Countries › Paraguay › Guide › 5. FX and capital controls › Contracting and banking in US dollars in Paraguay: valid foreign currency clauses, dollar deposits and deposit insurance
Contracting and banking in US dollars in Paraguay: valid foreign currency clauses, dollar deposits and deposit insurance
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Last verified: 2026-10-28 · Status: Stable
Contracts and obligations in foreign currency are valid and enforceable in the agreed currency in Paraguay, and security can be registered in that currency. Banks take dollar deposits and lend in dollars, subject to BCP reserve requirements, and the deposit guarantee fund covers deposits of any denomination up to 75 monthly minimum wages per person per entity. The guaraní remains legal tender: guaraní debts are paid at face value, and interest is capped by BCP maximum rates.
USD figures use PYG 5,868.31 per US dollar, the Banco Central del Paraguay reference quotation for 28 October 2026 (daily planilla). Conversions are for orientation only.
Key facts
| Foreign currency contracts valid and enforceable in the agreed currency | Yes Ley 434/94 art. 1; Ley 2794/2005 art. 59, as of 2026-10-28 · in force |
|---|---|
| Foreign currency bank deposits | Allowed, subject to BCP reserve requirements Ley 489/95 art. 70 (Ley 6104/2018), as of 2026-10-28 · in force |
| Deposit guarantee cap per person per entity | 228300000 PYGLey 2334/2003 art. 1 g); Res. MTESS 670/2026, as of 2026-10-28 · in force |
| Deposit guarantee cap in minimum wages | 75 monthly minimum wagesLey 2334/2003 art. 1 c) and g), as of 2026-10-28 · in force |
| Quarterly contribution of entities on average deposits | 0.12 %Ley 2334/2003 art. 3, as of 2026-10-28 · in force |
The rule
1. Foreign currency obligations. Legal acts, obligations and contracts made in foreign currency are valid and enforceable in the agreed currency. In creditors' composition proceedings they are converted provisionally to guaraníes for the creditors' meeting and definitively at the selling rate on the payment date; in bankruptcy at the selling rate on the date of the bankruptcy declaration. Priorities against third parties are fixed definitively in guaraníes at the final liquidation, and the judge may order sale proceeds to be used to buy the foreign currency needed and deposit it pending the case.
Cost to do it: No FX surcharge on dollar contracts.
Example: A lease at US$5,000 a month is enforceable in dollars; at the 28 October 2026 rate that is PYG 29,341,550 if the parties settle in guaraníes. / US$5,000 monthly rent payable in dollars.Ley Nº 434/94 Obligaciones en moneda extranjera, Art. 1, 3 and 5, 1994-10-10 official text · verified 2026-10-28
Cost to do it: No FX surcharge on dollar contracts.
Example: A lease at US$5,000 a month is enforceable in dollars; at the 28 October 2026 rate that is PYG 29,341,550 if the parties settle in guaraníes. / US$5,000 monthly rent payable in dollars.Ley Nº 434/94 Obligaciones en moneda extranjera, Art. 1, 3 and 5, 1994-10-10 official text · verified 2026-10-28
2. Civil Code and exchange law. Money debts are discharged by payment in the currency with legal tender and discharging force at maturity and at face value; obligations and payment in other currencies are governed by special laws. Ley 2794/2005 repeats that acts and operations in foreign currency are valid and enforceable in the agreed currency. Interest and commissions may not exceed the maximum rates set by the BCP, on pain of nullity of the clause; bank credit interest is governed by special legislation.
Cost to do it: Interest above the BCP maximum rate is void.
Example: A guaraní loan cannot be indexed above the BCP maximum by calling the excess a commission. / Dollar contracts stand under the special laws; guaraní debts are paid at face value.Código Civil (Ley Nº 1183/85) and Ley Nº 2794/2005, Código Civil art. 474 and 475; Ley 2794 art. 59, 1985-12-18 official text · verified 2026-10-28
Cost to do it: Interest above the BCP maximum rate is void.
Example: A guaraní loan cannot be indexed above the BCP maximum by calling the excess a commission. / Dollar contracts stand under the special laws; guaraní debts are paid at face value.Código Civil (Ley Nº 1183/85) and Ley Nº 2794/2005, Código Civil art. 474 and 475; Ley 2794 art. 59, 1985-12-18 official text · verified 2026-10-28
3. Dollar deposits and reserve requirements. Foreign currency deposits in banks and other authorized credit entities are subject to reserve requirements whose ratio, composition and penalties the BCP Board sets; reserve requirements may also be required on foreign currency loans, and above 10 percent the BCP pays interest on the excess.
Cost to do it: Indirect: the reserve cost is reflected in dollar deposit and loan rates.
