BCRA Aims to Generate Incentives for Exports of Goods

Through Communique “A” 7301 dated June 4, 2021, the Argentine Central Bank (the “BCRA,” after its acronym in Spanish) eased existing requirements for exporters of industrialized and extractive goods to access the foreign exchange market.

Under the regulation, accessing the foreign exchange market without prior BCRA approval is allowed in proportion (between 5% and 15%, depending on the goods exported) to the increase of the FOB value of computable exports for the year 2020 to pay principal of debts for imports of goods and services and financial indebtedness abroad to counterparties related to the debtor and profits and dividends corresponding to finalized and audited financial statements.

To process a “Certification of increase in exports of goods in the year 2021,” the exporter has to nominate a local financial institution that will be responsible for issuing the corresponding certifications and forwarding them to the financial institutions through which the client wishes to access the foreign exchange market.

In addition, the following requirements apply for Certification:

• The FOB value of exports of goods shipped in the year 2021—and that have a certification of compliance under the SECOEXPO information regime—has to be higher than the FOB value of its exports for the same set of goods shipped throughout 2020.
• As of the date of issuance, the exporter cannot have expired permits for the repatriation and settlement of foreign currency in default.
   

• The exporter registered exports of goods in 2020.
   

• Issued certificate amounts, including the one requested, cannot exceed the equivalent in foreign currency of 30% of the FOB value of the computable exports for the year 2020.
   

• Sworn statement by the exporter confirming that the increase in exports corresponds to new legitimate commercial transactions.
   

• Sworn statement by the exporter confirming that they have not refused to participate in price agreements or breached any program in force.