Debt in Mozambique

Formal debt in Mozambique can arise from banks, microbanks, microcredit providers, savings and loan organisations, credit cooperatives, financial companies, leasing companies and other licensed lenders. The Banco de Moçambique supervises these providers, maintains the Central de Registo de Crédito (CRC), handles financial consumer complaints and licenses regulated credit institutions. The CRC records borrowers, avalistas and guarantors. A lender generally needs the customer's express consent to consult the record, while the lender reports a disbursement, credit limit or guarantee within 24 hours. A borrower can request access through the Banco de Moçambique or a participating lender, ask for clarification or correction, and normally receives a response within 10 business days. After the credit ends, the lender must issue a quitação, meaning confirmation that the debt has been extinguished, on request. The CRC may retain the credit history for 10 years after extinction, and access charges follow the applicable manual. Credit terms depend on the lender, product, risk and contract. In September 2026, the reported commercial reference rate was 15.50%, consisting of a 9.30% reference rate and a 6.20% cost premium; a product-specific spread can raise or reduce the final rate. Microfinance spreads are generally materially higher than commercial-bank spreads. Indicative bank standards included at least six months of customer relationship, no unsettled CRC incidents, identity and income documents and, in some cases, a blank bill of exchange. Reported debt-service limits were up to 30% of monthly net income for housing and consumer loans at banks and up to 40% at microfinance providers. Mortgage lending standards included at least 120% collateral coverage, while consumer-loan maturity was reported at up to five years. Public-servant loans may run from six to 84 months and may use salary withholding. These are indicative risk and contract standards, not a universal right to approval. A borrower has a right to complete, current and clear information about a financial product. During a contract, full or partial early settlement can be requested in writing, with a proportional reduction of remaining interest and charges. A seven-business-day withdrawal period may apply, subject to returning the funds or other applicable conditions. The borrower should provide truthful information, use the credit as agreed, keep the funded account available for instalments and charges, pay on time and update relevant data. A complaint normally starts with the creditor. If the creditor does not resolve it or responds late, the borrower can contact the Banco de Moçambique through a branch, physical form, email at reclamacoes@bancomoc.mz or its electronic form. The Banco de Moçambique can handle consumer information and complaints, but it does not generally impose a private debt restructuring plan. Arrears can create CRC incidents that make new regulated credit more difficult. A lender may negotiate repayment, rescheduling or another settlement, but the result depends on the creditor, contract and financial circumstances. Secured movable assets may be registered in the Central de Registo de Garantias Mobiliárias (CRGM), the movable-collateral register under Lei 19/2018. Enforcement may occur through judicial or legally permitted extrajudicial procedures. Where statutory and contractual conditions are satisfied, an extrajudicial repossession procedure can operate after five business days. An unsecured creditor generally needs a court decision followed by execution. The exact remedy and priority depend on the collateral, contract and applicable procedure. Decreto-Lei 1/2013 provides judicial recovery, extrajudicial recovery through conciliation or mediation, and insolvency proceedings. With adaptations, these procedures can cover commercial entrepreneurs, associations, foundations, civil companies, cooperatives and individuals. Public enterprises, banks, financial companies, insurers and equivalent entities are excluded from this regime. The competent court is generally the court for the debtor's domicile, principal establishment or the branch of a foreign company. Judicial recovery or insolvency can suspend actions and executions, and a recovery stay can last up to 180 days. Judicial recovery generally requires more than 12 months of regular activity and other statutory conditions; if viability fails, liquidation and distribution to creditors may follow. The reviewed framework does not show a broad personal discharge scheme or a nationwide one-stop debt counsellor. Informal liquidity arrangements include xitique, a rotating savings arrangement, ASCA, an accumulating savings and credit association, family or friends and informal lenders. They can provide emergency funds where formal access is limited, especially in some rural or low-income settings, but their pricing, records, legal force, enforcement and consumer protection are not uniform. Access also differs between urban and rural areas and between districts; the Banco de Moçambique reports activity across 154 districts, but this does not create a single personal debt service. Public debt follows a different framework. The 2025 IMF and World Bank debt-sustainability assessment classified Mozambique's overall public debt as being in debt distress and on an unsustainable path. Public debt was reported at 91.5% of GDP at the end of 2024, including central-government obligations, domestic and external debt, state-owned-enterprise debt and government guarantees; ENH external debt accounted for 19.2% of GDP. Debt-service arrears were projected at 1.3% of GDP at the end of 2025, split between 0.9% external and 0.4% domestic arrears. Disputes concerning Proindicus and MAM hidden debt were addressed through out-of-court settlements in 2023 and 2024. The 2025–2029 Medium-Term Debt Strategy focuses on concessional external financing, extending domestic maturities and keeping the short-term share of new domestic debt below 10% by 2029. That public-debt strategy is not a repayment arrangement for private borrowers.