Argentina Spares Millions From Paying Income Tax as Vote Nears
- Government announces tax exemption ahead of Oct. 22 election
- Move comes amid soaring inflation and runs counter to IMF deal
Sergio Massa.
Photographer: Ton Molina/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Argentina will exempt millions of workers from paying income taxes, a dramatic attempt by Economy Minister Sergio Massa to improve his standings in next month’s presidential election at the risk of deepening the country’s fiscal hole.
Workers earning less than 1.7 million pesos ($4,857) per month won’t have to pay income taxes as of October, up from the previous threshold of about 700,000 pesos, Massa said Monday in Buenos Aires. The measure means only 90,000 top executives and high-ranking managers across the country will have to pay the tax, he said. That’s less than 1% of total registered workers.