The Central Bank of Syria (CBS) issued a decision today, Friday, March 21, to halt civil legal pursuit against individuals dealing in currencies other than the Syrian pound, specifically those involved in currency exchange before the fall of the Assad regime.

The Management Committee of the Central Bank of Syria stated that during an extraordinary session attended by a representative of the General Command at the Central Bank, it was decided to cease civil legal actions and dismiss claims made by the bank against individuals who engaged in currency exchange, remittances, and cross-border money transfers.

The decision also includes stopping the judicial pursuit of individuals who used currencies other than the Syrian pound as a means of fulfilling obligations, intervening in any of these actions, and those who were pursued before the regime’s fall.

According to the decision, the Legal Affairs Directorate and the legal affairs departments in the branches of the Central Bank of Syria will communicate with the State Litigation Authority to stop the pursuit and dismiss personal legal claims in these cases or in civil cases related to the collection of the demanded amounts.

The decision includes halting the executive files at any stage related to the pursuit of persons for engaging in currency exchange or foreign currencies, as long as the amounts have not been duly collected and have not entered the treasury of the Central Bank of Syria.

This decision does not include financial amounts that have been paid as a settlement or paid under a consensual judicial ruling, or under an executive file, and they cannot be claimed under any circumstances.

On January 18, 2020, the ousted Syrian regime’s president Bashar al-Assad issued Decree No. “3” which stipulates punishment for anyone dealing in currencies other than the Syrian pound, including imprisonment with hard labor for no less than seven years, and financial fines equivalent to double the value of the payments or the amount being dealt with or paid for services or goods, in addition to the confiscation of payment amounts or currencies involved for the benefit of the Central Bank of Syria.

He also issued Decree No. “4” which imposed temporary detention and financial fines ranging from one million to five million Syrian pounds, for anyone who publishes or disseminates fabricated or false information or claims by any means, aimed at causing a decline or instability in the national currency or its exchange rates as determined in official publications, or undermining confidence in the strength of the state’s currency and its securities.

On January 20, 2024, Bashar al-Assad issued two legislative decrees regarding dealings in currencies other than the Syrian pound on one side, and practicing currency exchange without a license and transferring or converting foreign currencies outside Syria on the other.

Decree No. “5” for the year 2024 reaffirms its predecessor, which prohibited dealing in currencies other than the Syrian pound as a means of payment or for any type of commercial trading, and maintained the penalties related to imprisonment or jail time. However, it allowed defendants the right to settle before the judiciary to waive the prison sentence, which may reach in some cases over seven years.

Regarding currency exchange and transferring money abroad, Decree No. “6” for the year 2024 tightened penalties for those practicing currency exchange without a license and for those transferring or converting foreign or local currencies between Syria and abroad without a license.

The decree imposes a penalty for engaging in financial remittances with temporary imprisonment of five to fifteen years and a fine amounting to three times the confiscated sums, with the fine not being less than 25 million Syrian pounds. It also includes the confiscation of amounts seized in cash, as well as any amounts recorded in paper or electronic records, and there shall be no release for these two offenses.

Following the fall of the regime, the new government permitted dealings in foreign currencies, leading to the emergence of currency exchange stalls in the streets, after Syrians were once afraid to even mention the dollar during Assad’s rule.