First Amendment to the Regulation on Money Changing Business (Dhivehi)

Regulation Number: -99R2025/

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Bodu Thakurufaanu Magu
Malé, Maldives
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Website: www.mv.gov.gazette
Volume: 54 Number: 179 Date: 17 Rabeeul Aakhir 1447 – 9 October 2025 Thursday

Regulation Number: -92R2024/ (Regulation on Money Changing Business) First Amendment to the Regulation

MALDIVES MONETARY AUTHORITY
Malé, Maldives.

Regulation Number: -92R2024/ (Regulation on Money Changing Business) First Amendment to the Regulation

The following amendments are made to the Regulation Number: -92R2024/ (Regulation on Money Changing Business).

1. Article 4 of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

The types of Money Changing Licenses.
4 (a) Under this Regulation, the Authority shall issue Tier 1 Money Changing License (License for buying and selling foreign currency business) and Tier 2 Money Changing License (License for selling foreign currency business).

(b) Under the Tier 1 Money Changing License specified in (a) of this Article, the following 2 (two) categories of business may be conducted:

(1) Category A: Buying and selling foreign currency business targeted at the public, businesses, and other entities; (2) Category B: Buying and selling foreign currency business targeted exclusively at businesses.

(c) The Authority shall specify the category of business that may be conducted under the Tier 1 Money Changing License.

2. A new Article 4-1 is added after Article 4 of the said Regulation.

Selection of Category for Tier 1 Money Changing License.
4-1 (a) When the First Amendment to the Regulation Number: -92R2024/ (Regulation on Money Changing Business) comes into effect, entities holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License and entities who have applied to the Authority for a Tier 1 Money Changing License must notify the Authority of the category of business they wish to continue conducting, as determined by the Authority, within 60 (sixty) days from the date the First Amendment to the Regulation Number: -92R2024/ (Regulation on Money Changing Business) comes into effect.

(b) If the entities have not notified the Authority of the category of business they have selected as per (a) of this Article, the Authority may cancel the license issued to them or the application submitted by them.

3. Article 5 (d) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

5 (d) The term "Corporate Group" refers to the following entities:

(1) Other companies in which the company holds 25% (twenty-five percent) or more shares (subsidiary companies); (2) An entity that holds 25% (twenty-five percent) or more shares in the company (owners); (3) Other companies in which the entity specified in (2) of this clause holds 25% (twenty-five percent) or more shares (sister companies); and (4) Other companies in which the companies specified in (3) of this clause hold 25% (twenty-five percent) or more shares (subsidiary companies of sister companies).

4. The following clauses are added after Article 5 (g) of the said Regulation.

5 (e) "Government Company" refers to a company registered in accordance with Article 6 of Law Number 7/2023 (Companies Act).

(f) "Government Shareholding Company" refers to a company, other than a Government Company, in which the Government holds 25% (twenty-five percent) or more shares in its name.

(g) "Business earning foreign currency" refers to the business specified in clause (l) of Article 26 of Law Number 32/2024 (Foreign Exchange Act).

(h) "Related Party" refers to the following entities related to a business earning foreign currency:

(1) An entity that holds shares in the capital of a business earning foreign currency (owners); (2) A partnership to which a partner belongs who holds more than 25% (twenty-five percent) shares in a business earning foreign currency; (3) Companies in which a partner of a partnership that is a business earning foreign currency holds more than 25% (twenty-five percent) shares; and

(4) Entities included in the same corporate group as a business earning foreign currency.

5. Article 6 (n) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

6 (n) Notwithstanding anything else specified in (a) of this Article, the following transactions are permitted without a license:

(1) Buying foreign currency from tourists or selling foreign currency to tourists at places registered under Law Number 2/99 (Tourism Act of Maldives) to provide services to tourists; (2) Transactions of buying and selling foreign currency between a business earning foreign currency and its shareholders; and (3) Transactions of buying and selling foreign currency between a business earning foreign currency (excluding Government Companies and Government Shareholding Companies) and its related parties.

6. Article 8 (h) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

Tier 1 Money Changing License
Conditions to be met for issuance and License Duration

8 (h) A Tier 1 Money Changing License may be issued to a company established specifically for the business of buying and selling foreign currency under Law Number 7/2023 (Companies Act), provided that the beneficial owners of the company are Maldivians. However, Government Companies and Government Shareholding Companies are exempted from this.

7. Article 8 (b) (1) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

8 (b) (1) A company applying for a license must not be an entity whose money changing license has been cancelled at any time. However, the Authority may exempt entities based on the severity of the reasons for the cancellation of the money changing license issued to the entity or entities from whom the applicant is applying.

8. Article 8 (i) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

8 (i) A Tier 1 Money Changing License may be issued to one company from among the companies included in a corporate group. However, a corporate group including Government Companies and Government Shareholding Companies is exempted from this.

