M‑PESA Customer Terms & Conditions

This Agreement contains the complete terms and conditions that apply to your participation in Safaricom M‑PESA's mobile money transfer service and supersedes all other agreements entered between you and Safaricom M‑PESA Ethiopia PLC (“Safaricom M‑PESA”) with respect to the M‑PESA mobile money transfer services. These terms and conditions take effect on the date of your registration to the M‑PESA Services. By participating in or continuing to use the M‑PESA Service you shall be deemed to be making an affirmative statement of your acceptance of these terms and conditions.

(A)     “Account” means your M‑PESA Account, being the record maintained by Safaricom M‑PESA of the amount of E-Money from time to time held by you and represented by an equivalent amount of cash held by a Trust Account on your behalf; 

(B)     “Affiliate” means any entity, individual, firm, or corporation, directly or indirectly, through one or more intermediaries, controlling, controlled by, or under common control with either party

(C)     “Agent” means a person appointed to offer M‑PESA registration, cash-in, and cash-out services and includes, as applicable, participating ATM networks, cash vending machines and electronic vending outlets, and any other entity approved by Safaricom M‑PESA further details of which may be obtained from Safaricom M‑PESA;

(D)    “Cash” means the lawful currency of Ethiopia;

(E)     “Dormant Account” means an account that has had no financial activity for a long period of time, as stipulated under the laws of the National Bank of Ethiopia. 

(F)     “E-Money” means the electronic monetary value depicted in your M‑PESA Account representing an equal amount of Cash held by the Trust Account and which may be redeemed through an M‑PESA Agent for an equal amount of Cash;

(G)    “Foreign National” means a person who is not a citizen of Ethiopia irrespective of whether the person is a permanent resident in Ethiopia.

(H)    “Guardian” means a person who is legally authorized to access funds in your M‑PESA Account in the event of your permanent disability;

(I)       “Merchant” means a person engaged in the trade of goods and/or services and holds its own M‑PESA Account;

(J)      “M‑PESA Services” or “M‑PESA” means the money transfer services provided by Safaricom M‑PESA including issuance, management, and redemption of E-Money and Cash;

(K)     “M‑PESA System” or “M‑PESA” means the system operated by Safaricom M‑PESA providing the M‑PESA Services;

(L)      “Network” means the Global System for Mobile Telecommunication (“GSM”) system operated by Safaricom Telecommunications Ethiopia PLC (Safaricom Ethiopia), which is an Affiliate of Safaricom M‑PESA, and covering those areas within Ethiopia as stipulated from time to time by us;

(M)   “Outlet Operator” means the assistant attending to you at an Agent Outlet;

(N)    “Outlet” means any shop, unit, or other retail premises or portion thereof operated by an Agent ;

(O)    “Participant” or “User” means any person that participates in the M‑PESA System by using the M‑PESA Services to send or receive money and includes any person that facilitates the redemption of E-Money;

(P)     “Personal Information” means personal identifiable information which includes but is not limited to name, address, phone number, identification number, and location data;

(Q)    “PIN” means your personal identification number being the password you choose to access and operate your Account and includes the one-time 4-digit PIN sent to you on registration for activating your Account;

(R)     “Pre-paid Airtime” means mobile phone calling credit on Safaricom Ethiopia Network;

(S)     “Registration Form” means the registration form containing registration details;

(T)     “Safaricom M‑PESA Products and Services” means any products and services provided to you by Safaricom M‑PESA whether under this Agreement or otherwise to be introduced from time to time;

(U)    “Secret Word” means the secret password allocated to you upon activation of your M‑PESA Account by keying in the PIN;

(V)     “SIM Card” means the subscriber identity module which when used with the appropriate mobile phone equipment enables you to use the M‑PESA Services;

(W)  “SMS” means a short messaging service that enables the transmission of text messages from one mobile phone to another;

(X)     “Successor” means a person who is legally authorized to access funds in your M‑PESA Account in the event of your death;

(Y)        “Transaction” means the movement of money into, or out of your M‑PESA Account;

(Z)    “Trust Account” means an account opened in a licensed bank by M‑PESA Service to hold a cash equivalent of the electronic money issued;

(AA)    “You” or “your” means the M‑PESA Customer who has registered to use the M‑PESA Service;

2.1   Safaricom M‑PESA operates the M‑PESA mobile money transfer service, allowing you to send and receive money through your registered mobile phone.

2.2   M‑PESA is available to all Safaricom Ethiopia subscribers upon registration for the M‑PESA Services.

2.3   You may register for an M‑PESA Account with any M‑PESA Agent or at any Safaricom M‑PESA retail center by completing the M‑PESA Registration Form.

2.4   Safaricom M‑PESA may in its absolute discretion restrict or limit the number of accounts you may operate at any one time.

2.5   Safaricom M‑PESA may for good cause (assessed by Safaricom M‑PESA in its absolute discretion) refuse to register or revoke any person’s registration on the M‑PESA System.

2.6   You may acquire E-Money in your M‑PESA account by depositing Cash at an M‑PESA Agent outlet or receiving a remittance of E-Money from another M‑PESA Participant, and, as applicable, through an international money remittance from a participating remittance service provider or through any other acceptable means that Safaricom M‑PESA may provide.

