At the same time, authorities have raised certain thresholds for financial control.
The government of Argentina has approved new regulations to the "Fiscal Innocence" (Inocencia Fiscal) law, thereby officially launching a simplified tax regime for individuals. Its goal is to encourage citizens to bring previously undeclared savings, known in the country as "mattress dollars," into the legal financial system.
In this way, the state is trying to return hundreds of billions of dollars to the economy that have been kept outside banks for years due to rampant inflation and distrust in the country's financial system. At the same time, authorities emphasize that the government does not intend to investigate past violations and is focusing on ensuring that tax rules are followed only from the moment the new rules are introduced.
As reported by La Nación, the new simplified tax regime (Simplified Income Tax Regime, RSG) is designed for taxpayers who fall within certain limits. This refers to an annual income of up to 1 billion Argentine pesos, which is approximately 1 million dollars, and a total wealth of up to 10 billion pesos, or about 10 million dollars.
These limits are checked separately for each of the last three tax years. In other words, if in any of these years the income or wealth exceeded the limit, the person will not be able to take advantage of the regime.
The new regime will be managed by the Argentine Revenue and Customs Agency (ARCA), analogous to the Russian Federal Tax Service. It will be responsible for generating pre-filled tax returns for participants in the regime. Inspections will be limited to what the taxpayer has indicated in their reporting. Inspectors will check whether the declared income is correct and whether tax deductions have been applied legally. There will be no analysis of personal expenses, lifestyle, or changes in wealth levels.
A key element of the program is what authorities call the "safe harbor" effect. If a taxpayer joins the simplified regime, timely submits their declaration, and pays the tax, ARCA loses the right to reopen administrative or criminal cases for that tax year as well as for previous periods. Exceptions remain, but they are limited to cases of serious discrepancies or proven fraud. Officials quoted by La Nación emphasize that under the regime, the tax authority "will not ask for explanations" regarding the origin of assets or the structure of personal expenses.
The regulations also detail how money should enter the financial system. Funds must pass through a bank either at the beginning or at the end of the transaction. For example, a person can first deposit cash into their own account and then pay for a purchase. Another acceptable option is to transfer money directly to the seller electronically. In both cases, the money ends up within the banking system and is formally accounted for.
At the same time, authorities have raised certain thresholds for financial control. According to La Nación, transactions of up to 10 million pesos per month, which is approximately 10 thousand dollars, will not be automatically reported by banks to the tax service for reporting.
The document also updates penalties for formal violations. Nominal fines have been significantly increased, however, reminders and grace periods are now provided before penalties are applied, during which the taxpayer can correct the violation without a fine. Additionally, the threshold at which tax evasion is considered a criminal offense has been raised to 100 million pesos, or about 100 thousand dollars.
