New banking rules banning transactions of "unidentified" customers are not restricted to foreigners or refugees in Iran, and applies all customers whose ID is not registered with banks, the Coordination Council of Banks said in a statement.
The council is a body in charge of coordinating banking activity of private and state banks.
The statement was released after some media outlets said Afghan refugees living in Iran had their debit cards suspended by some banks. The Central Bank of Iran last week announced tougher restrictions on bank transactions.
As per the new rules, from January 24 all bank payments via accounts whose owners lack registered ID would be rejected. The measure particularly impacts accounts whose owners have not fully registered their IDs with banks.
"The measure is by no means aimed at foreigners and applies to account holders who failed to present their valid identity documents," the statement published by IRNA said.
The new regulations are in line with measures to improve transparency and safety of bank transactions. The CCB said similar rules are the norm in most countries "for a variety of reasons, mainly to counter money laundering."
The restrictions have apparently targeted Afghan nationals given the high number of illegal refugees in Iran.
According to IBENA, the news agency affiliated to Monetary and Banking Research Institute, "the new rules were enforced by two banks, namely Bank Saderat Iran and Tejarat Bank from Thursday in line with anti-money laundering policies."
Iran is one of the world’s four countries with the highest number of refugees. A report published by the Statistical Center of Iran (SCI) in 2017 shows that the majority of refugees come from Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan.
Most Afghans took refuge in Iran either after the Soviet invasion and occupation of Afghanistan in 1979, or following the Afghan civil war in the 1990s and the US-led invasion in 2001.
The SCI report indicates that the number of Afghan refugees officially registered in Iran is 1.58 million, followed by 34,532 Iraqis, and 14,320 Pakistanis.
Lack of Data
There is no precise data on the total number of Afghans (legal and illegal) in Iran. According to the Interior Ministry, in early 2016, almost 2.5 million Afghans lived in Iran of which only one million had valid documents and 450,000 had passports. An estimated one million refugees are living and working in Iran illegally.
The number expectedly has declined in the past three years as demand for Afghan labor fell drastically after a slowdown in the economy due to the US economic blockade.
Afghans whose debit cards are blocked say they were not given advance notice. Many of them are concerned that the move would impact their livelihoods.
"We are working to find an alternative to solve the problem of Afghans and ensure transparency in bank transactions," Hojatollah Sayyadi, the managing director of Bank Saderat said in response to protestations by the Afghans, Fars News Agency reported.