2.7   All Transactions shall be denominated in Ethiopian Birr. 

2.8   Subject to the prescribed Transaction limits and the provisions of these Terms and Conditions, the balance of your M‑PESA Account is redeemable at any time and shall be disposed of only in accordance with your instructions given via the M‑PESA System.

2.9   You acknowledge that Safaricom M‑PESA is neither a bank nor a deposit-taking institution.

2.10  You acknowledge that all charges applicable to the M‑PESA service are set forth in a separate fee schedule available at Agent outlets and as may be published from time to time by Safaricom M‑PESA in its website at www.safaricom.et and are subject to change at any time at Safaricom M‑PESA’s sole discretion.

2.11  Your Cash represented as E-Money is held in a Trust Account. By participating in and/or continuing to use the M‑PESA Services you acknowledge your money in a Trust Account shall be managed by Safaricom M‑PESA on your behalf. \

2.12   Upon approval by the National Bank of Ethiopia, Safaricom M‑PESA may transfer not less than 80 (eighty) percent of any net return derived from your portion of the Trust Account to you, the remaining amount to be retained by Safaricom M‑PESA. 

2.13  Notwithstanding sub-article 2.12 hereinabove, and upon securing guidance from the National Bank of Ethiopia, you hereby consent for Safaricom M‑PESA to invest your portion of the net return from a Trust Account in community-based activities.  

The following conditions must be met before opening an M‑PESA Account in your name:

3.1   You must be at least 18 years old with the capacity to enter into contracts.

3.2   You must have an M‑PESA-enabled SIM card through which you may access the M‑PESA Services. If your SIM card is not M‑PESA enabled, you may swap it at a nominal fee for one that is M‑PESA enabled.

3.3   By using M‑PESA enabled SIM card, you hereby consented for Safaricom M‑PESA to use your personal data available at Safaricom Ethiopia’s network, to enable the activation and use of the M‑PESA account. 

3.4   You must complete the Registration Form and submit it when duly completed and signed by you. For the avoidance of doubt, a completed Registration Form shall bear your name as it appears on your ID and such other information as may be required. The Registration Form may be filled in and accepted by electronic means.

3.5   You must provide sufficient proof of identification (ID) acceptable by the applicable laws. Copies of the ID provided may be retained by the Agent facilitating your registration.

3.6   You must not provide any false, inaccurate, incomplete, or misleading information.

3.7   Notwithstanding the generality of the foregoing, a person with parental authority may open and maintain an account in their name for and on behalf of a minor. For purposes of this agreement, a person with parental authority shall include the birth parents of a minor, a legal guardian, or another person who can demonstrate legitimate authority over the minor’s affairs.

3.8   You are responsible for ensuring that your registration details are maintained up to date.

3.9   Safaricom M‑PESA may reject your application at its discretion if any of the account opening requirements are not met or if you fail to provide us with satisfactory proof of identification.

3.10  Safaricom M‑PESA reserves the right to request further information pertaining to your account at any time failure of which may result in a limitation on usage of the M‑PESA Service, suspension, or termination of the Account.

3.11  You must not maintain more than five M‑PESA Accounts. 

3.12  You may elect to have a Level 1 Account or Level 2 Account which shall have a daily aggregate transaction limit as defined by the National Bank of Ethiopia from time to time.

3.13  Notwithstanding sub-article 3.11 hereinabove, Safaricom M‑PESA reserves the right to allocate higher Transaction limits after exceptional authorization from the National Bank of Ethiopia. 

3.14  If you have more than one account with a similar Level, the aggregate balance of all accounts shall not exceed the respective category limit where the account belongs. 

3.15  If you have more than one electronic account with different Levels, the limit of the higher Level shall apply.

3.16  Subject to Safaricom M‑PESA’s due diligence and vetting, you may obtain an official statement of your M‑PESA Account from any Safaricom M‑PESA retail center for which you may be charged a fee. An official statement of account shall be conclusive evidence of the Transactions carried out on your M‑PESA Account during the period covered in the statement.

3.17  For the avoidance of doubt the contents of any statement obtained from a retail center pursuant to clause 3.15 shall not be produced as evidence in any civil or criminal court. Safaricom M‑PESA may however provide the evidence upon receipt of a valid court order or request from law enforcement authorities.  

 

4.1   Safaricom M‑PESA recognizes the importance of protecting the privacy of all information provided by users of M‑PESA. This statement is meant to affirm our utmost respect for your right to privacy.

4.2   Safaricom M‑PESA collects personally identifiable information that we use to profile M‑PESA Users and administer individual M‑PESA accounts, update M‑PESA databases, and provide User support.

4.3   Save as provided hereunder, Safaricom M‑PESA does not share your Personal Information with unauthorized persons and adequate safeguards have been put in place to prevent unauthorized access and to ensure the confidentiality of your Personal Information.

