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Pay for Prime Video without the card dollar tax or surcharges from Argentina
Prime Video has a published price in dollars, but what ends up appearing on your Argentine card statement can be quite a bit higher, due to the "dólar tarjeta" and the taxes that are added along the way.
Here we tell you why this happens and how a virtual card can narrow that difference.
Download the belo app and check how to request your LUX card according to your account and current conditions.
The surcharge that does not appear in the price
A Prime Video subscription has a published price of 6.99 USD per month. With an Argentine bank credit card, that amount can end up representing the equivalent of more than 11 USD when the statement arrives.
The difference between both numbers is explained in three words that every Argentine subscriber knows by heart: "dólar tarjeta" and taxes.
When you pay for an international subscription with a credit card issued in Argentina, the conversion does not happen at the time of consumption. It is applied at the closing of the statement, with the official exchange rate of that moment.
If the dollar rose between consumption and closing, you pay more without having chosen to.
On that amount converted to pesos, AFIP retains two additional charges through the issuer: a 30% tax on account of Personal Property Tax and a 30% advance on account of Income Tax.
Added together, those withholdings can represent a considerable surcharge on the official exchange rate. These percentages can change according to current regulations, so it is advisable to verify them before paying.
What makes up the taxes on the "dólar tarjeta"
The official exchange rate is applied at the closing of the statement, not at the time of consumption, exposing the subscriber to dollar variations during that period.
AFIP retains an additional 30% on the amount in pesos on account of Personal Property Tax.
Another 30% is added on account of Income Tax, also withheld by the card issuer.
The total 60% surcharge on the official exchange rate does not appear in the price published by the platform.
With a traditional bank card, the final amount in pesos of those 6.99 USD per month for Prime Video can end up being quite a bit higher, depending on the exchange rate of the moment and current taxes.
Multiplied by twelve months, the annual extra cost can represent a considerable amount just for a streaming subscription.
How much the equation changes with a virtual card
The mechanism that inflates the cost depends on the consumption being settled in pesos at the closing of the statement, which is where the official exchange rate is applied and the taxes are added.
If you pay directly in dollars, with balance already available, that circuit is not activated.
A virtual dollar card eliminates the deferred exchange rate and the taxes of the "dólar tarjeta". The amount is defined at the exact moment of payment and is deducted from the balance at that instant, with no statement closing.
At belo we designed the virtual VISA LUX card for exactly that type of consumption: international subscriptions, online purchases in foreign currency, and payments outside of Argentina.
Annual cost comparison for Prime Video
Payment method · How the cost is calculated · Observation
Argentine bank credit card · Price in dollars at the official exchange rate, plus current taxes · The final amount in pesos varies according to the exchange rate and regulations of the moment
Virtual card with competitive exchange rate · Price in dollars at the exchange rate of the moment of payment · No taxes or deferred exchange rate
The savings can be greater when you add up other subscriptions in dollars. Netflix, Spotify, Disney+, ChatGPT, iCloud, YouTube Premium, and any service that bills in foreign currency go through the same "dólar tarjeta" mechanism if you pay for them with an Argentine bank card.
Each of those subscriptions has the same extra cost structure, and all of them can be resolved with the same virtual card.
Setup and key points
Requesting the virtual VISA LUX card is done from the belo app. Once the registration and identity validation are completed, the option appears in the cards section.
Being one hundred percent virtual, the details are immediately available in the app, ready to be loaded into any platform.
Steps to link the card to your subscriptions
Complete the registration in the belo app and validate your identity to access the cards section.
Get the details of the virtual VISA LUX card (number, expiration date, and security code) from the app, available immediately.
On Prime Video, log into your Amazon account, navigate to the payment methods section, and enter the card details just as you would with any other.
Wait for the minimum authorization that Amazon uses to validate the payment method. From then on, each monthly renewal is automatically charged against your balance.
Repeat the same process for Netflix, Spotify, Disney+, or any platform that accepts Visa.
A common point of doubt is whether you need to have dollars loaded beforehand.
You can operate with a peso balance, which is converted to the payment currency at the moment it is made, eliminating the need to buy dollars separately or have a bank account in foreign currency.
Paying for subscriptions with a virtual card is completely valid from a legal standpoint.
The 30% + 30% taxes are withholdings that banks apply to transactions in foreign currency settled at the closing of the credit card statement.
When the payment is made with your own balance through a prepaid or virtual card that operates under a different settlement logic, those withholdings do not apply in the same way.
You are not evading any taxes; you are choosing a payment method with a different treatment.
Before starting, it is advisable to check the available balance and your account limits, because subscriptions renew automatically, and if there are insufficient funds at the time of debit, the service may be interrupted.
Maintaining a balance that covers at least one month of all associated subscriptions avoids interruptions.
From the app, you can track every movement and be clear about how much you are spending on each service, something that usually gets mixed up with the rest of the month's expenses on a bank credit card statement.
Frequently asked questions about paying for Prime Video without "dólar tarjeta" or taxes from Argentina
Can the 30% + 30% taxes be recovered later?
Yes, both charges are advances on account of taxes, so they can be computed when filing the Personal Property Tax or Income Tax returns. However, this refund is not immediate and requires completing the process with AFIP.
What happens if I do not have enough balance when the subscription renews?
If the available balance is not enough to cover the automatic debit, the platform may suspend the service until the payment is settled. Maintaining a balance that covers at least one billing cycle of all associated subscriptions avoids interruptions.
Does the virtual VISA LUX card from belo work for platforms other than Prime Video?
It works with any service that accepts Visa as a payment method, which includes Netflix, Spotify, Disney+, YouTube Premium, iCloud, ChatGPT, and other services that bill in foreign currency.
Do I need a dollar bank account to use the virtual card?
No. You can operate with a peso balance from the belo app, which is converted to the payment currency at the moment the transaction takes place, without the need to manage a separate foreign currency account.
Is the exchange rate used by belo official or free market?
belo applies a competitive exchange rate at the exact moment of payment, different from the official exchange rate with which traditional banks settle at the closing of the statement. That difference is what generates the savings compared to a conventional bank card.
