There is an update on foreign exchange purchases for Personal Travel Allowance (PTA), Business Travel Allowance (BTA), and payment of foreign medical bills majorly under the Form A FX application.
Initially, the processing time for Form A was within four weeks or a month, but the same application will now take at least 120 days or 17 weeks for the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to process travel allowance applications.
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This announcement was made public by commercial banks in Nigeria on Tuesday, March 14, 2023, in a message sent to their customers.
Meanwhile, Tax Clearance Certificate or TCC is now one of the requirements for Form A.
Who will be affected by this change?
- Undergraduate Nigerians who want to pay international school fees and upkeep through Form A
- Post-graduate Nigerians who want to pay international school fees and upkeep through Form A
- Businessmen and women who import products and rely on official FX application
- Nigerians who want to pay foreign medical bills
The essence of Form A
Form A is FX application form designed by Nigeria’s apex bank through the Trade Monitoring System (TRMS portal) for applicants to pay for invisible services or trade such as foreign school fees, medical bills, and foreign training courses and workshops.
…reduces travel allowance to $2,000 USD
The new development also borders on the amount applicants can get from the official market. Application for Form A is now subject to a maximum of $2,000 and two quarters in a year where the request is within 14 days of the travel date.
Upkeep:
Application for upkeep is subject to a maximum of $1,500 (or its equivalent in other currencies) per semester and is limited to 2 semesters per session.
“Payment of school fees is subject to a maximum of $7,500 (or its equivalent in other currencies) per semester and limited to 2 semesters per session.
“A minimum of 16 weeks is required for processing school fees and upkeep/maintenance, after the submission of documents along with the approved Form A at the branch.”
Meanwhile, the application is subject to the availability of FX and applicants must ensure that their accounts are sufficiently funded.
Why the cut?
The reduction is in reaction to the current FX shortage in Nigeria.
Note: All fx applications are submitted via Trade Monitoring System (TRMS).