New Central Bank Communication on the Use of Virtual Wallets for Tourists.

On 4 May 2023, the Central Bank of Argentina (“BCRA”) issued Communication “A” 7762 (the “Communication”) which incorporates a new exception to the requirement of settlement in the foreign exchange market for “the collection of consumption made by non-residents through e-wallets or any other payment method that involves an immediate debit to a financial institution account abroad or to a virtual account of a company abroad”.
The Communication provided that in the event that the modality by which the non-resident’s consumption is channeled allows the use of virtual accounts, and therefore the exception is applicable, the person depositing the funds must demonstrate that the payment mechanism used foresees that these accounts are opened in institutions whose operations are authorized by the monetary authority or equivalent in their country of residence, and that having a tax code from that country is a condition for opening the account.
In addition, the BCRA decided to:

Incorporate the “IBAN” code within the information necessary and required to identify the order in any transfer of funds linked to foreign countries;

  • Incorporate the “IBAN” code within the information necessary and required to identify the order in any transfer of funds linked to foreign countries;
  • Verify as an additional requirement to be able to access the foreign exchange market that payment is made in the same currency as that stated in the declaration.

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