Banks in Nigeria have started cutting the maximum amount of Personal Travel Allowance (PTA) that customers are allowed to access, but no official reasons have been given.
BusinessDay’s visits to 13 banks revealed that at least two banks – Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) and Zenith Bank – have cut the maximum amount customers can access to $2,000 and $2,500 respectively from the $4,000 set by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). At Wema Bank, a branch said the PTA had been cut to $2,000 while another said it was still $4,000. All the banks were visited between October 12 and 19.
PTA is currently accessed by submitting applications online through the Trade Monitoring System, a digital platform utilised by the CBN to enable applications by those seeking foreign exchange. Applicants include students and those seeking medical attention overseas. The application, particularly when successfully disbursed, attracts a service fee of N5,000 deducted as charges for using the CBN’s Form A. The foreign currencies are subsequently provided to customers through banks they would have selected.
Visits to two branches of GTB in Lagos saw staff members informing this reporter that the bank recently reviewed its PTA limit downwards to $2,000, which is disbursed as $1,900 on a card and $100 cash.
At two branches of Zenith Bank, it was also disclosed by staff members that PTA has been reduced to $2,500, with a further allusion this was by the CBN. It was further said that the limit had been in place since around July/August.
“It has changed a long time ago; what we give now is $2,500,” said the staff member in charge of PTA at one Zenith Bank branch, adding that it changed around July, and hoped by November, it wouldn’t have been further reviewed downwards, as this reporter had presented a prospective trip for that time.
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According to the staff member, it doesn’t matter if one requests $4,000 through the CBN portal, but when the bank disburses, it would be $2,500 and would be inputted in the system as what the customer got.
BusinessDay reached out to both GTB and Zenith Bank for clarifications on the decisions to review PTA downwards, but none of the two banks had responded at the time of going to press, save for an acknowledgment from GTB’s media handlers.
Osita Nwasinobi, the CBN’s spokesperson, was also contacted to know if the banks are allowed to cut the PTA limit set by the apex bank or if there are circumstances permitting it, but he did not respond.
At one Wema Bank branch, it was said that allocation had recently been cut to $2,000 per customer, and that if a customer applied online, they could input $4,000 (which is the limit), but the new limit of $2,000 would be disbursed. Another branch said the limit remained $4,000.
BusinessDay learnt Wema Bank’s decision was informed by forex scarcity and it was considered “better to have more customers getting something than few getting the maximum allowed limit.”
The remaining 10 banks that were visited said the PTA remained $4,000, and it was gathered that while some could give either cash or on a card, some gave by card only.
“It is not only in UBA, but everywhere it is $4,000,” said a UBA staff member, when asked in one of the branches in Lagos if the limit had changed. Disbursements at UBA were however done by card, not cash, she said.
Keystone Bank, when visited, still disbursed up to $4,000 via card for its customers. In a recent email from the bank to its customers, it reiterated that “PTA/BTA requests are fulfilled based on CBN FX funds availability”, saying, “Applicants will be debited a N5,000 non-refundable charge/fee for Form A”. It was not clear if this fee would apply to unsuccessful applications, but when this reporter applied for PTA (through another bank) in August, the fee was charged after the foreign exchange had been approved and disbursed.
At Access Bank, the limit was still $4,000 entirely disbursed on a card. At Stanbic Bank, it was also $4,000 and can be given in cash or in a card.
“It is CBN that sets the limit, not the bank,” said a staff member at an FCMB branch when asked if the limit had changed, before confirming it remained $4,000. Polaris Bank and Sterling Bank also still gave up to $4,000 through card or cash. At Union Bank, the limit had not changed from $4,000, and while staff at a Fidelity Bank branch said it was migrating to card, at the time of visiting, customers could still access up to $4,000 in cash or card.
“First Bank still gives $4,000. It is the same thing; everything is CBN policy,” said an employee when asked if the limit had changed.
