Government to Send Bill to Congress to Amend Capital Laundering Law

Economy Minister Luis Caputo, together with the Legal and Technical Secretary of the Presidency, María Ibarzabal Murphy, announced this Wednesday in a press conference a series of modifications to the tax innocence bill that will be sent to Congress. The changes aim to broaden the scope of the regime and strengthen the legal certainty of taxpayers who adhere to it.

What changes in the bill

According to Caputo, the spirit of the law does not change: the objective remains that undeclared savings can be formalized in the banking system without penalties. However, four key modifications were introduced, detailed by tax experts Sonia Becherman, Liban Kusa, and Ricardo Paolina, who advised on the drafting.

The first change eliminates the income and asset requirements to access the simplified regime. Currently, the law requires the taxpayer to simultaneously meet three conditions: annual income not exceeding one billion pesos, total assets not exceeding ten billion pesos, and not being considered a «Large Taxpayer» by ARCA. The new bill eliminates these restrictions: all resident individuals and undivided estates in the country may adhere, regardless of assets or income. The only caveat is that «Large Taxpayers» may use the simplified modality but will not enjoy the presumptions or liberating effects.

The second change refers to when the tax authority can break the presumption of accuracy of the sworn declaration. Currently, if ARCA’s challenge results in an increase of 15% or more over what was declared, the presumption automatically falls. The bill introduces a minimum threshold: even if the 15% is exceeded, the presumption is not broken if the nominal difference claimed does not reach the equivalent of 5% of the evasion amount provided in Article 1 of the Criminal Tax Law. In concrete numbers, if the difference does not exceed five million pesos, the presumption is maintained.

The third change establishes that if ARCA detects a significant discrepancy, the taxpayer may file a corrective sworn declaration and cancel the difference, plus corresponding interest, within up to 15 business days from notification of the official determination.

The fourth change provides an additional tool: if the taxpayer pays and then wins a lawsuit, the presumption of accuracy is fully restored, and ARCA must refund the contributions paid with interest within no more than 45 business days from notification of the final resolution.

Why these changes are being promoted

Caputo explained that the decision arose after receiving observations from tax advisors on various aspects of the previously approved regulations. «As the weeks and months went by, we gathered this information. We set up a working group with tax experts with the aim of clarifying some issues that make citizens feel much more at ease that, regardless of who is in government, they will be covered in these situations,» he said.

The minister also stressed that the initiative seeks to respond to a process of growing informality generated by years of high tax pressure, fiscal deficit, monetary issuance, inflation, and exchange restrictions. These factors led many Argentines to keep their savings outside the financial system.

In this context, Caputo indicated that currently, even though dollar deposits in the financial system reach record levels close to 40 billion dollars, there is an amount more than four times that figure in savings kept outside the banking circuit. «For individuals, keeping dollars under the mattress is a very bad business. Dollars lose value because there is also inflation in the United States. A dollar today does not buy the same as a dollar 20 years ago,» he said.

Timeline of the initiative

1. Original law enacted: The tax innocence regime was approved with the income and asset requirements that are now eliminated, and with the 15% rule to break the presumption of accuracy.
2. Reception of observations: After enactment, tax experts and advisors raised objections about the rigidity of those requirements and the possibility that small nominal differences could break the presumption.
3. Working group: The Ministry of Economy formed a working group with tax experts to review critical points and draft modifications.
4. Announcement of changes: This Wednesday, Caputo and Ibarzabal Murphy officially presented the four changes and confirmed the sending of the bill to Congress.

What happens next

The bill must be considered in Congress, where debate on its scope is expected. The changes aim to strengthen legal certainty and give confidence to taxpayers to adhere to the amnesty. According to Caputo, formalizing these resources represents a benefit both for citizens and for the development of the economy: «At the country level, it is not useful for people to have dollars under the mattress, because we need to grow as a country, we need the economy to grow, and we need to collect more. How are we going to collect more? In two ways: formalizing the economy and growing.»

The data to follow is the fine print of the bill that enters Congress, particularly how the new five million peso threshold will be regulated and whether «Large Taxpayers» will be able to access all benefits. Also key will be observing the reaction of opposition blocs and whether changes are introduced during the parliamentary debate.