The license for a currency exchange office is regulated by Act No. 277/2013 Coll., on currency exchange activities. The regulator and licensing body is the Czech National Bank.
Additional laws and by-laws in the field of currency exchange include:
- Act No. 136/2011 Coll., on the Circulation of Banknotes and Coins
- Decree No. 315/2013 Coll., implementing the Currency Exchange Act
- Ordinances of the Czech National Bank regulating the activities of currency exchange offices
- Act No. 253/2008 Coll., on Certain Measures against Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (AML Act)
- Current tax laws of the Czech Republic.
The requirements for the application are as follows:
- Identification of the applicant (natural or legal person)
- Identification of the applicant’s beneficial owner (in the case of a legal person)
- A document proving the applicant’s good standing and integrity
- A document confirming a clean criminal record (for the natural person or all managing persons of the legal entity)
- A document of qualification/education (for the natural person or all managing persons of the legal entity)
- Information on the address where the currency exchange activities will be carried out
Other requirements for the operation of a currency exchange office in the Czech Republic include:
- Obtaining a certificate of completion for a course on banknote recognition (a one-day course that all company employees who handle cash must complete)
- Creating internal guidelines for customer relations, their verification, and internal accounting of currency exchange transactions and turnover
- Creating internal guidelines for transaction monitoring and for countering money laundering and terrorist financing (AML/CFT)
- Creating internal regulations for determining exchange rates
- Submitting quarterly reports to the regulator in the prescribed form (on the volume of exchange transactions carried out) – if the turnover of exchange transactions exceeds 20 million CZK. If the turnover is lower, an annual report on turnover is submitted.
If you are interested in the licensing process or the cost of individual services, you can contact our team of specialists.