Debt in Maldives

Debt can arise from a loan, a deferred payment or another credit facility. Licensed banks and financing companies in the Maldives participate in the Credit Information Bureau (CIB), which records provider data and payment history. Lenders usually assess income, expenses, existing obligations, credit history and the terms of the proposed facility. A guarantor or security may also appear in the credit record. No general entitlement to receive credit exists, and interest, fees, repayment periods, collateral and other terms depend on the provider and contract. The Credit Information Bureau issues a Credit Information Report (CIR). A person can request a Self-Inquiry Report (SIR) once per calendar year without charge; additional reports are chargeable. If the report contains an error, the person can use the CIB dispute process. The provider that supplied the information remains responsible for its accuracy and currency. A written financial-consumer complaint can also be submitted to the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) at 1444@mma.gov.mv or by calling 1444. The fact sheet does not establish a final Financial Consumer Protection Regulation as officially in force; the MMA 2025 annual report described the framework as under draft or final review with a Q2 2026 target. No single general debt-counselling service or comprehensive public fee-and-deadline table has been evidenced. Household debt reached MVR 20.22 billion at the end of 2025, an annual increase of 5.1 percent. The number of household-sector borrowers was 179,299, up 7.6 percent. Personal loans represented 22 percent of private-sector credit and grew by 19 percent in 2025. The MMA database reported non-performing loans of 5.7 percent, or MVR 3.08 billion, in 2025. These figures describe aggregate conditions and do not determine whether a particular borrower can obtain restructuring or relief. After a bank or finance-company default, the provider may begin internal collection or settlement and may negotiate rescheduling or refinancing. If no agreement is reached, the matter may proceed to the Civil Court, with penalties, security enforcement and deadlines determined by the contract and applicable law. There is no reliable basis for a blanket statement that every debt permits wage seizure, account seizure or out-of-court enforcement. A court may disclose credit information in a judicial proceeding. Public debt is managed by the Ministry of Finance and Public Enterprises (MoFPE), including its Debt Management Department. The Public Debt Act (Law No. 29/2024) has been effective since June 2025, and the ministry must submit an annual debt-management report to the People’s Majlis. At the end of 2025, Maldives public and publicly guaranteed debt was MVR 154.8278 billion: MVR 90.793 billion of domestic budgetary central-government debt, MVR 43.5944 billion of external budgetary central-government debt, MVR 19.5392 billion of guaranteed external debt and MVR 0.9012 billion of guaranteed domestic debt. Debt service was MVR 15.9363 billion. About 48.6 percent of debt was due to mature within one year, while average time to maturity was 6.8 years and the weighted average cost was 4.5 percent. These figures make refinancing exposure a central public-debt issue. Public borrowing includes Treasury bills, bonds, external project or programme loans, sovereign guarantees, Sukuk and other Islamic securities. Treasury bills are issued for one, three, six or twelve months, have a face value of MVR 10,000, and generally require a subscription of at least ten bills and multiples of ten. The current fact sheet records Islamic securities as being issued through private placement. Murabaha, Mudharabah and Wakalah Bi Al-Isthithmar are established local Islamic-finance terms and should be assessed according to the specific instrument documents rather than treated as interchangeable products. For companies, the Companies Act (Law No. 7/2023) provides a liquidation process. A creditor must submit a formal proof of debt or claim, including security details, to the liquidator within 15 days. Missing that deadline can exclude the creditor from an earlier distribution and remove the right to challenge an earlier distribution. The current evidence does not show a directly equivalent formal insolvency regime for individuals or sole proprietors. Practical alternatives therefore include a bilateral workout, a negotiated settlement, a civil claim or, where the debtor is a company, liquidation. No automatic debt discharge or general fresh-start rule for individuals has been evidenced.