9. Article 8 (j) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

8 (j) A Tier 1 Money Changing License for Category A business may be issued to operate the activities of buying and selling foreign currency by establishing a place in the Maldives and conducting business at that place.

10. A new Article 8-1 is added after Article 8 of the said Regulation.

Place of Business.
8-1 (a) Entities holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License for Category A business must establish a permanent place specifically for providing foreign currency buying and selling services, in accordance with the standards in Schedule 1 of this Regulation. This place must be located at a place approved by the Authority.

(b) Entities holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License for Category A business must not provide foreign currency buying and selling services at any place other than the permanent place specified in (a) of this Article, without obtaining permission from the Authority.

(c) If entities holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License for Category A business intend to provide foreign currency buying and selling services at a place other than the permanent place specified in (a) of this Article, they must submit a written application to the Authority for permission from the Authority before providing services at that place. Upon receiving the application for permission, the Authority may grant permission with certain conditions or restrictions, or without any conditions or restrictions.

(d) When submitting an application for permission from the Authority under (c) of this Article, an application fee of 40,000/- (forty thousand) Rufiyaa must be paid to the Authority within the period specified by the Authority. The application fee is non-refundable, even if the Authority decides to grant or deny the permission.

(e) If the permanent place for providing foreign currency buying and selling services approved by the Authority as specified in (a) of this Article, or an additional place approved by the Authority under (c) of this Article, needs to be relocated to another address, it must be done with the permission of the Authority.

(f) If any entity violates any condition determined by the Authority under (c) of this Article, the Authority may suspend the permission issued to that entity for a specific period to rectify the violation, or cancel the permission issued to that place, depending on the severity of the violation.

11. Article 9 (b) (5) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

9 (b) (5) The business plan for the business of buying and selling foreign currency. This must include details of how foreign currency will be sourced, staff, operational plans including management systems and procedures, internal controls, and the category of business the entity intends to conduct under the Tier 1 Money Changing License.

12. Article 11 of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

Application Fee.
11 (a) When applying for a Tier 1 Money Changing License, an application fee of 40,000/- (forty thousand) Rufiyaa must be paid to the Authority within the period specified by the Authority. The application fee is non-refundable, even if the Authority decides to grant or deny the license.

(b) When applying for the renewal of a Tier 1 Money Changing License, an application fee of 20,000/- (twenty thousand) Rufiyaa must be paid to the Authority within the period specified by the Authority. The application fee is non-refundable, even if the Authority decides to renew or deny the renewal of the license.

13. Article 12 (b) (5) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

12 (b) (5) In the event that the service of buying and selling foreign currency needs to be temporarily suspended, an application for permission must be submitted to the Authority.

14. Article 12 (b) (6) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

12 (b) (6) Except for Government Companies and Government Shareholding Companies holding the license, other entities must operate the business for which they hold the license only under the name approved by the Authority.

15. Article 12 (b) (7) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

12 (b) (7) Entities holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License must appoint a Compliance Officer to monitor compliance with Law Number 10/2014 (Prevention of Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism Act) and other laws, regulations, and directives issued by the Authority. In this regard, the appointed Compliance Officer must not be a major shareholder, beneficial owner, or a member of the Board of Directors of the company.

16. A new Article 12-1 is added after Article 12 of the said Regulation.

Additional Conditions for Tier 1 Money Changing Licenses for Government Companies and Government Shareholding Companies.

12-1 (a) Entities holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License, including Government Companies and Government Shareholding Companies, must conduct transactions of buying and selling foreign currency with customers through banks, using a specific bank account opened in the name of the entity for buying and selling foreign currency.

(b) Government Companies and Government Shareholding Companies holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License for Category A business must conduct the business of buying and selling foreign currency through a separate business unit established specifically for the business activities of the company.

17. Article 13 (c) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

13 (c) Except in cases where the service of buying and selling foreign currency is temporarily suspended with the permission of the Authority, if no transaction has been conducted at the licensed business for 3 (three) months.

18. Article 14 of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

Annual Fee.
14 (a) Every entity holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License must pay an annual fee of 48,000/- (forty-eight thousand) Rufiyaa to the Authority within the period determined by the Authority each year.

(b) For each additional place for which permission is granted by the Authority under (c) of Article 8-1, every entity holding such permission must pay an annual fee of 24,000/- (twenty-four thousand) Rufiyaa to the Authority within the period determined by the Authority each year.

19. Article 15 of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

Maintenance of License and Signboard.

15 (a) Every entity holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License for Category A business must keep the license issued to them by the Authority, or a certified copy thereof, in a clearly visible place at every location where they provide foreign currency buying and selling services.

(b) Every entity holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License for Category A business must keep a signboard clearly visible at every location where they provide foreign currency buying and selling services, stating the name of the business and "Licensed Foreign Currency Changer" in Dhivehi and "Changer-Money Licensed" in English.

20. Article 16 of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

Limit on Transactions in Cash Currency and Transactions through Bank Accounts.