4.4   You acknowledge that by using the M‑PESA Services, some of your Personal Information will be passed on:

4.4.1 to any person whom you receive E-Money from, or send E-Money to and will be available to any third party involved in the operation of the Service including without limitation, M‑PESA Agents, ATM switch providers, and our technology providers as applicable);

4.4.2  to other Users at any stage in the course of the M‑PESA Transaction for the purposes of their use of the M‑PESA Services; and

4.4.3  You hereby authorize Safaricom M‑PESA to share with, provide or disclose to such Users, and third parties with which you have separately contracted or with which you intend to contract (and have informed Safaricom M‑PESA of this intention in writing or electronically through the M‑PESA System), your Personal Information including any Transaction data, information pertaining to you or your M‑PESA Account, or your usage of Safaricom M‑PESA Products and Services provided that the authority given to Safaricom M‑PESA to disclose information to such third parties (not being a law enforcement, investigative or regulatory authority) pursuant to this clause may be withdrawn at any time.

4.5  You acknowledge that Safaricom M‑PESA may verify your identity information through publicly available and/or restricted government databases in order to comply with regulatory requirements.

4.6   You accept that Safaricom M‑PESA shall have the right to monitor your account usage and may disclose Personal Information to local law enforcement or investigative agencies or any competent regulatory or governmental agencies to assist in the prevention, detection or prosecution of money laundering activities, fraud, or other criminal activities.

4.7   Safaricom M‑PESA employees who handle Personal Information are under an obligation to treat it confidentially and may not disclose it to unauthorized third parties. Safaricom M‑PESA employees are also responsible for the internal security of the information. Employees who violate Safaricom M‑PESA’s privacy policies are subject to a range of disciplinary actions.

4.8   Any person submitting any information to Safaricom M‑PESA through the M‑PESA System may be granted access rights to that information. Safaricom M‑PESA has developed systems that enable access and correction of information submitted to it.

5.1   After your account has been opened and activated, you will be able to initiate the following Transactions:

5.1.1          load E-Money through a participating Agent outlet;

5.1.2          send E-Money to and receive E-Money from other users;

5.1.3          withdraw Cash from your Account through participating M‑PESA Agents.

5.1.4          withdraw Cash from your Account through participating ATM networks (if available);

5.1.5          buy Safaricom Ethiopia Pre-paid Airtime;

5.1.6          pay utility bills or make one-off or periodic payments or remittances to participating utility providers, financial institutions, charity organizations, etc.;

5.1.7          pay for goods purchased from participating Merchants;

5.1.8          manage your Account (e.g., check balance inquires, change PIN, etc.); and

5.1.9          any other Transactions allowed by the National Bank of Ethiopia and as may be introduced by Safaricom M‑PESA or financial institution partners from time to time.

 

5.2   Safaricom M‑PESA does not warrant that all functionalities shall be available at all times, may be in the process of getting approval from the National Bank of Ethiopia, and may withdraw any functionality or the M‑PESA Service in general as a direct result of new or amended legislation, statutory instrument, government regulations or policy or any other compelling reason.

5.3   Safaricom M‑PESA may provide additional functionality on the M‑PESA menu following integration with platforms of financial institutions and other entities providing you with specified services. Such functionality may give you limited access to the platforms of financial institutions or other entities. By using such functionality to gain access to other platforms, you hereby agree to indemnify Safaricom M‑PESA against, and hold Safaricom M‑PESA harmless from, any losses arising from your access to such external platforms.

5.4   In the event of any review of our business planning, technical, public interest, or operational reasons, changes within the industry, recommendations from regulatory bodies, or similar events, Safaricom M‑PESA may vary these Terms and Conditions or policies affecting usage and shall notify you of such changes through appropriate means. Your continued use of the M‑PESA Service shall be deemed to be your acceptance of all such varied terms and conditions or policies.

 

6.1   Access to the M‑PESA Services is PIN protected. You hereby agree to guard your PIN and not to disclose it to any third party including M‑PESA Outlet Operators, Safaricom M‑PESA staff, or any person purporting to have authority to ask for it.

6.2   You acknowledge that you shall be solely responsible for the security of your PIN and Secret Word. Safaricom M‑PESA shall not be liable for any disclosure of your PIN to any third party, and you hereby agree to hold Safaricom M‑PESA harmless from any losses that result from any PIN disclosure.

6.3   You are responsible for all instructions given to Safaricom M‑PESA in relation to your M‑PESA Account.

6.4   Safaricom M‑PESA shall deem each correct PIN entry as being performed by the legitimate owner of the M‑PESA Account and shall regard all subsequent Transactions as validly performed by you.

7.1   You may load E-Money into your M‑PESA Account only and not directly into another M‑PESA participant’s M‑PESA Account.

7.2   In order to load E-Money, you must complete the information requested, including passing the identity and security validation and verification procedures to ascertain that you are the owner of the account and then hand over Cash equivalent to the E-Money sought to be loaded to the M‑PESA Agent.

7.3   After handing over the Cash to the M‑PESA Agent, you must ensure that you receive an SMS confirmation receipt that will serve as conclusive evidence that you have successfully completed the deposit Transaction.

7.4   Safaricom M‑PESA shall, subject to Transaction limits on the M‑PESA System, process the requests you make immediately after being satisfied that you have passed all identity and security validation and verification procedures. In the event of a dispute over the deposit of the funds, it shall be sufficient for Safaricom M‑PESA to show a logical association between the Transaction and the verification of identity and/or security procedures conducted to ascertain the identity of the person entitled to the funds.

