Household goods to Argentina: free with permanent residence, with a guarantee if you come temporarily
Anyone who comes to live in Argentina with permanent residence imports their household goods tax-free, with no limit on value. On a residencia temporaria the goods only enter temporarily and you put up a guarantee of half the import tax. The free import applies to a shipment that arrives between three months before and six months after you.
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What your household goods cost at the Argentine border depends on one question: do you have permanent or temporary residence? With a residencia permanente you import your furniture, household items and personal belongings tax-free, with no limit on value. With a residencia temporaria, the usual route for retirees, everything only enters temporarily. You then put up a guarantee of 50% of the import tax that would otherwise be due on those goods.
| What | Residencia permanente | Residencia temporaria |
|---|---|---|
| Personal belongings and household items, new or used | free, with no limit on value | temporary import with guarantee |
| Guarantee | none | 50% of the import tax |
| Tools and instruments for your profession | allowed, but taxed | |
| One used car in your name | free up to 15,000 dollars customs value | temporary, at most 480 days |
| Arrival of the shipment | from 3 months before to 6 months after you | |
| Digital registration in SITA | 10221 | 10220 |
What counts as household goods?
ARCA speaks of efectos personales y del hogar: personal belongings and household items, new or used, for you and your family. The condition is that the quantity, kind and variety do not suggest that you want to sell them or use them commercially. Many identical, new items can raise that suspicion.
With permanent residence you may also bring tools, machines and instruments that you need for your profession, your art or your trade. They are not free: ARCA counts them as importación sujeta al pago de tributos. You therefore pay import tax on them.
How does the guarantee work on temporary residence?
A temporary resident imports his household goods under the régimen de garantía. The goods come in without you paying the import tax, but you put up a guarantee of half that amount. You register the shipment in SITA under 10220.
Permanent residence only comes after three years of temporary residence. On a residencia temporaria you therefore do not get the free import when you move. Before you book a container, ask how much import tax customs would charge on your goods: you need half of that as a guarantee. Bring less if that amount turns out high.
Whether and when you get that guarantee back, and what happens if you later become permanent, is not on the ARCA page. Ask customs or your removal company before you sign.
When must the shipment arrive?
With permanent residence your goods must arrive between three months before and six months after your arrival in Argentina. Customs only releases the goods once you are there yourself. If you already had the residence before you came, the term counts from your entry. If you only got it in Argentina, from the day it was granted.
How do you register the move?
At ARCA customs you submit everything digitally and in advance, in the Sistema Informático de Trámite Aduanero (SITA), through the Multinota Electrónica Aduanera. You choose the code that fits your residence, fill in the details and attach the documents. Customs reviews your application in advance and tells you how it will treat your shipment. That assessment is conditional: on arrival the goods and papers must match what you declared.
You need an inventory in any case. In the Netherlands, for a move to a country outside the EU you file an export declaration with Dutch Customs, with an inventory of what you take along. Make that list properly once, in Spanish and Dutch, and use it on both sides.
What do you take in your suitcase?
You may carry cash up to 10,000 dollars freely. Anyone carrying more files a declaration with customs on form OM 2249A. For children under 16 the limit is 5,000 dollars. For medicines, see medicines across the border.
A car falls under separate rules; see car and driving licence in Argentina. So does a pet; see pet to Argentina. Which residence you have is in the residence routes. The order is in the route to Argentina.
In Vertrekklaar this is phase 4 of 5 of the journey, step 4.2: the same steps, but for your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines watched. See the whole journey to Argentina or go straight to step 4.2 in the open plan.
What this rests on
The facts in this article come from these official pages. Rules change. When in doubt, go by the source, not this article.
- ARCA — foreigners who come to live in Argentina, permanently or temporarily — afip.gob.ar
- ARCA — international removals, the simplified regime and the SITA codes — afip.gob.ar
- ARCA — declaring cash from 10,000 dollars — afip.gob.ar
- Dutch Customs — moving to a country outside the EU, export declaration with an inventory — douane.nl
- Migraciones — permanent residence after three years of arraigo — argentina.gob.ar
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