There’s plenty of reasons to book a trip to Argentina: the hiking, the scenery, the dancing, the cowboys, the food, and, of course, the wine. Well, now you can add one more to the list, because Argentina's government recently announced that all international tourists will receive a direct and automatic reimbursement of the Value Added Tax (VAT) from their hotel and lodging stays across the country.
The new refund initiative, which is a joint agreement between Argentina’s tax authority, AFIP, and the Ministry of Tourism, started January 2 and applies to all forms of accommodations ranging from five-star hotels to rural ranches and vineyard resorts. It even covers any tax associated with breakfast services if they are part of the cost of lodging. This is great news considering Argentina’s 21 percent VAT has long been one of the highest in the world, so the elimination of it for visitors will definitely result in significant savings. For example, a three-night stay at the Vines Resort & Spa in Mendoza including breakfast would cost around $2,705. With the VAT refund, you're looking at savings of about $470.
One traveler who just spent three weeks in the country told Condé Nast Traveler that the change was noticeably helpful during her trip. "It's been a huge help given Argentina is eye-wateringly expensive by South American standards," said Ashley Lane. "It's particularly helpful in the major cities. But, since you can only use a foreign debit or credit card it's harder once you get to Patagonia because not all accommodations take card."
To take advantage of the rebate system, you must prove you live abroad by showing a valid passport or identification card and pay for the stay with a non-Argentine credit card or via bank transfer from another country. To make it even easier for travelers, the process takes place at the time of billing, so there’s no lengthy paperwork or extra time necessary.
This announcement comes after the recent drop in value of the Argentinian peso, making it an even more affordable time to travel. And not only is it good news for tourists, but locals as well. “With this new initiative, we hope to encourage more visitors, which will in turn help boost jobs in the tourism industry,” said Gustavo Santos, Argentina's Minister of Tourism, in an email release.
How much of a boost? Well, according to the officials’ forecasts they’re expecting an additional 95,000 tourists in 2017 alone and already saw about 5.74 million visitors in 2015, it said in the release. That increase is expected to create 8,000 new jobs and give the economy a bump by about $70 million, something desperately needed by the struggling economy that recently reported an unemployment rate just under 10 percent and inflation at around 40 percent.
What to do with the extra savings? Well, for starters, we'd recommend a hunting and fishing expedition through rural Argentina.
