In a circular entitled ‘Operating Guidelines for RT200
Non-oil Export Proceeds Repatriation Rebate Scheme’ dated February 25, 2022 and
signed by Dr. O.S. Nnaji, Director, Trade & Exchange Department, the bank
stressed that the scheme was created towards the goal of attaining US$200
billion in forex repatriation, exclusively from non-oil exports within five
years.
It explained that the rebate scheme is designed to
incentivize exporters in the non-oil export sector to encourage repatriation
and sale of export proceeds into the foreign exchange market.
To qualify as beneficiary of the rebate, the apex bank said
that only exporters of finished and semi-finished goods are eligible for the
incentive. Exporters shall qualify for
the rebates only where repatriated export proceeds are sold at the Investors’
& Exporters’ (I&E) Window.
Under eligible transactions, the circular said that export
of finished and semi-finished goods wholly or partly processed or manufactured
in Nigeria shall be recognized for the purpose, except otherwise stated by the
CBN.
Furthermore, export of goods and services (I.T and Creative
Businesses) that are permissible and excluded under existing export prohibition
list shall also be reckoned as eligible for the specified rebate.
Other transaction eligibility criteria are Completion of
e-Form NXP, Registration with Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and Nigeria
Export Promotion Council (NEPC) and Sale of repatriated export proceeds at the
I&E window.
“Notwithstanding when the export process was initiated, the
exporter will quality for the rebate provided the exporter meets the criteria
stipulated above”, the circular stated.
The guideline stated that the Scheme shall pay N65 for every
US$1 repatriated and sold at the I&E window to ADBs for other third party
use, and N35 for every US$1 repatriated and sold into I&E for own use on
eligible transactions only.
“However, the spread should not be more than 10 kobo,” the
circular said, adding that “Payment of the incentive shall be made on quarterly
basis. The accounts of exporters that
qualify for rebates shall be credited latest one week after the end of the
quarter.”
The RT200 FX Programme which stands for ‘Race to the US$200
billion in forex repatriation’ between three and five years was created by the
CBN and the Bankers Committee to boost liquidity in the foreign exchange
market.