The Central Bank of Tanzania has issued a directive ordering businesses to cease conducting transactions in US dollars and mandating that all prices be quoted in Tanzanian Shillings. The aim of this decision is to strengthen control over foreign currency flows, particularly in sectors such as real estate, healthcare, transportation, logistics, and education.
The Central Bank emphasized that strict actions will be taken against those who continue to engage in dollar transactions. The Governor of the Bank, Emmanuel Tutuba, highlighted that there has been a violation of previous directives issued in August 2007 and December 2017, which prohibit Tanzanian nationals from making domestic payments for goods and services using foreign currencies.
However, the Central Bank clarified that tourists and non-resident customers are still allowed to use foreign currency for payments related to accommodation, travel, airport services, visas, transit trade, and cargo handling. In such cases, proper identification documents like passports or certificates of incorporation for companies are required for statistical purposes.
The Bank of Tanzania also specified that the exchange rate used for these payments should be displayed and should not exceed the prevailing market exchange rate.
Additionally, the Central Bank stressed that Tanzanian citizens should exclusively use Tanzanian Shillings and should not be compelled or obligated to accept foreign currency as payment from other Tanzanian residents.
The statement from the Bank of Tanzania also reminded the public that, according to section 26 of the BOT Act 2006, the Tanzanian Shilling is the sole legal tender in the country. Thus, any refusal to accept payment in Tanzanian Shillings is considered a violation of the law.
