New Regulation on Payment of Broadcasting Time for Electoral Campaigning

Decree 342/2023, regulating article 43 quater of the Political Parties Funding Law No. 26215, was approved on July 6, 2023. This law had established that communication and television-by-subscription services had to assign 5% of all programming time for electoral purposes free of charge and that, as of 2020, one half of such percentage would be assigned free of charge and the other would be considered payment on account of taxes.

Now, the Decree establishes that, when national elections are held, the total payment on account of taxes will be equivalent to adding the amounts the Federal Budget Law assigns as extraordinary contribution to electoral campaigns of federal deputies and senators in articles 34 and 36 of the Law No. 26215 (as amended).

If there is a second round of presidential elections, the amount provided for the first round will be increased in an amount equivalent to adding the extraordinary proxies for electoral campaigns, as assigned in article 42 of Law No. 26215 (as amended). This article states that parties or alliances participating in the second round of presidential elections will receive as campaign contribution 30% of the amount received by the party or alliance that received more funds as public campaign contribution for the first round.

The regulation also states that the total will be distributed according to the segmentation the Chief of Staff establishes, within 30 days as of the day the Decree is published. Once the segmentation is set and after distributing the extraordinary contribution for electoral campaigns of the Primary, Open, Simultaneous, and Mandatory Elections (PASO); the general elections; and the potential second round of presidential election, the Argentine Communications Agency (ENACOM) must determine the tax credit preliminary corresponding to each audiovisual media service included in the allocation of electoral advertising.

Once the electoral campaign period ends, the Federal Electoral Directorate must determine the tax credit of each audiovisual media service for broadcasting the messages. If, for any reason outside the audiovisual communication service, the assigned electoral advertising spaces have not been totally used, the tax credit will be calculated in proportion to the time effectively used.

The regulation provides that payments on account of taxes may be used to pay federal taxes the taxpayer was directly responsible for in the calendar year the advertising space for electoral purposes was granted.

Meanwhile, and for one time only, the decree allows that in the year 2023 the computation of the payment on account of Argentine taxes for the time assigned for electoral purposes in the national elections of the year 2021 will be made.

The regulation includes audiovisual communication services, national signals registered before the Public Registry of Signals and Producers –except those of content for children– and the self-generation signals of subscription services.

Finally, the Argentine Tax Authority (AFIP) must issue all the necessary regulations for implementing the tax credit computation within 30 days.

The Decree 342/2023 entered into force on July 7, 2023.