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Money & duty free for Mali

Currency information: 

CFA (Communauté Financière Africaine) Franc (XOF) = 100 centimes. Notes are in denominations of XOF10,000, 5,000, 2,000 and 1,000. Coins are in denominations of XOF500, 200, 250, 100, 50, 25, 10 and 5.

Mali is part of the French Monetary Area. Only currency issued by the Banque des Etats de l'Afrique de l'Ouest (Bank of West African States) is valid; currency issued by the Banque des Etats de l'Afrique Centrale (Bank of Central African States) is not. The CFA Franc is tied to the Euro.

Credit cards: 

Credit cards are very little used in Mali's cash economy - and are only accepted at major banks, airports, hotels and restaurants. Visa is the main card accepted; MasterCard and American Express can sometimes be used.

Travellers cheques: 

Can be exchanged In Bamako. To avoid additional exchange rate charges, travellers are advised to take traveller's cheques in US Dollars or Euros.

Banking hours: 

Mon-Fri 0800-1630, Sat 0800-1400.

Currency restriction: 

There are no restrictions on the import or export of local or foreign currency, but amounts exceeding XOF25,000 should be declared.

Currency exchange: 

It is possible to exchange Euros and US Dollars in Bamako.

Mali duty free

The following items may be imported into Mali without incurring customs duty:

• 1,000 cigarettes or 250 cigars or 2kg of tobacco.
• Two bottles of alcoholic beverage.
• A reasonable amount of perfume for personal use.

Note: (a) Imports of professional articles such as cameras and photographic equipment, radios and recording equipment, materials for professional use and sports firearms are subject to special authorisation. (b) Authorisation from the National Museum in Bamako must be obtained when exporting certain Malian archaeological objects, particularly those from the Niger River Valley.

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