Morocco’s Exchange Office Scrutinizes Spending of Tourists and Professionals Abroad

Based on the observation that there is a discrepancy between their expenses and the financial allocations authorized for their tourist and professional trips, the control services of the Office of Exchange have sent requests for explanation to Moroccan tourists and travelers who travel frequently abroad, asking them to justify their personal expenses outside the kingdom, reports Hespress. Some of them who have made significant cash payments or by international bank cards for various purchases, as well as hotel, car and restaurant reservations, have been questioned by the controllers.

Explaining the personal expenses incurred outside Morocco, the persons concerned claim to have benefited from loans from relatives and acquaintances abroad to finance their purchases and cover their stay expenses in the countries visited, mainly for tourism purposes, due to the prolonged duration of their presence on site. But some of the supporting documents provided did not convince the control services. The latter noted the luxurious nature of certain purchases, including watches, gold jewelry, expensive perfumes, as well as clothing and accessories from prestigious brands. The amounts of the expenses examined largely exceeded the authorized annual travel allowances, the controllers pointed out.

The controllers also verified the expenses of Moroccan travelers on business trips, particularly in Europe. It appears that some doctors and engineers in the field of advanced technologies have exceeded their annual travel allowances in the space of one or two trips only. Some of them, possessing undeclared currencies, mainly euros, have also been subject to sanctions in Spanish and French airports. Some individuals who responded to the inquiries of the control services acknowledged having received sums of money from Moroccans residing abroad (MREs) in exchange for an equivalent transfer to their bank accounts in Morocco, with the addition of a small commission, outside the regulations and official channels for money transfers, the same source said.

The Office of Exchange has, in recent years, granted facilities regarding travel allowances, which have increased from 45,000 dirhams to 100,000 dirhams, whether for a tourism trip, to perform the Umrah and Hajj, or for medical treatment, with the possibility of a 30% increase on income tax, up to a limit of 300,000 dirhams. The minimum allowance for business trips has, for its part, increased from 60,000 dirhams to 100,000 dirhams last year.

In addition, the controllers of the Office of Exchange, in coordination with their counterparts from the General Directorate of Taxes (DGI), are verifying the expenses of Moroccans practicing liberal professions abroad, in order to examine their tax situation and their activity declarations during the period covered by these controls. The information collected will allow them to investigate international criminal activities, related to currency trafficking, money laundering and terrorist financing.