Example: A company can keep its export proceeds in a US dollar account at a Paraguayan bank. / Dollar accounts are part of the regulated banking system.Ley Nº 489/95 Orgánica del Banco Central del Paraguay, as amended by Ley Nº 6104/2018, Art. 70 (as reworded by Ley 6104/2018 art. 1), 2018-07-03 official text · verified 2026-10-28
Cost to do it: Indirect: the reserve cost is reflected in dollar deposit and loan rates.
Example: A company can keep its export proceeds in a US dollar account at a Paraguayan bank. / Dollar accounts are part of the regulated banking system.Ley Nº 489/95 Orgánica del Banco Central del Paraguay, as amended by Ley Nº 6104/2018, Art. 70 (as reworded by Ley 6104/2018 art. 1), 2018-07-03 official text · verified 2026-10-28
4. Deposit guarantee. Deposits of any modality and denomination in private financial entities authorized by the BCP are guaranteed up to the equivalent of 75 monthly minimum wages (actividades no especificadas, Capital) per natural or legal person per entity, after offset against that person's debts to the entity; 100 percent when the deposit secures a foreign trade operation. Related persons are excluded. Entities pay a quarterly 0.12 percent contribution on average national and foreign currency deposits.
Cost to do it: Coverage cap PYG 228,300,000 (US$38,904) at the PYG 3,044,000 minimum wage from 1 July 2026.
Example: A company with PYG 400,000,000 in one bank and no debts there is covered up to PYG 228,300,000. / Coverage about US$38,904 per person per bank.Ley Nº 2334/2003 De garantía de depósitos, Art. 1 literals c), e), f), g) and art. 3, 2003-12-12 official text · verified 2026-10-28
Cost to do it: Coverage cap PYG 228,300,000 (US$38,904) at the PYG 3,044,000 minimum wage from 1 July 2026.
Example: A company with PYG 400,000,000 in one bank and no debts there is covered up to PYG 228,300,000. / Coverage about US$38,904 per person per bank.Ley Nº 2334/2003 De garantía de depósitos, Art. 1 literals c), e), f), g) and art. 3, 2003-12-12 official text · verified 2026-10-28
| Topic | Rule | Norm |
|---|---|---|
| Contract in US$ | Valid and enforceable in US$ | Ley 434 art. 1; Ley 2794 art. 59 |
| Security for US$ debt | Registered in US$ | Ley 434 art. 2 |
| Bankruptcy | Converted at selling rate on declaration date | Ley 434 art. 3 |
| Dollar deposits | Allowed, reserve requirements | Ley 489 art. 70 |
| Deposit guarantee | 75 minimum wages, PYG 228,300,000 | Ley 2334 art. 1 |
Foreign currency in contracts and banking
Worked example
- Supplier contract in dollars: a distributor buys from a Paraguayan supplier at US$200,000 payable in dollars; if unpaid, the supplier sues for US$200,000 and any attachment is recorded in dollars (Ley 434 art. 4). If the buyer enters a creditors' composition, the claim is converted at the selling rate on the payment date set in the composition; at the 28 October 2026 reference rate US$200,000 is PYG 1,173,662,000.
Step by step
- 1. Draft the price and payment currency expressly; state the rate source if guaraní payment is allowed.
- 2. Register mortgages or pledges in the currency of the debt.
- 3. Open a dollar account at a BCP licensed bank for collections.
- 4. Spread large balances across banks if deposit guarantee coverage matters.
- 5. Check that interest and commissions stay within BCP maximum rates.
Common traps
- Exchange houses cannot take deposits (Ley 2794 art. 43); only banks and finance companies can.
- Deposit guarantee is per person per entity and net of debts to that entity (Ley 2334 art. 1 e).
- In bankruptcy the dollar claim is fixed at the rate on the declaration date, so the creditor bears later FX moves (Ley 434 art. 3).
- Interest above the BCP maximum is void (Código Civil art. 475).
Sources
- Ley Nº 434/94 Obligaciones en moneda extranjera (BACN)
- Código Civil, Ley Nº 1183/85, Libro II (BACN)
- Ley Nº 2794/2005 De entidades cambiarias y/o de casas de cambios (BACN)
- Ley Nº 6104/2018 amending Ley Nº 489/95 Orgánica del Banco Central del Paraguay (BACN)
- Ley Nº 2334/2003 De garantía de depósitos (BACN)
- Resolución MTESS Nº 670/2026, minimum wage from 1 July 2026
Related pages
- fx/fx-and-capital-flows
- fx/foreign-loans
- finance/capital-markets-banking-and-credit
- disputes/courts-arbitration-and-enforcement
- normal-abroad/what-works-differently-in-paraguay
- /country/paraguay/
- /calendar/
- Live dashboard
Related: Paraguay country profile · live dashboard · central bank and release calendar · our posts on X · where Argentina is involved, see The Argentine Thread guide
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