The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has reminded the public that individuals who repeatedly issue dud cheques face a three-year ban from issuing fresh cheques.

Such persons will be denied access to new credit facilities within the banking and financial system.

The reminder was contained in revised regulatory directives issued by the central bank on June 24, 2026.

BoG, however, clarified that affected customers would still be allowed to receive funds into their accounts and carry out other electronic transactions.

“All Banks and Specialised Deposit Taking Institutions will be notified about this ban,” the notice stated.

The central bank added that banks and SDIs must notify affected customers within five working days after receiving notice of the ban and recall all unused cheque books.

BoG also disclosed that it will publish the names of customers who become third-time offenders.

Customers who fail to return unused cheque books within ten working days will be reported to the Bank of Ghana.

Such customers will face an additional restriction from operating current accounts and will be placed on a high-risk list of cheque issuers to be maintained by the central bank.

Reasons for revised directive

According to BoG, the revised directive became necessary because, despite earlier directives issued in March 2021 and October 2025, it has “observed with grave concern the high issuance of dud cheques by some customers of Banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions (SDIs).”

The central bank said the development has undermined public confidence and acceptance of cheques as a means of payment.

To address the problem and sustain confidence in the payment system, BoG has reissued the directive with some revisions.

The new directive takes immediate effect and supersedes previous ones issued in 2021 and 2025.

Implementation of sanctions by banks and SDIs

Under the revised framework, banks and SDIs must impose a levy equivalent to 10 per cent of the face value of a dud cheque issued for the first time and issue a warning notification to the customer.

The offence must also be reported to the Credit Reference Bureaus and the Bank of Ghana.

In addition, the customer will be placed under surveillance for at least one year. The warning may be communicated through SMS, email or any other established channel between the bank and the customer.

The notification must also spell out further sanctions that could apply if the offence is repeated.

For customers who issue a dud cheque for a second time within a year of the first offence, banks and SDIs are required to impose a levy of 15 per cent of the cheque’s face value and issue another warning notification.

Reporting obligations for banks

BoG has also reminded banks and specialised deposit-taking institutions to continue submitting data on customers who issue dud cheques to Credit Reference Bureaus in accordance with Section 25(c) of the Credit Reporting Act, 2007 (Act 726).

Banks and SDIs are further required to submit monthly returns on dud cheques to the Bank of Ghana by the 10th day of the following month using the prescribed format.

Institutions must submit a nil return for months in which no dud cheques are recorded.

BoG warned that failure to submit returns, or the submission of inaccurate or incomplete returns, will attract sanctions under Section 93 of the Banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930).