A non-resident for exchange control purposes is any person in South Africa who does not hold permanent residence in South Africa and has not applied to become a permanent resident of the country.
As a non-resident you are able to freely remit funds both into and out of South Africa as long as you can prove source of funds. A reasonability test is applied here based on supporting documentation that will need to be submitted to the authorised dealer bank providing a clear audit trail of where the funds came from, how they were earned .etc.
Funds transferred into South Africa from overseas:
Money that has been transferred into South Africa by a non-resident is freely transferrable back out of the country as long as clients can prove that these funds were originally brought in from abroad.
The generally accepted proof used here is a copy of the Swift Payment that can be given by your overseas bank who made the initial payment into South Africa.
Funds earned and thus originating in South Africa:
A reasonability test will be used for any funds earned in South Africa that are requested to be transferred overseas by a non-resident.
We will require supporting documentation to reasonably justify the funds that are being sent out of the country: Employment letters, salary slips, relevant business documentation, purchase and sale agreements for properties .etc.
The Reserve Bank will need to satisfy themselves that the amount being transferred out of the country is reasonable in light of what the client earns in South Africa and they will want to know how the money was made.
Please note that non-residents do not require a tax clearance certificate from SARS.
It is advised that all non-residents apply for ‘non-resident banking facilities’ through a South African bank immediately to ensure that you have no major problems trying to get funds out of SA in the future. This is very important as everything earned will need to be flagged as non-resident or you may experience problems in the future with getting funds out of the country.
