Instruction No. 18/2019 of October 25 on Foreign Exchange Limits for Goods Imports

---

INSTRUCTION NO. 18/2019 of October 25
SUBJECT: FOREIGN EXCHANGE POLICY
− Limits for Foreign Exchange Operations on Goods Imports Whereas it is necessary to adjust the limits and conditions for the use of various payment instruments in the importation of goods, as defined under Notice No. 05/2018 of July 17 on Rules and Procedures Applicable to Foreign Exchange Operations for the Import and Export of Goods; In exercise of the powers conferred upon me by the combined provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 28 of Law No. 5/97 of July 27 – Foreign Exchange Law, and Article 40 of Law No. 16/10 of July 15 – Law of the National Bank of Angola, I DETERMINE:

1. Application of Limits
   1.1. The limits defined in this Instruction apply to operations for
   payment of imported goods, with the exception set forth in point 1.2.
   1.2. Payment modalities are freely negotiated whenever the
   resident foreign exchange importer is also an exporter and settlement occurs with own funds in foreign currency held in account.
2. Definition of Limits
   for the purposes of this Instruction, the following limits are defined:
   a) Advance Payments or Down Payments – up to USD 50,000.00 (fifty thousand United States dollars) per operation, with no maximum annual limits. For advance payments or down payments of higher value, which are not made under a documentary credit or under point 1.2 of this Instruction, an irrevocable bank guarantee for good performance of equal value must be provided,

CONTINUED INSTRUCTION NO. 18/2019 Page 2 of 4 by a foreign bank recognized by the Banking Financial Institution of the importer. b) Documentary Remittances – up to USD 200,000.00 (two hundred thousand United States dollars) per operation, with no maximum annual limits. c) Documentary Collections and Import Documentary Credits – unlimited use, provided they are opened in accordance with UCP 600 rules. Advance payments of up to 10% (ten percent) of the total operation amount are permitted, as set forth in paragraph c) of Article 7.1 of Notice No. 5/18 of July 17. The limits expressed in United States dollars in this Instruction apply to equivalent values in any other foreign currency.
3. Other Conditions
3.1. Before carrying out any foreign exchange operation for the payment of
imports, regardless of whether it is made through the purchase of foreign currency or the use of the importer's own funds in that currency, and regardless of whether they are subject to or not to the limits established in this Instruction, Banking Financial Institutions must ensure strict compliance with the requirements set forth in Notice No. 5/18, including:
a) Provisions regarding the prevention of money laundering and counter-terrorism financing; b) The submission and verification of all import documentation; c) In the case of advance payments or down payments, even with use of own funds, the submission to the Banking Financial Institution of proof of the goods' entry into the country within 30 (thirty) days from the date of customs clearance, which may not exceed 180 (one hundred and eighty) days from the date of settlement of the foreign exchange operation. d) That the ordering parties are not barred from carrying out foreign exchange operations due to non-compliance with the deadlines for submitting documentation proving the entry of goods into the country.
3.2. When using documentary credits, Banking Financial Institutions
must ensure compliance with the deadline for submitting transport documents as defined in the rules for document examination, Article 14 of UCP 600, namely within 21 (twenty-one) days from the date of shipment and within the validity period of the documentary credit.

CONTINUED INSTRUCTION NO. 18/2019 Page 3 of 4
3.3. The establishment of limits for payments does not imply any
liability or commitment by the National Bank of Angola to sell foreign currency for settlement abroad, except in cases where it establishes specific ceilings (plafonds) for this purpose.
3.4. Whenever, in carrying out an operation, Banking Financial Institutions
know, suspect, or have sufficient grounds to suspect that an operation has taken place, is ongoing, or has been attempted that may be associated with money laundering crime, terrorism financing, or underlying offences, they must report it to the Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF); in cases where an operation shows well-founded suspicion and may constitute a crime, they must refrain from executing any operations related to the customer's request and await the decision of the UIF, in accordance with current legislation and regulations.
3.5. In case of non-compliance with the deadlines set forth in Notice No. 5/18 and this
Instruction for submitting proof of the goods' entry into the country, and if no justified reasons exist or the situation is not regularized within 15 (fifteen) business days from the end of the deadline for document submission and after timely notification of the irregularity to the importer, Banking Financial Institutions must, in addition to the procedures defined in Article 12 of said Notice, notify the competent criminal investigation entities whenever they have evidence of practices that may be classified as financial crime.
4. Doubts and Omissions
Doubts and omissions arising from the interpretation of this Instruction are clarified by the National Bank of Angola.
5. Sanctions

CONTINUED INSTRUCTION NO. 18/2019 Page 4 of 4
Violation of the provisions set forth in this Instruction subjects offenders to penalties, in accordance with the Framework Law of Financial Institutions, the Foreign Exchange Law and other applicable legislation and regulations.
6. Revocation
Instruction No. 9/18 of July 2 is hereby revoked.
7. Entry into Force
This Instruction enters into force on the date of its publication.
PUBLISHED.
Luanda, October 25, 2019.
THE GOVERNOR
JOSÉ DE LIMA MASSANO

---