New Application of Stamp Tax of the City of Buenos Aires, Argentina

The Law reestablished the stamp tax to deed and contracts for valuable consideration:
- executed in jurisdiction of the City of Buenos Aires; and
- executed by means private or public instruments or, or by correspondence in the certain cases established by the Law.
In addition, deeds and contracts of onerous character executed in a jurisdiction other than the City of Buenos Aires will be subject to stamp tax in the in the following cases:
- when the goods subject to the relevant transactions are located in the territory of the City of Buenos Aires.
- when the effects of such contracts and deeds take place in the City of Buenos Aires, provided however that the stamp tax has not been paid in the jurisdiction where such deeds or contracts are executed or exemption thereof is not justified.
"Segn lo establecido por la Ley Tarifaria que define anualmente las alcuotas de los impuestos del Cdigo Fiscal en la Ciudad de Buenos Aires (Ley Tarifaria 2009), la alcuota general del impuesto es del 0,8% y del 2,5% para la transferencia de dominio de bienes inmuebles."
The relevant Tax Law, that annually determines the rate of the taxes to be applied in the city of Buenos Aires, (Tax Law for 2009), the general rate of the stamp tax in the city of Buenos Aires 0.8% and 2.5% for real estate transfers.
Also, the Law establishes several exemptions to the stamp tax, among the most common, the following:
- Transfer of real estate property or contracts of purchase and sale of real estate for one familiar house of permanent occupation and that shall constitute the only property of each of the purchasers, provided however that the value of such property shall not exceed certain threshold established in the relevant Tax Law.
- Insurance contracts executed by companies of work insurance (the ARTs).
- Lease agreements of property for residence, except leases and sub-leases of furnished apartments or houses rented for tourism.
- Guarantees and other ancillary obligations, the constitution of mortgages and pledges, provided that the principal obligation paid the relevant stamp tax in the respective jurisdiction.
- Incorporation of companies and all acts related thereof (transformation, capital increase, extension of the duration term, merger, split-off, spin-off, dissolution, liquidation). In addition, the contribution of real estate as capital of a company, bulk assets transfers and the dissolution of companies and the consequent allocation of the remaining assets to the relevant partners.
- Endorsement of promissory notes, bills of exchange, money orders, checks, checks of deferred payment, pay orders and/or any other security.
- Employment contracts, in any of the modalities established by the Labor Law.
- Documents on currency operations related to the foreign exchange trading.
- Agreements on the transfer of intellectual property rights, edition agreements and agreements on translation of books.
- Deeds, agreements and instruments, of any nature whatsoever including deliveries and receptions of money, related to and/or necessary to make possible the capital increase and/or the issuance of securities by the relevant issuing company and any other securities for public offering under the terms of the Public Offer Law, by by companies or financial trusts properly authorized by the National Securities Commission to make public offer of these securities. This exemption shall not be applicable if the relevant company or financial trust does not request the authorization for the public offer of such securities before the National Securities Commission in a 90-day term and/or the public offering of such securities is not carried out in a 180-day term as from the date on which the relevant authorization was granted.
- Instruments and acts relative to the transference of property of vehicles.
The Law appoints as collection agents of the stamp tax: (i) the public notaries; (ii) banks (iii) insurance companies, and (iv) the National Registry of Movable Property, in addition to the faculty of the tax authorities of the city of Buenos Aires to appoint other collection agents.
The amendments introduced by the Law came into force since January 1st, 2009.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Javier Canosa
Javier Canosa read law at the Universidad de Buenos Aires, in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He graduated in 1999. In 2000 he took a Masters course (LL.M.) at the Amsterdam Law School of the Universiteit van Amsterdam, where he had the opportunity to study the rules and regulations on US and EU competition laws, the laws of the World Trade Organization, EU international trade law, investment and monetary policies in international trade law and public and private law practice in international trade law.