Central Bank of Turkmenistan bans salary payments in foreign currency

AKIPRESS.COM - Central Bank of Turkmenistan has ordered financial institutions to stop making cash payments in US dollars to those who get their salaries paid in foreign currency effective 1 April, 2020, the Chronicles of Turkmenistan reports. This means that an employee whose salary was $1000, can get 3500 manats in the bank despite the fact that he could previously obtain 20,000 manats by exchanging foreign currency at "the black market".
The bank staff informed residents that they can deposit their salaries in dollars to the card to be used during overseas trips. However, this is currently impossible for two reasons. First of all, a daily limit for withdrawals and the use of cards overseas is less than $50. Secondly, due to the pandemic of coronavirus a travel ban has been imposed.
The news outlet assumes that the new requirements of the Central Bank were introduced because the state is experiencing a severe shortage of foreign currency.
The reports on newly-introduced requirements have also been confirmed by Radio "Azatlyk", according to which queues formed in front of Ashgabat banks in the morning of 1 April, 2020. People tried to withdraw their salaries in dollars.
The news outlet reports that the new restriction violates the law on foreign currency regulation, which allows employees of foreign companies to be paid in dollars as the foreign currency is transferred to the customers' accounts from overseas.
The official dollar exchange rate was established by the Central Bank of Turkmenistan in January 2015 and amounts to 3,5 manats per 1 USD.
As the mass media were not included in the list of permitted activities during the state of emergency in Kyrgyzstan, AKIpress apologizes to its readers for reduced promptness and coverage of news.