Registry of Export Operations

Decree No 1067, published in the Official Gazette on September 2, 2005, established that the Argentine Office of Agribusiness Commercial Control (Oficina Nacional de Control Comercial Agropecuario “O.N.C.C.A.”), will be in charge of the registration of individuals or legal entities who participate in the trade and the industrialization of livestock.

Bovine meat exporters already had the obligation of being registered in the O.N.C.C.A registry. Notwithstanding, to date there was no special registry for the bovine meat exportations.

By Resolution No 31/2006, published in the Official Gazette on January 30, 2006, the Ministry of Economy and Production created the Export Registry (Registro de Operaciones de Exportación “R.O.E.”) in which all the bovine meat export operations shall be registered.

Resolution No 31/2006 became effective on January 31, 2006, but since its regulation became enforced two days later, bovine meat exports were temporarily suspended, due to the impossibility of the Customs Administration authorizing such operations.

Joint Resolution No 12/2006 and No 42/2006 issued by the Secretary of Economic Policy (Secretaría de Política Económica) and the Secretary of Agriculture, Livestock, Fishing and Foods (Secretaría de Agricultura, Ganadería, Pesca y Alimentos) published in the Official Gazette on February 2, 2006, rules the R.O.E. Such Joint Resolution became effective on the day of its publication.

Bovine meat exporters shall register the operations through the proceeding established by Joint Resolution No 12/2006 and No 42/2006, in order to obtain the authorization of the Customs Administration, under the scope of Federal Administration of Public Revenues (Administración Federal de Ingresos Públicos).

With the aim of obtaining the registration of the export operations, the exporters registered before the O.N.C.C.A. shall file the registration application before such entity.

The O.N.C.C.A. will not register the operation in the following cases:

a) if the exporter registration is not enforced before the ex- Argentine Office mentioned above, the Customs Administration and the Argentine Animal Sanity and Agrifood Quality Service (ServicioNacional de Sanidad y Calidad Agroalimentaria), or

b) if the export registration application does not refer to the exporter’s habitual transactions.