Box Shipping - Import Regulations in Argentina

Import Regulations in Argentina

Being an open market Argentina has few import restrictions. The imported goods can only be cleared through Customs by registered importers, who must use the services of a licensed customs broker to carry out the documentation and filing procedures. The Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding Systems is used to classify goods and assign tariffs.

Main tariff rates are:
- zero tariff on goods that are not produced locally, on newsprint and on certain petroleum products;
- 2.5-10% on raw materials, on intermediate industrial materials and on primary products;
- 10% on informatics and telecommunications goods and on capital goods;
- 15-20% on consumer durable and non-durable goods;
- 30% on finished automobiles.

There are some additional taxes applied to several import sectors.

The documentation requirements: commercial invoice (containing a sworn declaration); Bill of Lading; packing list.

With no major import restrictions, some capital goods and equipment are restricted for import. Prior government approval is required for the following goods: cottonseed and seed potatoes, fresh fruit and vegetables, dried or preserved fruit and nuts, barrelled apples, live poultry, dressed fowls and eggs, salted and dried fish, insecticides and veterinary products, foodstuffs and pharmaceuticals, explosives arms, and ammunition, plants and plant materials, tobacco, and artificial sweeteners.

The main port of entry and the hub of all transportation networks is Buenos Aires. Inland shipping (via roads and rail) to the final destination can be most easily arranged from Buenos Aires. Quequén, Rosario, Bahía Blanca, La Plata, and Comodoro Rivadavia are other ports of entry. The international airports are Ezeiza Airport, Jorge Newbery (Aeroparque), Buenos Aires' domestic airport; Córdoba; El Plumerillo; Jujuy; Resistencia; Río Gallegos; San Carlos de Bariloche; Corrientes; and Salta.