The economic expert, Safwan Qusay, revealed the government’s hidden goal in implementing the electronic payment project throughout Iraq and its advanta
Qusay said {to Al-Furat News} that: “The policy of the American Central and Federal Banks was that everyone knew that the currency auction was contributing to the smuggling of the dollar to various countries and that it was intended for Iraqis only.”
He added, “But the policy of complying with international requirements and controlling the movement of the dollar was implemented after the success of the electronic platform in enhancing bank balances, as well as expanding the circle of financial inclusion by investigating the source of the Iraqi dinar. Currently, all employees of state departments and retirees are included with credit cards.”
Qusay added, “We also have a formal private sector and federal ministries that have begun to spread the culture of electronic payment to track the movement of the dinar. The more we introduce the dinar system within the regulatory department, the more we prevent the corrupt from changing the gender of the dinar, whether in the real estate market, gold, or other markets.”
He concluded by saying, “The whole issue is related to combating corruption through investment in technology, and one of these means is electronic payment.”
In its session the day before yesterday, Tuesday, the Council of Ministers approved the following regarding commissions for electronic payment operations:
1. (The recipient bears electronic payment commissions from the private and public sectors, and the payer does not bear any electronic payment commissions), and the government compensates a percentage (50%) of the commissions. The electronic payment paid by the holder (the merchant, the employer, and all private sector entities), provided that it is used to pay the holder’s obligations to the state exclusively through electronic payment, such as renewing licenses, paying taxes, customs, fees, municipal fees, electricity fees, and everything owed to the state, and it cannot be recovered in cash at any time. In any case.
2. Determine all electronic payment commissions (at a percentage determined by the Central Bank of Iraq), with a maximum commission limit that stops at a commission amount (the value of which is determined by the Central Bank of Iraq for both the public and private sectors) and what exceeds that without commissions, and a minimum that is exempt from commissions as well ( Exempting small transactions in the public and private sectors from commissions up to a ceiling determined by the Central Bank of Iraq.
3. The contracts signed based on what was stated in the decisions of the Council of Ministers related to electronic payment, especially the decisions of the Council of Ministers (23044 and 23620 of 2023) between state institutions and electronic payment companies, will continue to be effective until December 31, 2024, and the contracting institution may submit a reasoned request to the Central Bank of Iraq in If she wishes not to extend the approval process.
4. The decision will be re-evaluated in light of the results of the application before the end of this year 2024.
5. This decision will be implemented starting March 1, 2024.
In light of this, the Prime Minister’s financial and economic advisor, Mazhar Muhammad Saleh, believes that the decision recently issued by the Council of Ministers regarding electronic payment facilities and exempting the “citizen payer” from commissions for these operations is tantamount to creating a stimulating, sound and simplified environment for citizens to effectively use electronic payment methods. .
Saleh said, in a press statement, “The Council of Ministers’ decision regularized the contractual relations between the government and the citizen if it is an electronic collection, and between the citizen and the merchant if it is via an electronic payment card that takes place within market transactions.”
He stated, “According to the decision, the citizen does not bear any costs as a result of using electronic payment, while there is encouragement for the merchant that the state compensates an essential aspect of the costs of electronic payment in the form of high cash allowances that are used for tax settlements or to pay the various costs incurred, provided that the settlements are made by Exclusively through electronic payments.
He pointed out, “In all cases, the Cabinet’s decision regarding regulating fees for electronic payment services constitutes a stimulating environment that pushes towards the effective use of electronic payment cards, whether credit, debit, or prepaid, in a simple and convenient manner.”