16 (a) Every entity holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License for Category A business may conduct transactions with a maximum of one customer per day up to an amount of 50,000/- (fifty thousand) Rufiyaa or equivalent foreign currency. Transactions exceeding this amount must be conducted through bank accounts opened in the name of the entity.

(b) Entities holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License for Category B business must conduct all transactions of buying and selling foreign currency through a bank account opened in the name of the entity.

(c) Transactions between entities holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License and banks are not included in the transactions specified in (a) and (b) of this Article.

21. Article 19 (a) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

Change of Major Shareholders, Directors, and Compliance Officer.

19 (a) Except for Government Companies and Government Shareholding entities, major shareholders of other entities holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License must change only after obtaining permission from the Authority. When applying for permission from the Authority, details of the change of major shareholders and information specified in (3), (4), and (6) of Article 9 (b) regarding the entity proposed to become a major shareholder must be submitted.

22. Article 20 (a) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

Preparation and Audit of Financial Accounts.

20 (a) Entities holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License must prepare their balance sheet, profit and loss account, and annual income and expenditure accounts. In addition, these accounts must be audited by an independent external auditor. If the entity holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License is a Government Company or a Government Shareholding Company, the entity must prepare and audit accounts only for the business of buying and selling foreign currency conducted by that entity.

23. Article 21 (a) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

Conducting Business of Selling Foreign Currency Without License.

21 (a) Except for banks operating in the Maldives and entities holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License, no entity may conduct the business of selling foreign currency in the Maldives under the Maldives Monetary Authority Act, except by obtaining a Tier 2 Money Changing License issued by the Authority for this business.

24. Article 25 of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

Application Fee.

25 (a) When applying for a Tier 2 Money Changing License, an application fee of 2,600 (two thousand six hundred) US Dollars must be paid to the Authority within the period specified by the Authority. The application fee is non-refundable, even if the Authority decides to grant or deny the license.

(b) When applying for the renewal of a Tier 2 Money Changing License, an application fee of 1,300 (one thousand three hundred) US Dollars must be paid to the Authority within the period specified by the Authority. The application fee is non-refundable, even if the Authority decides to renew or deny the renewal of the license.

25. Article 26 (a) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

Conditions for Tier 2 Money Changing License.

26 (a) When issuing a Tier 2 Money Changing License, in addition to the conditions for the Tier 2 Money Changing License specified in (b) of this Article, the license may be issued with additional conditions. Furthermore, after issuing the license, the Authority may amend the license conditions in writing.

26. Article 26 (b) (5) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

26 (b) (5) Entities holding a Tier 2 Money Changing License must appoint a Compliance Officer to monitor compliance with Law Number 10/2014 (Prevention of Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism Act) and other laws, regulations, and directives issued by the Authority. In this regard, the appointed Compliance Officer must not be a major shareholder, beneficial owner, or a member of the Board of Directors of the company.

27. Article 28 of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

Annual Fee.

28. Every entity holding a Tier 2 Money Changing License must pay an annual fee of 3,600 (three thousand six hundred) US Dollars to the Authority within the period determined by the Authority each year.

29. Article 32 of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

Security Deposit.

32 (a) Every licensed entity must maintain a security deposit of 100,000 (one hundred thousand) US Dollars with the Authority at all times.

(b) For each additional place for which permission is granted by the Authority under (c) of Article 8-1, a security deposit of 50,000 (fifty thousand) US Dollars must be maintained with the Authority at all times.

(c) Entities holding licenses must deposit the amounts specified in (a) and (b) of this Article as security deposits within 6 (six) months from the date the First Amendment to the Regulation Number: -92R2024/ (Regulation on Money Changing Business) comes into effect, or within any additional period determined by the Authority.

29. Article 33 (b) (3) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

33 (b) (3) A major shareholder, member of the Board of Directors, or member of senior management of any money changing business whose license has been cancelled within the past 5 (five) years; however, in the case of such members of the Board of Directors or senior management, the Authority may grant an exemption to such entities considering the term served (if a Board member, the previous executive or non-executive term, or if a senior management member, the previous position) and the reasons for the cancellation of the license of that company.

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30. Article 37 (a) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

Foreign Currency Buying and Selling Rate.

37 (a) Every entity holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License for Category A business must keep the rates at which they buy and sell foreign currency at every location where they provide foreign currency buying and selling services, in a manner easily visible to the public.

31. Article 37 (b) of the said Regulation is amended as follows:

37 (b) The rates at which entities holding a Tier 1 Money Changing License for Category B business buy foreign currency and sell, and the rates at which entities holding a Tier 2 Money Changing License sell foreign currency, must be published publicly as determined by the Authority.

32. This Regulation shall come into effect from the date this Regulation is published in the Government of Maldives Gazette.

Schedule 1
Standards for Entities Holding Tier 1 Money Changing License for Category A Business to Provide Foreign Currency Buying and Selling Services to the Public