8.1   Transaction limits and charges as prescribed by Safaricom M‑PESA shall apply each time you use the “Send Money”, “Pay Bill”, “Buy Goods and Services” or other functionalities that effect the transfer of funds from your M‑PESA Account.

8.2   Your Transaction request will not be completed:

8.2.1  If you have insufficient funds in your M‑PESA Account to complete a Transaction or to cover the charges for a Transaction;

8.2.2  If you have reached the maximum Account balance limit prescribed by Safaricom M‑PESA and the law;

8.2.3  If you have reached the daily limit prescribed by Safaricom M‑PESA and the law;

8.2.4  If your Account has been temporarily suspended or permanently frozen on valid grounds;

8.2.5  If there are any other compelling reasons such as temporary system delay or outage;

8.2.6  If you cancel the Transaction request within such timeline indicated to You and use such functionality made available for that purpose.

8.3   You may send E-Money to any Participant on the M‑PESA System as well as any mobile telephone user on any network in Ethiopia by following the instructions on your phone’s M‑PESA menu.

8.4   You will be charged a fee for any transactions you undertake. The fee will be in accordance with applicable tariffs and charges, to be published on the Safaricom M‑PESA website and/or any other means of communication.

8.5   If the E-Money in your M‑PESA Account is not enough to carry out your Transaction (including covering the Transaction cost) request in full, the Transaction will not be completed, and no E-Money will be debited from your M‑PESA Account.

8.6   Upon the successful completion of your Transaction to another M‑PESA Participant, Safaricom M‑PESA will immediately cause the transfer of the E-Money to the other Participant’s M‑PESA Account. You and the recipient will both be notified by SMS as to the completed status of your transaction.

8.7   Where Safaricom M‑PESA is unable to complete a transaction, you will be notified by SMS as to the reasons for not completing the transaction.

8.8   Each Transaction you undertake will be accompanied by a unique receipt number that will appear in the confirmation SMS sent to you and will include an updated balance of your Account. This receipt number may be used to track and identify the Transactions carried out on your Account and the SMS should therefore not be deleted if reliance on it will be required.

8.9   Upon the successful transmission of E-Money from your Account to the registered recipient’s M‑PESA account, the title to the E-Money will pass to the recipient.

8.10  Where the recipient is not registered on the M‑PESA System, the title to the E-Money will remain with you. However, you will not be able to withdraw the funds or send the funds to any other recipient or otherwise reverse the Transaction unless the initial Transaction is canceled by Safaricom M‑PESA upon the failure of the recipient Participant to accept the remittance within the stipulated time frame as stated under clause 8.12.

8.11  If the recipient does not have an M‑PESA account, Safaricom M‑PESA will send the recipient an SMS containing a one-time voucher to enable them to cash the value sent to them.

8.12  If within 7 days (or such shorter or longer period as may be determined by Safaricom M‑PESA) of the Transaction being made to a non-registered recipient, the recipient has not opened or cashed their voucher, Safaricom M‑PESA will cancel the Transaction and the E-Money will be sent back to your Account. You will be notified by SMS of the cancellation and reversion of the E-Money.

8.13  A Transaction once completed is final and irrevocable. As such, Safaricom M‑PESA shall not be under any compulsion to reverse any Transaction.

8.14  Notwithstanding clause 8.13, Safaricom M‑PESA reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to cancel or reverse a Transaction if reasonable grounds such as manifest error or fraud, or duress or criminal force are shown and PROVIDED that the recipient has not redeemed the E-Money and the reversal claim is made within one (1) month of the erroneous Transaction date.

8.15  Without prejudice to clause 8.14, Safaricom M‑PESA will not be compelled to refund or compensate you as a sender if the E-Money is sent to a recipient mistakenly or in error or fraudulently or under duress and subsequently redeemed for Cash or otherwise spent by the recipient of the mistaken, erroneous, or fraudulent Transaction and you hereby agree to hold Safaricom M‑PESA harmless from any losses arising from a mistaken, erroneous or fraudulent transfer of funds or any transfer of funds from your Account effected under duress or under coercion or criminal force.

9.1   If you are registered on the M‑PESA System and you receive an SMS informing you that you have received E-Money from another M‑PESA Participant or through international money remittance, the E-Money shall be loaded to your M‑PESA Account immediately and you may redeem the E-Money at any Agent Outlet or participating ATM networks or transfer the funds to a third party by following the M‑PESA menu options on your mobile phone.

9.2   If you receive funds in error, you acknowledge that you shall be obliged to return the funds to the sender failing which Safaricom M‑PESA may reverse the payment to the sender.

9.3   You may be liable to face criminal prosecution (based on applicable laws of Ethiopia) for consuming or utilizing funds sent to you in error.

10.1  Agent  Outlets: Upon passing the vetting requirements conducted by an Agent, you may withdraw your E-Money at participating Agent Outlets by accessing your Account and following the prompts on your phone’s M‑PESA menu; however, any withdrawal Transaction must be initiated and completed within an Agent’s premises and you must ensure you receive an SMS confirmation receipt which will serve as conclusive evidence of the successful completion of the withdrawal Transaction.

