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Learn how foreign currency exchange controls work in Barbados

The Barbados Dollar is pegged to the U.S. Dollar at a fixed exchange rate set by the Central Bank of Barbados. As a result, the Central Bank must maintain adequate foreign reserves in order to preserve the value of the Barbados Dollar.

The value of the Barbados Dollar is guaranteed by virtue of the foreign reserves held by the Central Bank of Barbados. 'Foreign reserves' refer to assets, such as cash and gold, held by the central bank of a given country.

In order to prevent uncontrolled outflow of capital and to protect the value of the Barbados Dollar, the Government of Barbados enforces exchange controls on the purchase of foreign currency.

Foreign currency transactions

When you use your credit or debit card outside Barbados, or purchase foreign currency at an authorised dealer, it triggers an outflow of foreign currency. This outflow of capital is subject to exchange controls.

Please note Barbados Dollar accounts are liable to the 2% Foreign Exchange Fee on foreign currency purchases. This also applies to credit and debit card transactions that require foreign currency to settle the payment. The fee is calculated on the Barbados Dollar value of the transaction.

Allowances and exemptions

Companies, firms and societies with a Foreign Currency Permit are exempt from exchange control. [1]

Exchange controls only apply to Barbados Dollar denominated bank accounts held in Barbados. They do not apply to Foreign Currency Accounts.

The Central Bank of Barbados delegates some of its authority to commercial banks for specific transactions, up to prescribed limits.

There are various allowances and exemptions which are published in Exchange Control Circulars. For example, there is an annual travel allowance of BBD $20,000 for individuals. For business travel, the annual allowance is BBD $60,000 determined at a rate of BBD $1,000 for each day of required overseas travel. For example, if a business traveller needs to go overseas for 30 days, their commercial bank will be permitted to release foreign exchange of BBD $30,000 without reference to the Central Bank.

Most commercial banks in Barbados that issue Visa / Mastercard credit or debit cards which support foreign currency purchases automatically make available the personal travel allowance to allow customers to make foreign currency purchases at home and abroad.

Submitting a foreign exchange application

In the event that you exceed your annual allowances or if the proposed transaction is not covered by one of the exemptions provided by the Central Bank, you will need to submit a foreign exchange application for approval via the FOREX Online platform. Depending on the nature of the application, it will be sent either to your commercial bank or the Central Bank for approval.

If your application is approved, you should contact your commercial bank by e-mail with a copy of the approval letter and verify that the limit on your account has been amended before attempting the transaction.

There is no guarantee that an application for foreign exchange will be accepted. However, the purpose of the exchange control regime is to prevent uncontrolled outflow of capital by requiring persons to submit appropriate evidence in support of the foreign exchange they need. The Central Bank of Barbados approves the majority of applications that are supported by a reasonable position.

[1] Companies, firms and societies in receipt of a valid Foreign Currency Permit are exempt from exchange control pursuant to Section 9 of the Foreign Currency Permits Act, 2018.