Agustín Sosa, CEO of Tributo Simple, shared with us some important points to keep in mind if you work from Argentina for abroad and want to get paid in dollars*

Agustin Sosa is a Certified Public Accountant and CEO of Tributo Simple, an app that helps people and companies in Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru keep their administration and accounting up to date.

He joined the first of our belosessions and gave us some good information. The conversation focused on the challenges Argentine users face, given that it is the country with the most regulations in tax matters. Here are some of the key concepts from the talk:

Simplified tax regime

This is a simplified tax payment regime through which, via a fixed fee, you pay, on the one hand, a tax component, on the other hand, retirement contributions, and finally contributions to health insurance, to have health coverage.

There are different modalities in which these activities are carried out:

• When your client is in Argentina: a Type C invoice must be issued.

• When your client is abroad: a Type E invoice must be issued.

Gross income tax

The gross income tax is a percentage of the sales you make, based on your turnover.

How is it calculated? It is a rate that varies depending on your activity and the province in which you are registered. When a service export is carried out, people do not have to pay it; that is, they can forget about paying what are provincial taxes.

Export duties

Something not minor is that, in addition to paying national taxes, there are sometimes export duties, which consist of a fee that must be paid for carrying out this type of activity.

Currently, when one operates in Argentina and especially if one is a small registered taxpayer, for example under the simplified regime, one can request the MiPyME Certificate, which establishes that one is exempt from paying this type of duty.

It is very important to always stay informed about your tax situation and to seek advice from specialists in the field in order to know whether or not you are required to pay these taxes.

Invoices, limits, and currency conversion

In cases of service exports, Type E invoices must be issued. The process is very similar to how a Type C invoice is made, with only some differences between one and the other. Instead of having to identify the client, what is done is assigning a tax ID by country, and in this way the country to which this service is being exported is declared.

It must also be stated in which currency this document is issued and the payment date must be reported. BCRA Communication “A” 6770/2019 states that all fees received under this modality must be converted to pesos at the official exchange rate.

Currently, BCRA Communication “A” 7518/2022 allows all freelancers or people exporting services from abroad to bring up to USD 12,000 per year into Argentina without converting it to pesos. This new regulation covers all people included within what is known as the knowledge economy, whether they provide IT services, research and development, advertising, or others.

What happens when this annual amount of USD 12,000 is exceeded? Central Bank regulations establish that once it is exceeded, the excess must be converted to pesos at the official exchange rate, which is something many people do not want.

What are the best conditions for exporting services?

Currently, the so-called “monotech” regime is being discussed in Congress, a specific simplified tax regime for the technology sector that includes taxes and retirement contributions.

With the approval of “monotech,” individuals who carry out activities related to the knowledge economy (software, IT, audiovisual production, and others) could bring money from abroad into Argentina for an amount of up to USD 30,000 per year without converting it to pesos.

What happens when operating with cryptocurrencies?

Two types of taxes must be paid:

• Schedular Tax: an analysis is made of the returns obtained between the purchase and the sale of an asset, and a net gain is obtained. A rate will be applied to that. The amounts range from 5% to 15% of the result obtained.

• Gross Income Tax, as a percentage of net profit. It ranges from 3% to 8% depending on the activity and the jurisdiction.

When operating with cryptocurrencies, you do not only have to pay taxes if you obtain returns. If you are “holding” crypto assets, they will form part of your personal assets and will be part of the assets to be declared under the Personal Assets Tax, if you have assets exceeding AR$ 11,282,000.

Justifying income when using crypto platforms

The different platforms, such as virtual wallets, digital banks, and traditional banks, may request information related to the backing or origin of the funds operated through them.

Various regulations from state entities such as UIF, BCRA, and AFIP make your correct tax registration necessary, whether under the Monotributo or another regime, so that you can generate receipts that reflect the provision of your services.

It is also important that you know that, to justify your activity on the platform, in certain cases other types of documents are valid, such as public deeds of inheritance or donation, salary receipts, accounting certifications, among others.

It is essential and indispensable that you properly register your activity and enroll for taxes if you will be commercializing your work. Service export operations must be backed by documentation, and failure to comply with these regulations may imply fines or blocks on your operations. The clients you work for may also require invoices or tax receipts, as well as legal protection in the event of disputes.

At the same time, proper tax registration guarantees access to health coverage, retirement, and greater opportunities in the credit market.

How do you invoice income received through Payoneer and belo?

You must issue the invoice when you receive the first transfer of money. Once the income has been declared on the first platform where it was received, you should not do it again.

If the services are provided through a corporation or another legal structure (which may be based in Argentina or abroad), invoicing will have its particularities and you should consult professionals.

Why might you need an accountant?

• Help with registering to operate commercially

• Oversight of the operation

• Tax strategies to reduce the burden

(*) The information provided in this article is for informational purposes only and should not be interpreted as legal advice, tax advice, or professional tax guidance or opinion. We encourage all belo users to seek appropriate advice in order to comply with the regulations and rules that apply to them.

Tributo Simple is a tool available on PlayStore and AppStore that helps people keep their administration and accounting up to date. With the code BELOFF, your first month of subscription is completely free.

“belo” is a mobile application owned by Gralcey S.A., a company incorporated under the laws of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, which allows its users to buy, sell, and exchange cryptocurrencies. Always check our terms and conditions.