10.2  ATM Outlets/ Cash Vending Machines/Electronic Vending Outlet: Subject to availability, you may withdraw your E-Money at participating ATM network Outlets, Cash Vending Machines, or Electronic Vending Outlets at any time by accessing your M‑PESA Account and following the prompts on your phone’s M‑PESA menu. You may receive a one-time voucher which should be cashed at participating ATM networks within the prescribed timeframe. Failure to do so will cause the voucher received to expire.

10.3  Safaricom M‑PESA shall, subject to Transaction limits on the M‑PESA System, process the requests you make immediately after being satisfied that you have passed all identity and security validation and verification procedures. In the event of a dispute over the redemption of the funds, it shall be sufficient for Safaricom M‑PESA to show a logical association between the Transaction and the verification of identity and/or security procedures conducted to ascertain the identity of the person entitled to the funds.

10.4  Subject to any other provisions to the contrary, you will be charged a withdrawal fee each time you withdraw funds from your M‑PESA account.

All intellectual property rights in the M‑PESA Service including the M‑PESA trademark are the property of Safaricom M‑PESA and/or its affiliates. Any unauthorized reproduction, modification, distribution, or republication of M‑PESA materials or intellectual property, without the express prior written consent of Safaricom M‑PESA and/or its affiliates is strictly prohibited.

12.1  You are responsible for the payment of all applicable fees. Safaricom M‑PESA publishes fees payable in information pamphlets, Agent Outlets, and/or on the Safaricom M‑PESA website. Safaricom M‑PESA’s Customer Care department will be on hand to assist you with the fee schedule if you are uncertain about the applicable fee.

12.2  All fees are deducted at source and are subject to change at any time at Safaricom M‑PESA’s sole discretion.

12.3  Fees payable on each Transaction will be deducted from your M‑PESA Account at the completion of each Transaction. Your new balance on completion of the Transaction shall be notified to you by SMS.

13.1  Safaricom M‑PESA reserves the right at its sole discretion, to suspend or terminate the agreement if you use the M‑PESA account for unauthorized purposes due to your abuse of any of the M‑PESA Services and/or functionalities provided to you for purposes of utilization of the M‑PESA Services.

13.2  Your Account shall be classified as a Dormant Account and suspended if;

13.2.1      you port your number to other networks, 

13.2.2      if your account did not show any transaction for 12(twelve) consecutive months. 

13.3  In the event of account suspension for reasons provided above under clause 13.2, Money held to your credit shall not be lost and shall be availed to you upon notice by you of the activation of a new mobile telephone number. 

13.4  Regardless of what is stated under clause 13.3, Safaricom M‑PESA shall have the right to claw back any promotional e-value offered to the Customer, if the Customer does not make any transaction or utilize the offered promotional e-value within the given period. 

13.5  Subject to clauses 13.3 and 13.6, you can request reactivation of the account either by making a cash-in or cash-out transaction or through a request call made with a verifiable or pre-registered mobile number within twelve months of your account declared Dormant Account. 

13.6   If you are not able to reactivate the Dormant Account within the twelve months period from suspension, your account shall be closed permanently.

13.7   You have the right to claim the amount on a closed account within ten years from the date of closure and Safaricom M‑PESA will process the request with the Trust Account bank.

13.8   You acknowledge that Safaricom M‑PESA may be compelled by law to suspend and/or freeze your Account or decline to execute your Transaction requests if there are reasonable grounds to suspect that an Account has been or is being or may be used to receive or send funds in connection with any criminal or fraudulent activity.

13.9  You may request your Account to be closed at any time by filling an account closure form at Safaricom M‑PESA retail shop, and only if your account balance reads zero (0).

13.10  Safaricom M‑PESA may, at its discretion, close your Account at any time for any reason upon giving one (1) weeks’ notice to you and making reasonable attempts to reach you. In such circumstances, you shall be entitled to the balance of any funds remaining in your M‑PESA Account.

13.11  Safaricom M‑PESA may send notices to you electronically by SMS to your mobile telephone number with which you registered on the M‑PESA System.

14.1  Safaricom M‑PESA will report any suspicious account activity to its Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO) or any other relevant officer within Safaricom M‑PESA. The MLRO may escalate the suspicious activity to the relevant law enforcement authority.

14.2  Safaricom M‑PESA shall use all reasonable efforts to ensure that all Transaction requests are processed in a timely manner. However, Safaricom M‑PESA makes no representations or warranties as to continuous, uninterrupted or secure access to the M‑PESA Service, which may be affected by factors outside Safaricom M‑PESA’s control or may be subject to periodic testing, repair, maintenance or upgrades.

14.3  Safaricom M‑PESA will not be responsible for any claim unless caused by willful default attributable to Safaricom M‑PESA. Safaricom M‑PESA specifically disclaims all liability for any damages or losses, including, without limitation, direct, indirect, consequential, special, incidental or punitive damages deemed or alleged to have resulted from or caused by but not limited to:

14.3.1  Transactions made to unintended recipients or payments made in incorrect amounts due to the input of incorrect information by you;

14.3.2   Transactions made from your account by an unauthorized third party who passes all identity and verification checks;

14.3.3   any fraud, deception or misrepresentations by any M‑PESA Participant, whether or not the Participant has been verified,

14.3.4   any damages resulting from a recipient’s decision not to accept or record a Transaction made by you through the M‑PESA System,

14.3.5   failure of any other telecommunications or data transmission system other than the M‑PESA System;

14.3.6   any result of any acts of government or authority, any act of God or force majeure.

