ARGENTINA GUIDE
EMPLOY IN ARGENTINA WITH EASE
- Access and hire global talent & deploy them anywhere in the world
- Remove restriction from only hiring from local markets
- Enter any international market without the requirement of opening a local entity
Expanding into Argentina can bring excitement to the possibilities and significant stress to ensure the entity’s compliance with the country’s rigid legal structures and laws. Global Expansion is a step for any business, regardless of your goal but undertaking an expansion without sufficient knowledge of the country’s laws adds stress to getting your new entity off the ground and ready to test new markets and going at it without the proper support can increase the costs, time and risks involved.
Argentina is one of the most beautiful countries in South America. It is rich in culture with awe-inspiring natural beauty from glaciers to rainforests. It has vibrant cities such as Buenos Aires or Bariloche in north Patagonia offering summer hiking and winter skiing, an attractive destination for people looking to live and work. For companies expanding into South America, an appealing destination is always a bonus when recruiting employees from the home country or elsewhere. Argentina is also a founder of MERCOSUR, a common market including Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay, similar to the European Union, where members enjoy the freedom of movement for people, goods and services but where different rules can apply to work documentation.
The opportunities that come with expanding into Argentina can be stimulating as well as intimidating and confusing, especially when you consider all the registration procedures that need to be done and the documentation required. These can be worked through more efficiently and cost-effectively with the support of a Professional Employer Organisation (PEO) such as Bradford Jacobs, primarily through our Employer of Record (EOR) framework. This can be best utilised when businesses are just beginning their expansion process and require more information before incorporating an entity and fully establishing themselves in that market.
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Argentina – The Economy
Argentina is a developing country even though its economy is the second-largest national economy in South America, behind Brazil’s. Argentina benefits from rich natural resources, a highly literate population, an export-oriented agricultural sector, and a diversified industrial base.
Argentina’s economic performance has historically been very uneven, with high economic growth alternating with severe recessions, particularly since the late twentieth century. Income maldistribution and poverty have increased since this period.
Early in the twentieth century, Argentina had one of the ten highest per capita GDP levels globally. It was on par with Canada and Australia and had surpassed both France and Italy.
Argentina’s currency declined by about 50% in 2018 to more than 38 Argentine pesos per U.S. Dollar. In 2019, the currency fell further by 25%. As of that year, it is under a stand-by program from the International Monetary Fund.
Argentina is considered an emerging market by the FTSE Global Equity Index (2018) and one of the G-20 major economies.
Small and Medium-Sized Companies
According to the Ministry of Production, 99.8% of Argentina’s companies are micro-, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) – defined as those with fewer than 200 employees.
With a 4.1m-strong workforce, they also provided the majority of jobs. SMEs generate 64 per cent of the nation’s formal jobs, but their contribution to employment is even more significant, considering the number of informal jobs they also generate.
A skilled local labour force and pervasive entrepreneurial spirit have fostered a dense and diverse MSME ecosystem covering nearly all sectors. The largest cohort (37%) of enterprises operated in a services-oriented industry, followed by 30% in wholesale and retail trade, 10% in farming and livestock, and 10% in manufacturing.
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Capital |
Buenos Aires |
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No. of States/Provinces |
23 provinces |
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Principal Cities |
Buenos Aires, Córdoba, Rosario, Mendoza, Tucumán, La Plata, Mar del Plata, Salta, Santa Fe, and San Juan. |
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Language |
Spanish |
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Local Currency |
The Argentine Peso (ARS) |
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Major Religion |
Christianity (59% - of which 49% are Catholic)
No religion (40%) |
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Date Format |
dd.mm.yyyy |
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Time Zone |
Argentina Standard Time (GMT-3) |
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Country Dial Code |
+54 |
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Population |
47.3 million |
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Border Countries |
Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Uruguay, and Paraguay. |
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Tax Year |
Calendar Year (1 January - 31 December) |
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VAT & |
21% |
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Minimum Wage |
ARS 47,850/month (EUR 286.34 - USD 293.4) |
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Taxpayer Identification Numbers |
Unique Tax Identification Code (CUIT) – Personal & Entity
DNI (Documento Nacional de Identidad) – Personal
The Unique Code of Labour Identification (CUIL) |
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Leading Sectors |
Food processing, automobile production, textiles, energy production, and mining. |
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Main imports |
Cars, soybeans, vehicle parts, refined petroleum, and petroleum gas. |
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Main exports |
Soybean meal, corn, soybean oil, soybeans, and delivery trucks. |
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Main trading partners |
Brazil, China, the United States, Chile, Vietnam, Germany, and Paraguay. |
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Government Type |
Federal presidential republic. |
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Current President |
Alberto Fernández |
The Sectors of the Argentinian Economy
- Food Processing & Beverages – Bestowed with rich fertile lands, Argentina has vast agricultural and energy resources used in the country’s industrial sector. The improvements witnessed in the wheat, corn, and barley agricultural produce, made the cereal export boost the food industry. One of Argentina’s oldest and most significant industries has always been the processing and packaging of foods. Starting with the processing and packaging of meat meant to be exported, the food processing and beverage sector has ventured into diverse foods and drinks that have global markets. The food processing and beverages companies are primarily located in Buenos Aires.
