Argentina leading by example

[hlf2888]

Argentina’s Senate passes ‘millionaire’s tax’ for COVID-19 relief
The one-time levy will apply to about 12,000 of the country’s richest citizens and fund medical supplies and aid for businesses.

Argentina’s Senate has approved a wealth tax to help the government fund COVID-19 measures, including purchasing health supplies and offering economic relief to struggling businesses.

The one-time levy, passed late on Friday with 42 votes in favour and 26 against, will apply to about 12,000 of the country’s richest citizens.

President Alberto Fernandez has said he hopes the measure – also dubbed a “millionaire’s tax” – would help Argentina raise about $3.7bn amid a years-long economic downturn worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This is a unique, one-time contribution,” said Senator Carlos Caserio, a member of the committee responsible for the bill, according to a statement on the Senate’s website, Bloomberg reported on Saturday.

“We’re coming out of this pandemic like countries come out of world wars, with thousands of dead and devastated economies,” Caserio said.

Argentina has reported more than 1.45 million cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic, according to Johns Hopkins University’s tally, as well as more than 39,500 deaths linked to the virus.
The law applies a tax of at least 2 percent on people with more than $2.45m in assets, Reuters reported.

The funds will be allocated to buy medical equipment and supplies, aid small and medium-sized businesses, support students and social programmes, and fund natural gas projects.

“The #AporteSolidario is extraordinary because the circumstances are extraordinary,” governing party Senator Anabel Fernandez Sagasti wrote on Twitter.

[Donnybrook2]

This will only apply to those who pay taxes and are on the tax office radar, thus reaffirming that tax avoidance is a good idea in Argentina. Sorry for the cynicism but I have a lot of family in Argentina who pay their taxes and get screwed every time.

[41southchile]

Argentina’s Senate passes ‘millionaire’s tax’ for COVID-19 relief
The one-time levy will apply to about 12,000 of the country’s richest citizens and fund medical supplies and aid for businesses.

Argentina’s Senate has approved a wealth tax to help the government fund COVID-19 measures, including purchasing health supplies and offering economic relief to struggling businesses.

The one-time levy, passed late on Friday with 42 votes in favour and 26 against, will apply to about 12,000 of the country’s richest citizens.

President Alberto Fernandez has said he hopes the measure – also dubbed a “millionaire’s tax” – would help Argentina raise about $3.7bn amid a years-long economic downturn worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This is a unique, one-time contribution,” said Senator Carlos Caserio, a member of the committee responsible for the bill, according to a statement on the Senate’s website, Bloomberg reported on Saturday.

“We’re coming out of this pandemic like countries come out of world wars, with thousands of dead and devastated economies,” Caserio said.

Argentina has reported more than 1.45 million cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic, according to Johns Hopkins University’s tally, as well as more than 39,500 deaths linked to the virus.
The law applies a tax of at least 2 percent on people with more than $2.45m in assets, Reuters reported.

The funds will be allocated to buy medical equipment and supplies, aid small and medium-sized businesses, support students and social programmes, and fund natural gas projects.

“The #AporteSolidario is extraordinary because the circumstances are extraordinary,” governing party Senator Anabel Fernandez Sagasti wrote on Twitter.

And they pass these things with a straight face?

[admin]

That sounds nice, except anyone with any wealth left to tax, took it out of Argentina long ago.

seen a statistic some time back that something like 60% of all of Argentinian's wealth was somewhere else; and, that number strikes me as surprisingly low.

They also implemented a ban on export of corn until March; even though corn has hit a six year high on the international market.

Guess who the other wealthy are in Argentina?

The moral to the story, that every Argentinian knows, if the government says they are doing something to help "el pueblo", hang to your wallet, and dig a whole under the rose bush to hide your dollars. Everyone is about to get ripped-off equally, the poor, the rich, and the middle class (is that still a thing over there?).

[admin]

Let me put it another way.

In the last 20 years of watching Argentina, I can not think of one macroeconomic policy they have implemented that was done correctly. occasionally they implement a new policy, that on the surface seems like a great idea, but they never sustain it; or, they undermine it with something somewhere else.

for example, settle with their creditors, then borrow a pile more money and piss it away on corruption.

try and earn more dollars to prop up the peso, then ban exports of gas, oil, corn, soybeans, etc.

The list goes on and on.

This "tax" is just bunch of rich people trying to rip off a bunch of other rich people. Do you really think KFC is poor? Do you really think she is going to pay that tax?

[fraggle092]

Oh dear. They are doing this because their economy is afu as usual, and nobody will loan them any more money because they are welshers, mala paga if you want.
Pathetic populism from a bunch of crooks. Wonder how much of that hypothetical USD $3Bn will make it to the health service...There has been similar talk of doing this here.

[tiagoabner]

Yeah, that tax is mostly for show. No one keeps real money within Argentina of they can help it. Uruguay has lowered their taxes for Argentinean funds this year, so whoever could get money out has taken it.

This kind of reminds me of France's wealth tax from a few years back, which got lots of millionaires to jump ship. There's no reason to believe that things will be different in Argentina.

[admin]

yea, $3 billion is a rounding error in their interest payments.

[admin]

but, the morons in chile's congress are goimg to try to emulate the morons in Argentina,

https://www.biobiochile.cl/noticias/nac ... idos.shtml