14.4  The limit of Safaricom M‑PESA’s liability shall not exceed the maximum Account balance limit for the time being in force for any single event or series of events.

14.5  You agree to indemnify and hold Safaricom M‑PESA harmless against any claim brought against Safaricom M‑PESA by a third party resulting from your breach of these Terms and Conditions.

15.1  You may contact Safaricom M‑PESA Customer Care, with our only designated line 733, for any disputes or claims or to report Account discrepancies. Safaricom M‑PESA Customer Care shall handle the report in accordance with Safaricom M‑PESA’s standard complaint-handling procedures.

15.2  In certain circumstances Safaricom M‑PESA in conjunction with participating Merchants may provide for dispute resolution mechanisms. You agree to abide by such mechanisms as may be advised by Safaricom M‑PESA or the participating Merchants/businesses from time to time.

15.3  Any dispute arising out of or in connection with this Agreement that is not resolved by Safaricom M‑PESA Customer Care may be brought to the attention of the Safaricom M‑PESA manager responsible for the operations of the M‑PESA Services for resolution. You are also at liberty to refer any dispute that is not resolved to your satisfaction to the National Bank of Ethiopia.

15.4  Any dispute arising out of or in connection with this Agreement that is not resolved by Customer Care Centre representatives or through a complaint to the National Bank of Ethiopia shall be referred to Federal Courts in Addis Ababa Ethiopia.

15.5  To the extent permissible by law, the determination of the court shall be final, conclusive and binding upon the parties hereto.

 

16.1  You hereby expressly consent and authorize Safaricom M‑PESA to disclose any Transaction data or information pertaining to your M‑PESA Account to any law enforcement, investigative or regulatory authority including without limitation the Ethiopian Federal or Regional Police, National Bank of Ethiopia, The Federal Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission, Ethiopian Revenue Authority or any competent Anti-Money Laundering authority for the purposes of any inquiry or investigation or to any User, or to any third party to which you have separately, either in writing or electronically through the M‑PESA System or otherwise, authorized Safaricom M‑PESA to disclose Transaction data or information pertaining to you or your usage of Safaricom M‑PESA Products and Services, including your M‑PESA Account PROVIDED that any consent is given to Safaricom M‑PESA to disclose information to Users for the purposes of clause 4.4.3 or to any third party (not being a law enforcement, investigative or regulatory authority) pursuant to this clause may be withdrawn at any time in writing (including electronically) PROVIDED further that where you withdraw consent to Safaricom M‑PESA to disclose information to other Users for the purposes of clause 4.4.3, Safaricom M‑PESA may impose a complementary condition to revoke (partially or otherwise) any access to any Personal Information of other Users that would have been made available to you as a User pursuant to clause 4.4.3.

16.2  You acknowledge that where your Account is determined by a competent law enforcement authority as containing proceeds of any criminal or money laundering activities, Safaricom M‑PESA may be required by law to surrender funds in your Account to any statutory fund created for the purpose of recovering the proceeds of crime.

16.3  You acknowledge that Safaricom M‑PESA may retain your Transaction data for a period of up to Ten (10) years or as may be required by any law or regulation.

 

17.  Force Majeure

Neither Party shall be liable to the other Party for any delay or failure to perform its obligations under these Terms and Conditions as a result of revolution or other civil disorders; belligerent aggression by an enemy; strikes; lack of available resources from persons other than parties to this Agreement; labor disputes; electrical equipment or system availability delay or failure; fires; floods; acts of God; government or regulatory intervention; or, without limiting the foregoing, any other causes not within its control, and which by the exercise of reasonable diligence it is unable to prevent, whether of the class of causes hereinbefore enumerated or not. If such delay or failure continues for at least thirty (30) days, then either Party may terminate their engagement by notice in writing to the other. Upon such termination all Cash held in trust for you in the M‑PESA System shall be made good to you.

18.  General

18.1  Using your personal M‑PESA Account to carry out M‑PESA Transactions on behalf of another person is prohibited and may expose you to criminal liability under the applicable laws. You may not use or permit the use of your M‑PESA Account to carry out any Transactions on behalf of any other person.

18.2  You acknowledge that any provision of these Terms and Conditions are subject to amendment, modification or variation from time to time if required by, or found to be in conflict with, applicable law or regulation or otherwise without affecting the validity or enforceability of the remaining provisions.

18.3   These Terms and Conditions constitute the entire agreement between the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede and replace any and all prior terms. In the event of inconsistency between these Terms and Conditions and previous editions, this version will prevail.

18.4  These Terms and Conditions may be amended by Safaricom M‑PESA from time to time as Safaricom M‑PESA introduces new M‑PESA functionalities and as Safaricom M‑PESA deems it desirable to change the Terms and Conditions. Such amended Terms and Conditions may be published in posters or pamphlets available at Agent Outlets, and/or on the Safaricom M‑PESA website from time to time and shall take effect immediately.

