Relaxing the South African (SA) Exchange Control Regulations, in relation to IP in particular, is crucial for many of our start up clients (especially those operating in the software development and technology space). Up to now, SA resident companies could not export their IP to a non-resident, unless the approval of the Financial Surveillance Department (FSD) of the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) was obtained. This proved to be an insurmountable hurdle for many companies trying to externalise their businesses by moving them “offshore” for any reason, including that of attracting foreign capital investments.
The Exchange Control Regulations provide that when a SA resident (natural or juristic person) enters any transaction in terms of which capital, or any right to capital, is directly or indirectly exported (i.e. transferred by way of cession, assignment, sale transfer or any other means) from South Africa to a non-resident (natural or juristic person) such transaction falls in the ambit of the Exchange Control Regulations.
The export of “capital” specifically includes any IP right (whether registered or unregistered), which means the Exchange Control Regulations must be considered when dealing with an externalisation of IP.
The reasoning behind this regulation is that the offshoring of assets / capital belonging to SA residents amounts to an exportation of assets / capital and therefore erodes the asset base of the SA resident by way of a transfer of ownership from a SA resident to a non-resident. While this reasoning may have seemed sound, the application of the Exchange Control Regulations to the export of IP has led to many negative and unintended consequences for SA companies, and start ups in particular.
In the 2017 National Budget review the Government proposed that SA residents would no longer need the SARB’s approval for “standard IP transactions”. It was also proposed that the “loop structure” restriction for all IP transactions be lifted, provided they are at arms-length and at a fair market price. “Loop structure” restrictions prevent SA residents from holding any SA asset indirectly through a non-resident entity.
The SARB has started the process of relaxing the Exchange Control Regulations by issuing two circulars relating to IP. These latest amendments to the Currency and Exchanges Manual for Authorised Dealers mean that, under certain circumstances, approval for the exportation of IP can now be sought from Authorised Dealers (banks appointed by the Minister of Finance for exchange control purposes), as opposed to the FSD. This is good news for clients looking to restructure and offshore their IP, as the approval process should now be less administratively intense, less expensive and with faster turnaround times.
Approval can now be sought through an Authorised Dealer for:
- a sale, transfer and assignment of IP;
- by a SA resident;
- to unrelated non-resident parties;
- at an arm’s length and fair and market related price.
The Authorised Dealer will need to be presented with: (i) the sale / transfer / assignment agreement; and (ii) an auditor’s letter or intellectual property valuation certificate confirming the basis for calculating the sale price ((iii) together with any additional internal requirements).
For the approval of the licensing of IP by a SA resident to non-resident parties at an arm’s length and fair and market related price, the Authorised Dealer will need to be presented with: (i) the licensing agreement in question; and (ii) an auditor’s letter confirming the basis for calculating the royalty or licence fee ((iii) together with any additional internal requirements).
The second set of amendments provide that private (unlisted) technology (among others) companies in South Africa may now establish companies offshore without the requirement to primary list offshore in order to raise foreign funding for their operations. This effectively means that “loop structures” can now be created to raise loans and capital offshore, and these companies may hold investments in South Africa. Note that there are still certain requirements that must be met, for example, registration with the FSD.
Our commercial team has experience in making the necessary applications for exchange control approval. Feel free to get in touch if this is something on the horizon for your business.
