Central Bank sets 5 million dinar ceiling for prepaid cards when shopping outside Iraq
The Central Bank instructed financial institutions to apply a new ceiling for prepaid payment cards when used for shopping outside Iraq at point-of-sale terminals where the card is present, setting the limit at the equivalent of five million Iraqi dinars per day and capping monthly spending at the same amount.
The Central Bank of Iraq instructed financial institutions to adopt a new ceiling for company-issued prepaid payment cards when used for shopping outside Iraq at point-of-sale terminals where the card must be present, setting the limit at the equivalent of five million Iraqi dinars per day, provided that total monthly spending does not exceed the same amount.
A statement from the bank said the directive cancels the previous daily limit, which had been equivalent to 500,000 dinars and applied exclusively to this type of transaction, and sets the new monthly ceiling to be the same as the allowed daily ceiling when used at point-of-sale terminals abroad.
The amendment came as part of regulating electronic payment instruments following changes in the exchange rate and supervisory measures on transfers and cards, granting travelers and temporary residents outside Iraq greater flexibility in daily spending within a specified monthly ceiling.
The ceiling applies to company-issued prepaid cards and to point-of-sale transactions conducted with the card present, and does not necessarily include remote payment methods that were not mentioned in the official text of the statement.
The instructions are expected to affect bank services and payment companies in the coming days as authorization and limit systems are updated, and cardholders are advised to check with their banks to ensure the new ceiling is activated before traveling or using cards outside Iraq.
Raising the daily ceiling to the same level as the monthly ceiling is a substantial change compared with the previous arrangement, which restricted daily spending to a relatively small amount, causing some travelers to spread purchases over multiple days or rely on other payment methods.
Banking circles urged users to verify that limits are updated on their banking apps and to follow any SMS messages issued by banks after the instructions are activated, especially those planning to travel to neighboring countries or Europe where point-of-sale terminals are widespread.
Bank supervisory departments are expected to issue subsequent follow-ups on the extent to which institutions comply with the new ceiling.
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