18.5  Safaricom M‑PESA’s failure to exercise or enforce any right under these Terms and Conditions shall not be deemed to be a waiver of any such right nor shall it prevent Safaricom M‑PESA from exercising or enforcing the rights in question at any time.\

18.6  You may not transfer any rights or obligations you may have under this Agreement without Safaricom M‑PESA’s prior written consent.

18.7  You must not use the M‑PESA Service for the receipt of or payment for goods or services that offend or circumvent any law including without limitation, narcotic drugs, firearms, obscene or pornographic material or services, corruption or bribery, infringement of third party intellectual rights, running illegal or unauthorized lotteries, undertake illegal gaming or gambling, as well as material that is morally repugnant; incites violence or desires to cause harm; induces an unacceptable sense of fear or anxiety; encourages or incites any person to engage in dangerous practices or to use harmful substances; induces or promotes tribal, religious or racial disharmony; causes grave or widespread offence; or debases, degrades or demeans others.

18.8  Where Safaricom M‑PESA receives the notification of the death or mental incapacity of an M‑PESA user, Safaricom M‑PESA shall suspend all Account activity until satisfied that the relevant provisions of the Civil Code or any succession-related laws (as the case may be) have been followed.

18.9  A person claiming access to funds by virtue of being a successor (in the event of death) or Guardian (in the event of permanent incapacity or a minor) shall, upon request by Safaricom M‑PESA, produce a court order authorizing the person to inherit or manage the estate or such other document as may be prescribed.

18.10 If a court appoints a successor or Guardian, as the case may be, Safaricom M‑PESA shall rely on such appointment of successor or Guardian in its decision to transmit funds held to the credit of your account to the successor or guardian upon the event of your death or permanent incapacity (as the case may be).

19.  Collection of information

19.1  We are required by law to collect certain Personal Information and are legally obligated to deny you the service if such information is not availed.

19.2  Apart from the legal obligation mentioned above, we also need to collect your Personal Information for quality service delivery. Please note that although this is voluntary, without such information we may not be able to provide quality service.

20.  M‑PESA Safaricom APP

20.1  Safaricom M‑PESA may require you to input further information before you can access or launch the M‑PESA App to confirm (authenticate) that you are the registered user of the M‑PESA account. Other means of authentication may include one-time password (OTP), start keys, biometrics which may include iris detection, security questions or secret codes. Any additional authentication method may be applied in addition to your unique M‑PESA identifier (PIN).

20.2  In case you make a payment, contractual commitment, request or demand to a Merchant or third-party developer on the M‑PESA Safaricom APP, Safaricom M‑PESA will not be liable for any claim, costs (including legal costs), expenses or damage occasioned as a result of such action on your part. You shall engage with any or all Merchants or third parties on the M‑PESA App at your own commercial risk.  

20.3  Safaricom M‑PESA reserves the right to modify, vary, amend or withdraw the M‑PESA Saafricom App, its features and these Terms and Conditions at any time. Such changes will be communicated through the media, the Safaricom M‑PESA website or any other appropriate avenue as Safaricom may determine. 

20.4  Should you use or abuse the M‑PESA Safaricom APP contrary to our terms and conditions or applicable legislation, Safaricom may prevent your continued usage of the M‑PESA Safaricom APP.

1.  APPLICABILITY
The IMT service is a service offered by Safaricom M‑PESA Mobile Financial Services PLC (Safaricom M‑PESA) in partnership with third party International Money Transfer Services Operators (IMT Operator), that provides an inward international remittance service through an integration with Safaricom M‑PESA mobile money payment system.

 2. DEFINITIONS AND INTERPRETATION
2.1 “Account” means your M‑PESA Account or Recipient M‑PESA Accounts, being the record maintained by Safaricom M‑PESA;

2.2 “Conditions of Use” means these terms and conditions as may be varied by Safaricom M‑PESA from time to time;

2.3 “Completed Transaction” means when E-Money is debited from the Sender’s wallets and successfully credited into the Recipient’s M‑PESA e-money account. The word “Sender” shall mean requesting customer and the word “Recipient” shall mean the customer with e-money wallet;

2.4 “Escrow” means an agreement between two people or organizations in which money is kept by a Safaricom M‑PESA until a particular condition is met, is when going to be delivered to recipient;

2.5 “M‑PESA System” or “M‑PESA” means the proprietary mobile money transfer service, which is marketed, managed, and operated exclusively by Safaricom M‑PESA in Ethiopia;

2.6 “M‑PESA Services” means the services provided by Safaricom M‑PESA for the issue and redemption of E-Money and the transfer of E-Money between Customers on the basis of Transfer Instructions including the recording of all Transactions, verifying and confirming all Transactions concluded and updating Customer Account records;

2.7 “IMT” means International Money Transfer;

2.8 “Transaction” means the debit or credit of E-Money between Customers and/or IMT Operators integrated with M-Pesa System;

2.9 "You” (or “you”) and “Your” (or “your”) and “you” or “your” means the customer. 

