Since the outbreak of the financial, monetary, and economic crisis in the country, financial stamps have entered the sphere of the black market and monopolies, becoming rare and difficult to obtain unless one pays a price exceeding 20 to 30 times its actual value. This crisis is paving the way for better possible solutions amid the state's inability to bear the cost of printing, with stamps of 20,000 and 50,000 Lebanese pounds expected to hit the market by the end of the month, printed at the military printing house due to the more suitable cost. Meanwhile, stamps can be purchased via form S14 without a minimum or maximum limit, while stamps exceeding 500,000 lira must be paid at the Ministry of Finance's cash register.
### How Did This Happen? Why Are Stamps Missing?
The story begins in 2019 when it was supposed to print larger quantities of financial stamps than agreed upon. According to Iskander Hallak, Director of Treasury at the Ministry of Finance, this did not happen due to financial difficulties, leading to a shortage of paper stamps in the market. However, due to low demand during this time, with the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and a decline in work activities, people replaced paper stamps with marking machines, particularly for notary services, for instance.
The value of stamps exceeding 200,000 pounds was paid through cash collection orders in the Ministry of Finance’s outlets instead of purchasing paper stamps from 2019 until mid-2022 (before it increased to 500,000 pounds). By mid-2022, amid consecutive liquidity and monetary crises, licensed individuals capable of purchasing stamps in quantities exceeding market needs began to do so, paying for them via bank checks, with each booklet containing 5,000 stamps. As a result, monopolies emerged, with around 50 to 60 license holders controlling supplies out of a total of 700.
When the budget law 20/22 was passed, Hallak noted that the financial stamp, previously paid in cash collection orders, increased to over 500,000 pounds instead of the former 200,000 pounds. Any stamp fee less than 500,000 pounds became paper-based, resulting in a two-and-a-half times increase in the quantity of stamps withdrawn. Consequently, the demand for stamps rose as the cost of issuing a civil registry document increased from 5,000 to 20,000 pounds.
### Proposed Solutions to Prevent Monopolies
Six months ago, when Hallak assumed his position, he explained that the treasury had only enough stamps for ten days. He proposed several solutions that the Finance Minister approved, including restricting the purchase to one booklet at a time (which contains up to 4,000 stamps) per licensee each month instead of 20 or 30. Additionally, the process was limited to a maximum value of 15 million pounds to avoid large-scale purchases through checks.
To ensure paper stamps during this period, Hallak proposed that stamp fees be paid via a financial receipt, which is a payment notification to cash register 14 without minimum or maximum limits. This began at the start of the year, but as government offices were closed, it only commenced effectively recently. If an individual needs a 22,000-pound stamp for a civil registry document of 20,000 pounds, they can now buy the stamp by filling out form S14.
Hallak added: "The Minister of Finance issued a decision regarding the payment receipt called 'Form S14,' which was published in the official gazette before the end of the year, and the Prime Minister issued a circular to all public departments, institutions, and municipalities noting that due to the shortage of financial stamps, form S14 can be used." This was further supported by a directive from the General Directorate of General Security, informing also the community leaders to use form S14 in personal status transactions instead of paper stamps.
### What is Form S14 and How to Use It?
Hallak clarified that "Form S14 is a request that the concerned party fills out to purchase stamps valued at, for example, 100,000, 200,000, 500,000 pounds, or 2,000,000 pounds depending on their needs for each transaction. They can get it from the Ministry of Finance’s website www.finance.gov.lb under the forms section for indirect taxes, or obtain it from the Treasury Department or the Ministry of Finance once the strike ends and offices reopen."
Afterwards, individuals submit the request to one of the money transfer companies like OMT, Cash Plus, Wish Money, BOB Finance, or Libanpost, paying for the stamp (e.g., 200,000 pounds + 8,000 pounds as the company fee). Following the issuance of a receipt and stamping of the three copies of form S14 (one for the relevant authority, one for the requester, and one for the treasury), the receipt itself serves as the financial stamp, allowing for the submission of the receipt to any department while the requester keeps the request for record-keeping.
This method was not widely adopted due to the strike by public sector employees, although community leaders have utilized this approach for obtaining stamps for issuing civil registry documents.
### Recent Developments
Deputy Sami Gemayel recently filed a complaint with the public prosecution under number 934/2023, seeking investigations into the stamp shortage crisis in Lebanon, pursuing accountability for those responsible for fraud in buying and selling financial stamps, abuse of power, tax evasion, and illicit enrichment, targeting both license holders and public employees.
### The Most Efficient Solution
"For each transaction, there is a specific receipt, as it has become the stamp, obtained based on the submitted request," Hallak concludes. Most offices are currently closed, and once they reopen, people will adapt to using the payment notification method for stamps similar to how community leaders handle personal status cases.
While the process of paying for stamps will require individuals who want to carry out transactions to fill out a specific request and visit a money transfer company to pay for it in exchange for a receipt, this mechanism is considered the most effective solution given the current crisis. "People will adapt to the payment notification method for stamp payments," Hallak emphasizes. This is far better than purchasing stamps on the black market at prices approximately 30 times higher than their original cost, noting that there are currently paper stamps available in the market worth 1,000, 2,000, 5,000, and 10,000 pounds, as well as limited quantities valued at 250,000 pounds, with stamps of 20,000 and 50,000 pounds expected to be introduced at the beginning of March. As for the market's requirement for stamps, it was 5 million stamps monthly, and with the increase in stamp fees payable in cash to the Ministry of Finance from 200,000 to 500,000 pounds, the market's demand rose to 10 million stamps.
