The monthly ceilings for circulars 158 and 166 are to increase to $1,200 and $600 effective 1 December 2026. This increase concerns the card share on payment terminals. It does not carry banknote withdrawals to these two amounts.
The distinction is essential for applicants. Under circular 158, the estimated distribution is $800 in cash or other authorized terms and conditions, and $400 in card payments at merchant terminals. For Circular 166, the amounts announced are $400 for the first share and $200 for payments at these terminals.
The Bank of Lebanon adopted these amendments on 3 November. They shall enter into force the following month. Therefore, the date of the decision should not be confused with the date from which the new ceilings apply to monthly payments.
Bank withdrawals in Lebanon: two separate uses
The monthly total brings together different means of payment. For a beneficiary of Circular 158, the figure of $1,200 does not mean that this amount can be withdrawn in full at the counter or distributor. The $400 portion is intended exclusively for card payments at a point-of-sale terminal, referred to as POS.
The $800 share can be paid in tickets, transferred abroad, used by card or deposited in a fresh dollar account, as provided. These possibilities are not additional envelopes to be added: they describe different uses of the same fraction of the payment.
The same distinction applies to the total of $600 for Circular 166. The $200 set aside for payment terminals is not an additional cash withdrawal. The $400 of the other fraction remains to be distinguished from this amount for card purchases.
An increase that does not raise the ceiling in banknotes
The measure increases the spending capacity under the two circulars, without increasing the shares of $800 and $400 available in cash. Its practical scope therefore also depends on the payments that the applicant can make by card. A higher overall ceiling does not necessarily give the same freedom of use as an equivalent amount available in cash.
To read a bank statement or advertisement, three informations must remain separate: the total ceiling of the device, the fraction subject to use on a terminal and the date of payment concerned. A title indicating only « $1,200 » or « $600 » leaves aside a decisive restriction.
The new amounts also do not create an automatic fee for each account holder. Both mechanisms retain their access and operating conditions. They shall organise a gradual return to their beneficiaries in the context of special accounts and arrangements.
Two devices that do not add up freely
Circular 166 applies to foreign currency deposits established before June 30, 2023, under its terms and conditions. Its text covers in particular the articulation with Circular 158. The two ceilings cannot therefore be simply added to announce a monthly withdrawal of $1,800 per depositor.
The situation of the joint accounts or accounts held in several institutions is not limited to a multiplication of the amount shown. The rules of the applicable scheme and the rights of holders must be distinguished from the monthly ceiling only. The increase announced does not exempt this individual audit.
A partial refund, not the end of the restrictions
Circulars remain exceptional payment mechanisms. Their increase does not make all the old deposits freely available and does not set the timetable for returning the balance of each account alone. Nor does it regulate the distribution of losses between the various parts of the banking crisis.
The new text of Circular 158 prohibits direct and indirect commissions or expenses on the operations it provides for. It also recalls that payments made must be taken into account in the legislative framework for the treatment of deposits, in order to avoid double counting.
For the households concerned, the next deadline is 1 December. The change relates to a monthly envelope and how it is used. The amount actually accessible in banknotes, possible card purchases and amounts that remain blocked will continue to indicate three different realities.
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