Banks in Nigeria have reduced the amount of Personal Travel Allowance (PTA) and school fees their customers can apply for over a deteriorating foreign exchange crisis.
The scarcity of forex in the country has forced Deposit Money Banks to introduce extreme measures to meet their dollar obligations in recent times.
On Tuesday, some banks cut the amount of Personal Travel Allowance their customers can apply for from $4,000 to $2,000 in emailed letters to sent to customers.
This measure also affected overseas school fees payment which were slashed from $15,000 to $7,500 per semester.
First Bank of Nigeria Limited, one of such banks, in an email titled, ‘Important update on FX purchase, advised its customers to also make their various Dollar requests several weeks ahead of time.
The bank further stated that the requests could be made only twice a year.
It advised the customers to make their application weeks ahead of their trip.
Part of the email read, “At FirstBank, we value you and are committed to keeping you informed on changes regarding foreign currency (Form A) requests. In view of the limited FX supply in the industry, kindly note the following:
“Payment of PTA/BTA is subject to a maximum of $2,000 and two quarters in a year, while funds will be disbursed within the week of the trip. Customers are encouraged to apply for PTA/BTA some weeks ahead of their trip.”
“Application for upkeep is subject to a maximum of $1,500 (or its equivalent in other currencies) per semester and limited to two semesters per session.
“Payment of school fees is subject to a maximum of $7,500 (or its equivalent in other currencies) per semester and limited to two semesters per session. A minimum of 16 weeks is required for processing school fees and upkeep/maintenance, after the submission of documents along with the approved Form A at the branch.”
The email also stated that applications for Form A for school fees, student upkeep, and PTA/BTA, must be processed on the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Trade Monitoring System and must be in line with regulatory requirements.
“Requests will continue to be treated on a first-come, first-served basis, subject to availability of FX. Ensure that your account is sufficiently funded,” it added.
