>> Individuals only allowed to carry $5,000 abroad
The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has issued a circular that arbitrarily caps the amount of foreign currency individuals can exchange to just USD100 in value per day they are abroad.
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| The SBV has capped foreign exchange transactions to USD100 per day of living aboard |
The regulation states that Vietnamese citizens are allowed to buy foreign currency at authorised financial institutions to cover expenses for themselves and for their children who share a passport with them, including for food, transport and other demands while they live abroad for study, medical treatment, business, tourism or visits to their relatives.
Foreign currency subjected to this type of transaction must be the official currency of the country where the Vietnamese citizen plans to visit. If the financial institution doesn\'t have the requested currency, another currency that is available can be sold.
The USD100 per person per day limit may cause problems for those visiting countries that have stronger currencies than the US dollar, such as the Scandinavian countries, the UK and Switzerland.
It also remains unclear whether Vietnamese banks will attempt to unofficially extend the cap on currency exchange levels to foreigners living in the country attempting to convert currency for trips abroad.
Financial institutions may decide to carry out transactions above the cap based on their foreign currency reserves.
The SBV recently issued a regulation that allows individuals to carry only USD5,000 worth of foreign currency abroad from September 1.