- Telecommunications, Media & Technology – The availability of needed resources in Argentina has dramatically boosted the performance of the biggest industries in the country. The innovative sector in the appliances and electronics industry continues to evolve and modernize to meet the growing global and local market demands. Argentina’s appliances and electronics industry are among the few nations with high home appliance production numbers. Favourable government policies have enabled this industry to record a positive market forecast which has been aided by the use of internet retailing to reach a global client base with ease. The antenna network growth in the next five years is expected to generate investment opportunities for USD 5 billion.
- Textiles – Showing a significant growth of 75% in 2002, the textile industry has been recorded to be among the biggest industries in Argentina. Conducive political and economic conditions increased the purchasing power of the people and tourists. Estimated to be worth $12 billion, the Argentina textile industry has boosted the clothing sector, making global fashion designer icons source for their high-quality clothing materials from Argentina. Boasting more than 11,500 manufacturing textile companies that local families own, the Argentina Apparel Industrial chamber records a production value of $2.7 billion annually.
- Mining & Oil – The oil industry in Argentina has always received government support. Exporting petroleum fuels started at an all-time low of 800,000 barrels in the 90s but steadily grew with the discovery of oil reserves located at Rio Negro Norte. Argentina’s richness comprises a massive territorial extension for sustainable mining activity (75% still unexplored) and the capacity to multiply lithium, gold, silver, and copper production.
- Tourism – With unique landscapes, various climates and ecosystems, and cultural and gastronomic appeal, Argentina is a world-class destination with tremendous growth potential, reflected by the increasing number of international tourists. Argentina offers exceptional conditions for projects in this field in tune with the new trends and requirements, which are becoming more demanding in the context of the pandemic. With its unique commitment to preserving natural areas, Argentina invites investors to develop ecotourism projects in which visitor services, sustainable infrastructure and contact with nature can be combined.
- Global Services – The global services industry is mature in Argentina, with over a decade of constant growth, favoured by its human capital talent, time zone benefits, business environment and the quality of its local technological infrastructure. It is a Latin American benchmark in technological services applied to agroindustry (AgTech) and is gaining momentum in the videogame and FinTech fields. Argentina is a frontrunner in software development and exports, with over 4,200 companies in the area.
Labour Contracts Law in Argentina
The company’s employment relationship with its employees will be governed by the Employment Contracts Law, which, despite its name, covers far more than simply contracts and spells out compliance regulations with virtually every aspect of Argentina’s employment legislation. General considerations include:
- There is no legal requirement for a written contract for full-time, permanent employees as legislation cover every aspect of the employment relationship
- Unless expressly agreed otherwise, contracts are deemed to be permanent, open-ended, and full-time
- However, there must be written contracts for fixed-term employees, and employers must have justifiable reasons for wanting to enter into such a contract.
- Fixed-term contracts cannot exceed five years.
- Temporary contracts are permitted when necessitated by exceptional production demands.
- The maximum permitted trial period is three months, after which the employee becomes permanent. The trial period can be terminated without either party having to pay compensation or giving a reason, but 15 days’ notice applies.
- Employers must give two months’ notice of dismissal to employees who have worked more than five years, one month for being employed for less than five years
Tax and Labour Authorities
- The Federal Administration of Public Revenues (AFIP) – the body in charge of executing the tax, customs, and collection policy of the Nation’s social security resources. The AFIP is made of the General Directorate of Customs (DGA), the General Tax Directorate (DGI), and the General Directorate of Social Security Resources (DGRSS).
- The General Tax Directorate (DGI) is in charge of the application, collection, and control of national taxes. Among its primary functions are tax collection, the establishment of fines, sanctions, ex officio determinations, settlement of debts in administrative or judicial management, and application of sanctions or other concepts. The Directorate also promotes the culture of voluntary compliance by taxpayers. The main strategies of the General Tax Directorate are linked to the facilitation and simplification of the procedures to be carried out by the Citizens for the satisfactory fulfilment of their obligations.
- The Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security (Ministério de Trabajo, Empleo y Seguridad Social) – an Argentine government ministry tasked with overseeing the country’s public policies on labour conditions, employment, and social security. It proposes, designs, elaborates, administers, and supervises theproceduress in all that is inherent to the relations and individual and collective conditions of work, to the legal regime of collective bargaining and of the professional associations of workers and employers, to employment, job training and social security. In addition, it is informally tasked with overseeing the government’s relationship with Argentina’s trade unions and providing education, assistance, advice and guidance to employers, employees, out workers, outworking entities and organizations.
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