AFIP goes on the hunt for offenders in online purchases arriving from abroad: what type of shipments does it control and what are the penalties

The AFIP has detected “tax inconsistencies” for $8 million in the simplified regime for international shipments, better known as mailwhich involve argentinian hundred that in the second half of 2022 alone, they carried out 5,619 imports which turned out to be irregular and inconsistent, as reported this Monday by the General Directorate of Customs (DGA).

The agency discovered links between people who imported products of the same category, through 931 shipments with which goods from the country entered the country. IT sectorworth $1,706,600.

“There are several cases in which different members of the same family carried out imports through the mailmany of them being monotributistas or presenting a tax situation which deserves to be examined”, specify the Customs in a press release.

For example, the case of a family of five members who realized, via he simplified regime for international shipments (mail) 593 imports of computer products and articles for a value of 1,257,231 dollars.

In this regard, the Director General of Customs, Michael Guillermostated that “the regime of mail It is intended to facilitate the import of certain products, such as spare parts for small and medium-sized enterprises”.

At the same time, Michel assured that this regime will be maintained with the aim of “giving predictability to the national industry – while exercising firm controls on its misuse and its distortion”.

For his part, the head of the Federal Public Revenue Administration (AFIP), Carlos Castagneto, said: “Let there be no doubt, we will investigate the tax inconsistencies detected. Customs with the General Directorate of Taxes and the General Directorate of Social Security Resources will work in a coordinated manner for this”.

Customs maintained that the distortion of the simplified regime for international shipments would make it possible to file complaints under article number 954 of the customs code.

“It is presumed that the objective of the maneuvers observed would have been to conceal the true situation of the taxpayers before the Treasury and, therefore, the progress of the investigations could imply another course of action,” Castagneto added.

To give a few examples, it was detailed that specialized agents from the Direction Générale des Douanes-AFIP checked that a monotributist Class “B” (annual gross income cap: $1,485,976.96) imported goods valued at $47,084.08equivalent to more than 9 million pesos, and his father, who is not registered with the Treasury, carried out imports for an additional 37,118.09 dollars.

“The combined value of the operations carried out by the two amounts to 16,503,625 dollars, which means, absurdly, a deficit of more than 15 million pesos in the activity of the monotributista”, described the customs officers.

Of the total of one hundred natural persons analyzed, it was detected that seven of them are not registered with the Treasury and the amount they imported, out of a total of 398 shipments, amounts to 202,874.23 dollars.

Meanwhile, five people registered as monotributistas imported goods worth USD 175,900.58 in another 534 shipments.

“Thus, the people investigated would have used the messaging system to escape the control of the Argentine Republic’s Import System (SIRA) and avoid the controls of third-party bodies that intervene in imports under the general regime,” said the DGA.

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