What the MEF rate is
The Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) of Cambodia publishes a daily reference exchange rate for the Cambodian Riel against major foreign currencies. This rate is the official basis used by government agencies, the General Department of Taxation, and many regulated industries when translating foreign-currency amounts into KHR.
Each working day, MEF posts a single bid, ask, and average value per currency. On weekends and public holidays the previously posted rate continues to apply until a new one is issued.
Why accounting teams should use it
Cambodian tax law requires foreign-currency transactions to be translated into KHR at a recognised exchange rate. Using the MEF rate gives you a defensible position in any tax audit because it is the same source the tax authority uses.
Using a single source also makes month-end close more consistent: invoices, supplier bills, and bank movements are all translated against the same benchmark, removing FX noise from your books.
Practical workflow
Most teams take the rate on the invoice date for revenue and expense items, and the rate on the reporting date for balance-sheet items denominated in foreign currency. Keep a copy of the rate you used — auditors increasingly ask for the screenshot or API response that supports each translation.
Because our dashboard pulls the MEF feed directly, you can pick any historical date and reproduce the exact rate that applied on that day.
How to Verify the MEF Rate for Your Filing
Whether you are posting a USD invoice, computing month-end FX revaluation, or preparing a customs declaration, the rule is the same: anchor your figure to the official MEF daily bulletin for the relevant valuation date. Use today's official MEF rate from the Cambodia Exchange dashboard for live work, or pick any past date to retrieve the exact rate that applied on that day. Archive the rate evidence (a screenshot or API response) alongside the supporting document — GDT auditors increasingly request the source for every FX translation.
For the full data-handling disclosure — including caching, timezone normalization to Indochina Time, and how weekend/holiday fallbacks work — see our data methodology. For binding tax or customs positions, cross-check against the MEF bulletin directly and consult a licensed Cambodian tax advisor.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What exactly is the MEF daily exchange rate?
- It is the official daily reference rate for the Cambodian Riel against major foreign currencies, published every Cambodian working day by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. Government agencies and the General Department of Taxation use this same rate for FX translation.
- Which rate should I use for a USD invoice — bid, ask, or average?
- Most Cambodian finance teams use the MEF average for bookkeeping translation because it is neutral and easy to defend in an audit. Bid and ask are more relevant if you are quoting an actual FX transaction. Confirm your internal policy with your auditor.
- What rate applies on a weekend or public holiday?
- MEF does not publish a new rate on non-working days. The most recently published rate continues to apply until the next working day's bulletin is released.
Cambodia Exchange sends the official daily KHR rate and monthly GDT reminders to your phone — free, no registration.
Join the channel →Founder & Editor · Cambodia Exchange · Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Tha Bunthai is the founder of Cambodia Exchange, built to give Cambodia's finance and accounting teams a fast, reliable reference for official MEF daily exchange rates. With a background in IT systems and digital integration, he writes about FX compliance, accounting standards, and tax rules for teams operating in Cambodia.
អត្ថបទនេះមានប្រយោជន៍មែនទេ? ចែករំលែកជាមួយក្រុមរបស់អ្នក ឬ ផ្ញើមតិមកយើង។