Argentina Import Restrictions
In October 2022, the Argentine Revenue Service Agency (AFIP) issued the General Resolution No. 5271/2022 creating the Argentine System of Imports (SIRA) and the Argentine System of Imports and Foreign Payments of Services (SIRASE). AFIP cited the need for an import licensing and approval system to provide greater predictability and traceability of import operations and payments for services coming from outside of the country. A key driver behind the system is an attempt to preserve the dwindling amount of hard currency reserves within the Central Bank.
All products and services are under the scope of the SIRA regime, requiring Argentine importers to submit a SIRA request for all imports before shipping products or contracting services from abroad. The SIRA approval process is a bureaucratic and opaque system.
On February 15, 2023, the Argentine Secretariat of Trade published its Guidelines for SIRAs (in Spanish) in an attempt to explain the process, the status of an import declaration, and the terms to access foreign exchange to pay for imports. Many companies have reported differences between what is written and how the process is applied in practice.
Applying for a SIRA can take between 30 to 90 days for an approval decision, and if approved, the validity of the SIRA lasts for 90 days. Once the importer has received an approved SIRA, they must wait until after the goods have cleared customs before they can access hard currency. For most products, the importer must wait up to 180 days, and for goods determined to be luxury items, the importer must wait 365 days before gaining access to hard currency. A recent update to these regulations is that if the importer is a micro or small Argentine company, they will be able to access funds in 60 to 90 days. Moreover, micro and small Argentine companies also have the ability to request up to $50,000 per year from the Central Bank that can be used for partial advance payments for imports.
This import regime structure prohibits an Argentine importer from paying cash in advance for its imports, with the only exception being if the company has their own hard currency in a bank account overseas and does not need to go through the Central Bank. Therefore, apart from U.S. suppliers providing their local partner with an open account, Letters of Credit have been used to offer some safeguards.
Import approval delays and barriers to foreign exchange availability have strained local firms’ relationships with foreign suppliers in recent months. U.S. companies should consider the track record and level of trust developed with local partners before offering an open account. These challenges are likely to continue throughout 2023.
Exemptions to these regulations include donations, samples, diplomatic shipments, and courier/postal deliveries.
To flag claims or inquiries regarding SIRAs, one may contact the Argentine Secretariat of Trade for Foreign Trade Operators (IMEX): contactoce@produccion.gob.ar and subsecomex@produccion.gob.ar
Please note that guidelines, regulations, or practices may change. The U.S. Commercial Service in Argentina is available to answer any question or discuss your specific case. Please refer to our website to see the relevant team member that covers your industry: https://www.trade.gov/argentina-contact-us