3. RULES OF PARTICIPATION
3.1 The inward IMT service is available to all Safaricom M‑PESA Customers who are registered for M‑PESA Service and upon acceptance of these Terms and Conditions.

3.2 The Sender's agreement with the third-party IMT Operator governs Receiver's rights, liabilities, and fees (including fees to transfer cash out of an Account), and the IMT Operator may impose its own restrictions regarding funds availability, limits that may be transferred to or held in an Account, hours of operations, holidays, or other limitations.

3.3 All Transactions or funds received on the Receiver’s M‑PESA account shall be denominated in Ethiopian Birr (ETB).

3.4 For effective use of the IMT Services, you are aware, acknowledge, and authorize Safaricom M‑PESA to share your personal information for the purpose of verification of requests. Such personal information may include but not limited to names, address, Location, channel/corridor, phone number, recipient number, recipient address, and other necessary details that might ensure security is maintained and allow processing of the request.

3.5 You are responsible for ensuring that your registration details are maintained up to date.

3.6 Your remittance amount will be received as E-Money on your M‑PESA Account, and you may conduct further M‑PESA transactions or withdraw the remittance amount at Safaricom M‑PESA authorized Agent Outlets.

3.7 As per the rules of the National Bank of Ethiopia, Safaricom M‑PESA reserves the right to prescribe daily transaction limits on the fund received through IMT Service.

 
3.8 If you wrongly receive funds, you acknowledge that you shall be obliged to return the funds to the Sender failing which Safaricom M‑PESA may reverse the payment to the Sender or the rightful Receiver.
 
4. FEES/CHARGES
 4.1 All Service charges are deducted at source and are subject to change at any time at Safaricom M‑PESA’s sole discretion.

4.2 Service charges will be set uniquely per each corridor/destination; and can be tiered, flat rate, percentage-based (spread), combination, or any format as verified and reviewed from time to time.

4.3 In addition to transaction fees, a currency exchange rate will be applicable on currencies received from abroad. Safaricom M‑PESA shall set the exchange rate as per the existing National Bank of Ethiopia daily exchange rate within a defined interval.

4.4 You shall be responsible to accommodate other charges such as Tax, levies, and any governmental charges as introduced by any relevant organ or as per law of origin countries as varies from time to time; hence, therefore charges are non-refunded once you utilize the service.

5. WARRANTIES, AND LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
5.1 The limit of Safaricom M‑PESA’s liability shall not exceed the maximum Account balance limit for the time being in force for any single event or series of events.

5.2 Safaricom M‑PESA will not be responsible for any claim unless caused by willful default attributable to Safaricom M‑PESA. Safaricom M‑PESA specifically disclaims all liability for any damages or losses, including, without limitation, direct, indirect, consequential, special, incidental or punitive damages deemed or alleged to have resulted from or caused by but not limited to: 

a) Your Account is closed or withdrawals restricted.

b) There are transaction limitations imposed.

c) Transactions made to unintended recipients or payments made in incorrect amounts due to the input of incorrect information by the Sender.

d) Transactions made to unintended Recipients or third party who passes all identity and verification checks.

e) Any damages resulting from a Recipient’s decision not to accept or record a Transaction through the M‑PESA system.

f) Circumstances beyond Safaricom M‑PESA's control (such as flood, fire, power outages, mechanical or system failures).

g) The third-party IMT Operator does not honor a transaction, the transaction is not processed, or the transaction is returned the IMT Operator.

h) Instructions are lost or delayed in transmission to or from Safaricom M‑PESA or third party IMT Operator.

i) Safaricom M‑PESA fails to process your transaction because of a reasonable security concern, or the Service option has been discontinued or suspended, or Safaricom M‑PESA otherwise advises you that your request will not be processed.

6. GENERAL 
6.1 Safaricom M‑PESA will report any suspicious account activity to its Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO). The MLRO may escalate the suspicious activity to the relevant law enforcement authority.

6.2 Safaricom M‑PESA has the right to reject or accept service requests with or without informing you in advance; hence, by initiating the request with the Safaricom M‑PESA platform, either intentionally or with negligence, you are legally bound and agreed to these Conditions of Use, including M-Pesa Consumer Terms and Conditions as published or amended from time to time.

6.3 IMT services are not an escrow service kind of, and Sender and Receiver agree not to use Services for escrow purposes.

6.4 You shall not vary any of these Conditions of Use, and you shall not transfer these terms to any other person or business, though we may do so when deemed fit in our discretion.

6.5 These Conditions of Use are governed and interpreted in accordance with the laws of Ethiopia.

6.6 Any disputes with respect to what constitutes Complete Transactions will not be entertained.

6.7 These Conditions of Use shall be read in conjunction with the existing Safaricom M‑PESA’s Consumer Terms and Conditions.

6.8 All parties shall strictly comply with Anti-Corruption, Anti Money Laundering, and Anti-Terrorism Laws and Regulations (CMT). No party shall allow the movement of money through the M‑PESA System, which is, forms part of the proceeds of any crime or is intended to facilitate, aid or finance the commission of any crime, which comes to its attention. Safaricom M‑PESA will monitor and report to the relevant authorities and act accordingly as provided by law and its internal related policies against any suspicious activity in relation to payments made to or from the M‑PESA Services.