System refers to the electronic FinSurv Reporting System used to transmit data to the Financial Surveillance Department in an agreed format.
Resident refers to any person (natural or legal entity) who has taken up permanent residence, is domiciled, or is registered in South Africa.
Resident temporarily abroad refers to any resident who has departed from South Africa to any country outside the CMA without intending to take up permanent residence in another country, excluding residents abroad on holiday or business travel.
Restricted Authorized Dealer means a person authorized by the Financial Surveillance Department to deal in foreign exchange using a locally issued credit card for permissible cross-border transactions.
SADC stands for the Southern African Development Community, comprising Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, eSwatini, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
SARS refers to the South African Revenue Service.
SARS Customs Declaration consists of the following documents:
- SARS Customs Declaration form, which is used by Customs to verify importers’ or exporters’ self-assessment of goods declared for a Customs procedure. The customs procedure is defined by the Procedure Category Code (A to L) in conjunction with the Customs Requested Procedure Code (RPC) on the declaration.
- SARS Customs Supporting documentation, which includes commercial documents (e.g., suppliers’ invoices, regulatory permits, transport documents, currency conversion/duty calculation worksheet) upon which the SARS Customs Declaration Form is completed; and
- SARS Customs Status Notification is the response issued by Customs (Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) Response Notification/Customs Release Notification), which specifies the status or decision of Customs regarding declared goods.
Single discretionary allowance is the R1 million allowance available to residents (natural persons) aged 18 years or older per calendar year.
Securities include quoted stocks, shares, warrants, debentures, and rights, as well as unquoted shares in public companies, shares in private companies, Government, Municipal, and Public utility stocks, non-resident owned mortgage bonds, and/or participations in mortgage bonds and short-term debt instruments. The terms “scrip” and “share certificates” include any temporary or substitute documents of title such as Letters of Allocation, Warrants, Letters of Allotments, Orphan Certificates, Balance Receipts, and any other receipts for scrip.
South Africa refers to the Republic of South Africa.
Treasury refers to any matter contemplated in the Regulations, involving the Minister of Finance or an officer in National Treasury who, by virtue of the division of work in National Treasury, addresses the matter under the authority of the Minister of Finance.