Country Manuals Private Banking –
Dear Client,
We would like to inform you that BRP has updated its COUNTRY MANUAL PRIVATE BANKING for the following jurisdiction:
- ANGOLA OUT OF BANK’S COUNTRY OF ESTABLISHMENT (Def, RS, BT & RT)
| SOURCE OF CHANGES | ANSWERS |
|---|---|
| Law / Regulation | YES |
| New Position of the Authorities | NO |
| Evolution of Expert’s interpretation | YES |
Regulatory Template, Regulatory Summary and Behaviour Template
Material changes
The Angolan Foreign Exchange system has been updated. Traditionally, the Angolan National Bank was responsible for authorizing foreign exchange transactions carried out by Angolan residents. In an effort to reform the exchange system in Angola, currently, most foreign exchange operations now only require authorisation from the commercial banks and registration of all the transactions in the Foreign Exchange Integrated Operations System. On this basis, among others, it has been clarified what follows:
Opening of bank accounts:
Pursuant Article 9 (2) of the foreign Exchange Law (Law No. 5/97 of June 27, 1997), only Angolan natural persons are allowed to open and operate bank accounts outside the Angolan territory. Corporate entities are expressly prohibited to hold and/or operate bank accounts/funds outside Angola without a specific (and seldomly granted) authorization.
Transfer of funds:
Angolan residents that are natural persons are permitted/limited to transfer funds to accounts with foreign banks as follows:
- The amount of foreign currency that may be purchased per calendar year by foreign exchange residents over 18 years old, for any purposes abroad, including investments, personal and family expenses, depends on the financial capacity of the individual but may not be superior to USD 250’000, irrespective of the payment instrument used. Exceptionally, the Angolan National Bank may authorize the transfer of higher amounts, upon a duly substantiated request;
- However, the following transactions are exempt from any annual limit:
- Expenses related to health, education, housing, transport and legal service charges, when paid directly to the relevant entities or authorized agents (invoice or other billing document must be provided to the Angolan bank as evidence);
- Transfer of funds accumulated by foreign citizens who qualify as foreign exchange residents during their stay in Angola, upon ceasing their stay in the country;
- Transfer of funds imported into Angola and declared upon entry by foreign citizens who qualify as foreign exchange residents.
Buying securities abroad:
Angolan natural persons are entitled to buy securities abroad, as follows:
- If with funds located in Angola: subject to licensing requirements with the Angolan commercial banks;
- If with funds located outside Angola: without the need to obtain any license or requirement with the commercial banks.
Provided the funds used by the Angolan resident to buy securities abroad are also (already) abroad, no foreign exchange restrictions apply.
Receiving loans abroad:
Angolan natural persons are permitted/limited allowed to take out a loan from a foreign bank provided that disbursement and repayment of the loan take place outside Angola (without any interaction with Angolan bank accounts).
Non-material changes
The current Law on Financial Institutions has been replaced by a new Financial Institutions Law (Law no. 14/21, of May 19th), which was approved and enacted in 2021. The Law implemented an important reform in the financial sector in Angola. However, it did not introduce relevant changes in the cross-border interaction between a foreign unlicensed Bank and Angolan natural persons.
Implications for business relations with third parties
With respect to the provision of documentation to the EAM (such as documentation on the Bank’s banking and investment services, investment research and financial analysis or recommendation lists), our Country Manual now distinguishes between the provision to the EAM for remittance to the end client on one hand and the provision to the EAM for the EAM’s own professional purposes on the other hand. The answers have been amended accordingly.
Regulatory Summary
This document has now a more user-friendly layout and reflects the changes contained in the RT.
The BT Short Comparison should be read as follows:
The first column contains a short description of the activity in question. The second column contains the answers of the previous version of the Country Manual (online until the day of the alert). The third column contains the new answers of the most recent version of the Country Manual. Only the modified answers are displayed (in color). If the answers in the new version are unchanged compared to the previous version, they are shaded in grey.
For more information, please contact us: info@brpsa.com
Best regards,