The introduction of electronic payments and cash-free payments for merchandise and services in Turkmenistan is exacerbated by constant system failures, unstable Internet connection and unqualified staff.
Correspondents of “Chronicles of Turkmenistan” report that many Dashoguz retail outlets are equipped with PDQ machines but due to system disruptions payment transactions cannot always be completed and for this reason shop assistants ask to pay for the purchase in cash.
Later a customer might receive a bank notification that the payment was made nevertheless. After lengthy discussions with banks and store owners money is returned to the account but it takes 5 to 7 working days.
A similar situation occurs during cash withdrawals from ATMs: a cash machine shows an error but later turns out that the money was deducted from the account and was allegedly handed out to the bank customer. People are urged to contact the banks to prove that they did not withdraw cash.
Let us recall that since August 2017 Turkmenistan’s tax authorities have obliged owners of privately-owned retail outlets, cafes and other shops to install credit card terminals on a mandatory basis.