Newcomer guide
Taxes in depth
Monotributo, tax residency, income tax and the clave fiscal, deeper than the arrival guide's pointer. Every figure changes on a schedule, so this guide links to the live ARCA page for the current amounts and dates rather than quoting numbers. Tax is an accountant question, not a checklist one: use this as a map, and confirm on the official page or with a professional for your case.
Monotributo fees change every February and August, and income tax deadlines change yearly. Never trust a number written here, open the live ARCA page.
Monotributo, the simplified taxpayer regime
Monotributo is the simplified tax regime for small taxpayers, freelancers and sole traders. You register with your CUIT and clave fiscal, pick a category based on your gross income and a few other factors, and pay one monthly amount that bundles the tax, retirement and health contributions. The categories and amounts change twice a year, so read the live categories page rather than trusting a number written anywhere.
- Have your CUIT and clave fiscal before you register
- Pick the category that matches your gross income and activity
- Check the live categories page for the current monthly amount
Monotributo fees change every February and August. Always read the live categories page for the amount you owe this month.
Tax residency
Whether you are a tax resident of Argentina decides whether you pay tax on your worldwide income or only on Argentine-source income. ARCA's official page explains who counts as a resident, including foreigners who obtain habitual residency, and the rules around losing residency by living abroad. The exact day count is set in the income tax law, not a single ARCA page, so confirm the rule on the official page or with an accountant rather than trusting a number.
- Read the ARCA residency page to know if you count as a resident
- If you need to prove residency for another country, request the certificate
- Confirm any day-count rule with an accountant, it is case by case
Argentine law frames residency loss around continuous months abroad, not a literal 183-day label. Confirm the exact rule on the ARCA page or with a professional.
Income tax, residents and non-residents
Income tax (ganancias) applies differently depending on your residency. Residents pay on worldwide income; non-residents pay only on Argentine-source income. ARCA's ganancias hub is the official reference, and the residency page ties your status to which income counts. Filing deadlines change each year, so check the hub for the current date rather than a fixed one.
- Check your residency status before you assume which income counts
- Read the ARCA ganancias hub for current filing deadlines
- Use the residency page to confirm worldwide vs Argentine-source
CUIT and the clave fiscal
To bill for your own work you register a CUIT with ARCA and create a clave fiscal, the login for every tax procedure. The CUIT is registered online through ARCA's system, and the clave fiscal is your key to monotributo, ganancias and every other tax process. Keep the recovery email safe, because losing the clave fiscal means losing access to all of it.
- Register your CUIT online through ARCA
- Create a clave fiscal and keep its recovery email safe
- Use the same login for monotributo and income tax
Next steps
If you bill for your own work, the local jobs and services boards are next.