Has CFK completely lost touch?

[Gringoboy]

Maybe we should get Bill Bryson down here.
He'd have a field day.

 

[BienTeVeo]

The total tax rate on profits in Argentina is 108%.

http://www.doingbusiness.org/~/medi...cuments/Special-Reports/Paying-Taxes-2012.pdf

Everyone should pay tax. But paying more than you earn isn't part of the social contract.

This 108% figure came up on another thread. I checked out the source (World Bank). Here's the link: http://www.doingbusiness.org/data/exploreeconomies/argentina#paying-taxes

Unless I'm reading it wrong, 53% or that 108% figure comes from a "Turnover tax by City of Buenos Aires." This number looks suspicious to me. First of all, it doesn't take into account that this kind of tax varies from province to province. And it just seems, well, high.

On a recent flight to the US, I sat next to someone who works at the World Bank. I asked about this figure. She also thought it sounded wrong, and promised to investigate.

My point in bringing this up is not to weigh in on the relative merits of doing business in Argentina, tax burdens, or to make apologies for the way things work here. I'm just curious about that figure.

 

[Gringoboy]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but tax is usually levied on profits and not turnover.
Of course the ingreso bruto tax is levied on every centavo you put into your bank account.

 

[solerboy]

Inngreso Bruto in CABA is a standard rate of 3% on turnover. (There are some variations on this rate for various activities, I seem to pay slightly less for rental of commecial property)

This is not dependent or not whether it is deposited in the Bank.

In effect it is an additional form of IVA paid at provincial level.

 

[Gringoboy]

I don't use Twitter, but CFK just sent this from her account, apparently:
'....estoy en una fábrica de chorizos, no hagan el chiste fácil: " presi con el de Axel no le alcanza?"

If that's what I think it means, maybe she has lost it.

 

[scotttswan]

I don't use Twitter, but CFK just sent this from her account, apparently:
'....estoy en una fábrica de chorizos, no hagan el chiste fácil: " presi con el de Axel no le alcanza?"

If that's what I think it means, maybe she has lost it.

i don't see that on her official twitter. https://twitter.com/#!/CFKArgentina/

TN has reduced CFK to half the screen and shows Moyano waiting for her to hurry up and finish so he can talk on the other half. He's got a long long wait...

 

[citygirl]

The total tax rate on profits in Argentina is 108%.

http://www.doingbusiness.org/~/media/FPDKM/Doing%20Business/Documents/Special-Reports/Paying-Taxes-2012.pdf

Everyone should pay tax. But paying more than you earn isn't part of the social contract.

As I've posted before, that isn't an accurate representation of the tax situation here. Many taxes may not apply and no business pays all of those listed- that is a listing of the total *possible* taxes. It is possible to do everything 100% in white and be profitable as the business I managed for years here did just that.

I'll be honest, I'm having a hard time following the story since I honestly don't know who is the biggest thug and crook in this story. Moyano or CFK. I'd think it's more than safe to say that both of the above have their personal interests FAR ahead on the priority list than the good of Argentina.

 

[fifs2]

Maybe we should get Bill Bryson down here.
He'd have a field day.

God I'd love to read anything he wrote about daily life here as he took apart England and the US so brilliantly. His story of spilling a drink twice on the (swearing) nun on the plane beside him will forever stay with me as one fo the funniest things I have ever read. Gonna dig it out now for a good old laugh...

 

[jp]

It is possible to conceive of a total tax rate of 100% (but not more)

108% assumes avoidance. Its a legitimate assumption, given that avoidance and non compliance are widespread and endemic. So the system over compensates, assuming that nobody is declaring everything they earn. This creates the ridiculous situation where you can technically be liable to pay more than you earn in tax.

Sure, this doesn't mean that in practice its impossible to run a successful business en blanco. Plenty of people do. But most businesses have to get a little creative with their accounting, and most operate in the grey area between white and black.

So in short, saying "pay your taxes" doesn't really mean much. Adhering to the rules doesn't make sense if the game is rigged.

 

[Crema Americana]

Sure, this doesn't mean that in practice its impossible to run a successful business en blanco. Plenty of people do. But most businesses have to get a little creative with their accounting, and most operate in the grey area between white and black.

This is very true. Even large businesses that you wouldn't ever suspect. I remember going to a well known movie theater and the price on the receipt was half of what we paid. It's not that we got ripped off, the price was always the same, but I have to wonder if there wasn't some funny business going on there.

Also I've seen people literally laugh when talking about getting a receipt. This of course affects other businesses as well... if you do business with a company or person that doesn't give a proper receipt, it affects your books as well since your expenses won't add up.

I'm not excusing the system, it's just messed up from top to bottom and people deal with it however they can.