Facilitates repatriation of profits by foreign-owned companies
04 Nov 2010
On 4 November, the Syrian Government issued Decree 85 which establishes clear guidelines for the transfer abroad of profits by companies licensed under Investment Law 10 of 1991. The original law approved such transfers in principle, but there remained some ambiguity about its implementation. Banks were, until recently, only permitted to provide foreign exchange to firms in order to finance imports of equipment and material needed for their operations. The previous foreign-exchange rules also required companies to deposit all of their hard-currency earnings with the state-owned Commercial Bank of Syria. These rules have been progressively eased since the passage of a private banking law in 2001.
The new decree permits banks to sell foreign exchange to shareholders in (Law 10) companies in proportion to their entitlement to the company's net profits for the previous year. In order to secure the foreign currency, the applicant must submit all the relevant documentation on the company's shareholding structure and the distribution of profits, as well as statements confirming that it has met all of its corporate tax and national insurance obligations. Law 10 was superseded by a revised investment law (Investment Law 8) in 2007, which spells out in more detail the procedures for companies to repatriate profits and capital."
Type:
-
Treatment and operation (Capital transfer and FOREX)
Industry:
Inward FDI:
No
Outward FDI:
No
Sources:
