The national Government has announced Decree 679/2022, which regulates the new Regime for the Promotion of Investments for Exports of Knowledge Economy Activities.
This decree, published this Tuesday (11.10.2022/XNUMX/XNUMX) in the Official Gazette, establishes that such a regime "will cover the investments in infrastructure, capital goods and working capital -including the concepts corresponding to the salaries of dependent personnel, duly registered in accordance with Argentine labor regulations, as well as the professional fees linked to them-, intended for the launch of new projects or the expansion of existing ones, to the extent that they involve the development of knowledge economy activities" and "contribute to increasing exports inherent to the sector."
It also indicates that the new promotion regime It will operate under the jurisdiction of the Secretariat of Knowledge Economy of the Ministry of Economy of the Nation. At the same time, it indicates that it will be available to "legal entities established in the country or abroad, which present to the application authority one or several investment projects aimed at increasing the export of the aforementioned activities, provided that these involve, jointly or individually, the realization of a Direct investment that cannot be less than three million dollars".
Regarding benefit which the affected subjects will be able to access consists of “the exception to the requirement of Settlement in the Free Exchange Market (MLC) of up to an amount equivalent to 20% of the currencies that could be entered as foreign direct investment, an amount that, at the discretion of the beneficiary, may be applied to the payment of capital and interest on commercial or financial liabilities abroad and/or profits and dividends that correspond to closed and audited balance sheets and/or to the repatriation of foreign currency from non-residents, as well as to the investments described above.”
Beneficiaries of this regime are obliged to comply with the investment plans, in the terms and timeframes contemplated in the approved project(s), which may not exceed 24 months from the completion of the first investment, "the implementing authority being empowered to extend said period for up to another 24 months, provided that reasonable grounds are provided."
In case of non-compliance, the beneficiary must settle in the Free Exchange Market "an amount of foreign currency equivalent to those sums exempted from being entered into it." Companies can join the new regime until June 30, 2023
In addition, the subjects registered in the National Registry of Beneficiaries of the Knowledge Economy Promotion Regime "They will be able to access an amount of freely available dollars of 30% of the foreign currency received from incremental net exports mades, verified quarterly, to be applied to the payment of remuneration of personnel in an employment relationship, duly registered and assigned to these activities.”
Meanwhile, the beneficiaries They will be able to convert up to 70% of employer contributions into a tax credit bond which have actually been paid to the Social Security systems and subsystems, in respect of the duly registered employees affected by the defined activity or activities.
“These vouchers shall be non-transferable, except for those whose beneficiaries prove exports representing at least 70% of the annual turnover of the promoted activity or activities, which may be transferred, once only, for an amount equivalent to the percentage of exports for each period, maintaining the same conditions of their granting, and for the purpose determined by the implementing authority,” the National Government indicated in the decree published in the Official Gazette.
The bonds may be used for a period of two years from their issue to settle national taxes, in particular value-added tax and other national taxes and their advances, if applicable, excluding income tax. This period may be extended for another year for justified reasons.
Finally, the Government established that the regulations takes effect immediately.
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