We hereby inform the business community and other interested parties that Law No. 28/2022 of 29 December (the new Foreign Exchange Law) has been approved, with the aim of making the foreign exchange market more flexible, with emphasis on carrying out foreign exchange transactions, as well as adjusting it to the operation of a market for the free movement of people, goods and services harmonized with the regional integration process and conforming it to the new legislation to prevent and combat money laundering, financing of terrorism and financing of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction

In general terms, the new Foreign Exchange Law has introduced some innovations to the foreign exchange regime currently in force. A large number of the alterations consist of the insertion of provisions already contained in the various Notices issued over time by the Bank of Mozambique on several matters, with particular emphasis on the rules and procedures to be observed in carrying out foreign exchange transactions.

Among its amendments, the following should be highlighted:

1. The inclusion, as resident entities, of the State, local authorities, public companies, public funds and institutes and other national public law persons endowed with administrative and financial autonomy and, for this reason, subject to its application;
2. The prohibition of foreign currency payments and receipts between resident entities;
3. The prohibition of the offset in receipts from abroad and in the repatriation of revenues;
4. The penalisation for carrying out foreign exchange trading or partial foreign exchange trading in an illegal manner with a penalty of imprisonment from 2 to 8 years and a corresponding fine;
5. The increase in the number of contraventions from 10 in the previous law to 31 in the current one, divided between foreign exchange contraventions and serious foreign exchange contraventions;
6. The increase in the fines applicable for the practice of foreign exchange contraventions, to be graduated with reference to the minimum salary of the banking sector as follows:

• between 10 and 50 minimum salaries for the practice of foreign exchange contraventions and between 50 and 500 minimum salaries for the practice of serious foreign exchange contraventions in the case of natural persons;
• between 20 and 1000 minimum salaries for the practice of foreign exchange contraventions and between 100 and 1500 minimum banking salaries for the practice of serious foreign exchange contraventions in the case of legal persons; and
• between 50 and 1500 minimum salaries for the practice of foreign exchange contraventions and between 150 and 2500 minimum salaries for the practice of serious foreign exchange contraventions in the case of credit institutions and financial companies.

Furthermore, we inform that the new Foreign Exchange Law repeals Law No. 11/2009, of 11 March, and other legislation that contradicts it. The law enters into force 30 days after its publication and establishes a period of 90 days from the date of its entry into force for all entities and legal persons covered by it to adjust to it.