UNRAVELLING THE FOREX RED TAPE

SO YOU’VE DECIDED TO ESCAPE THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE WINTERS AND SPEND CHRISTMAS PLAYING GOLF IN THE SUN, OR YOU FANCY MOVING TO A PIECE OF REAL AFRICA WHERE YOU CAN WATCH ELEPHANTS FROM YOUR VERANDA.

Perhaps you just want a nice little investment property that you might one day retire to. There are so many good reasons to buy in South Africa, but cross-border purchases can be an exercise in crocheting with red tape. Well, it doesn’t have to be. We at Estate Living have years of experience dealing with international sales, and we know how tricky it can be, so we were delighted to discover that there is someone who can take care of all that pesky red tape and admin. Enter Currency Assist. They can help you with the international payment when you buy and sell property, and ensure that you never run afoul of forex or tax regulations.

BUYING PROPERTY IN SOUTH AFRICA USING FUNDS FROM ABROAD

Firstly, the safest way to invest in another country is to buy into a well-regulated, well-managed estate with a good reputation and a solid track record. And don’t try to do it alone. Currency Assist can help you transfer funds, and even open a non-resident bank account for you in South Africa, regardless of whether you are buying for cash or through a 50% cash plus 50% bond structure.

As a non-resident, you may bring unlimited foreign capital into South Africa, and Currency Assist will document all incoming SWIFT transactions for future repatriation. Unlike attorneys, who convert at expensive retail bank rates, Currency Assist negotiates better forex rates, ensuring cost savings for buyers. They also offer an option to hold your funds in a foreign currency account (FCA), so you can convert when exchange rates are favourable.

Of course, you probably keep all your important documents in a safe place, but it’s comforting to know that Currency Assist will keep copies of SWIFT transactions, offers to purchase, proof of introduced funds, and bank statements to ensure that you have everything you may need for future repatriation. And that brings us to how you effectively realise your investment if and when you decide to sell.

SELLING PROPERTY IN SOUTH AFRICA AS A NON-RESIDENT

When selling, you will need the following documents:

• offer to purchase
• title deed;
• copies of SWIFT transaction
• deed of sale;
• final attorney account;
• arms-length valuation letter.

For properties valued at more than R2 million, you may face provisional withholding tax. Working your way through that can be a headache, but if you bought your property, and sent funds with the help of Currency Assist, reaping the rewards of your investment by selling the property will be easy. It’s what they do every day, so they take it all in their stride.

They will help you with your South African Revenue Service ( SARS) tax directive applications to ensure accurate final tax treatment, and ensure that all your transactions are compliant with South African Reserve Bank (SARB) regulations. And, if you should be unlucky enough to have lost any of your documents, you can take a deep breath and relax. Using an authorised dealer, Currency Assist can obtain South African Reserve Bank approval if you don’t have all the required documents.

It’s a lot of work, which you will struggle to do directly with the bank, but fortunately they’ve done it often so they know the ropes. They can even sometimes hunt down missing records decades after a sale. And, of course, the best part — repatriating the proceeds of the sale — can also be simple. South African legislation requires that funds be externalised through an authorised dealer, which Currency Assist can arrange, and they also ensure that all offshore transfers are SARB-compliant, and go smoothly. An added benefit or bonus, if you keep your relationship with Currency Assist after buying, you can use them to send funds into or out of South Africa for all other expenses.

BOTTOM LINE

If you have a conveyancing attorney handling the transfer of the property, you may be tempted to just ask them to ensure that the funds are transferred, and they could.  However, attorneys focus on property transfer, which they do well, and they certainly have an understanding of foreign exchange, but it’s not what they do every day. Currency Assist can secure better forex rates and ensure all SARB compliance, so that any future repatriation will be seamless.

In short, Currency Assist offers:

• non-resident bank account setup;
• better forex rates;
• unlimited introduction of foreign capital;
• FCA foreign-currency holding accounts;
• full SARB-compliant document retention;
• SARS tax directive assistance;
• withholding tax support;
• assistance in recovering historic documents;
• end-to-end repatriation management.

Any person having the need to remit to South Africa, or back out of SA, can benefit from their expert solutions; don’t hesitate to contact Paul and his team at Currency Assist.