Can a foreigner invest in the Argentine stock market?

Last verified: 27 Oct 2026 · Status: Changing

Short answer. Yes. Nationality is no bar. A non resident opens an account with a CNV registered broker (ALyC), passes KYC and gets an Argentine tax ID. Dollars must move to and from accounts in the investor's own name. Gains on listed Argentine shares, and interest and gains on government bonds, are income tax exempt for non residents outside non cooperative jurisdictions.

As of 26 Oct 2026. Rules in force at that date.

Key rules

Access goes through a CNV agent. Only agents registered with the Comisión Nacional de Valores (CNV) may act (Law 26.831 art. 47). An ALyC is a legal entity registered to settle trades on authorised markets (art. 2). The law sets no nationality or residence test for clients.

KYC. CNV agents must identify clients under UIF Resolution 78/2023. A foreign passport or identity card is valid ID, and the file needs a CUIT, CUIL, CDI "or its equivalent for foreign persons" (art. 22(a) and (d)).

Tax ID. Since 2 March 2026 a non resident individual gets a CUIT through a representative with an Argentine address, or in person if temporarily in Argentina (ARCA RG 5803/2025 arts. 6 and 34). The CDI is now for diplomatic missions and entities without a CUIT (art. 19). Old individual CDIs stay valid until a data change (art. 33(b)).

Moving money. Non residents trading securities against dollars must pay and be paid through their own Argentine sight account or their own foreign bank account outside FATF high risk lists (BCRA, Exterior y Cambios, point 4.3.2). Before selling a security for dollars, a non resident must hold it 1 business day after credit at the central depositary (CNV RG 1062/2025, Title XVIII, Chapter V, art. 2). Clients abroad with a CDI or CIE trading for their own account have a daily cap of ARS 200,000,000 (US$127,885.41) in the operations listed in BCRA points 3.16.3.1 and 3.16.3.2, with listed exceptions (CNV RG 1128/2026, art. 6 ter).

Tax. For foreign beneficiaries not resident in, and not funded from, non cooperative jurisdictions, gains on listed Argentine shares are exempt, and so are interest and gains on government bonds, art. 36 ONs, public trust debt and public FCI income units (Income Tax Law art. 26 u), first and fourth paragraphs). Dividends are taxed at 7%, withheld by the payer as a final tax (art. 97). Government bonds are exempt from personal assets tax (Law 23.966 art. 21 g)). For shares, the company pays 0.50% of book equity value for the holder (unnumbered article after art. 25).

What changes the answer

Where you live, not your passport. A tax resident foreigner pays tax on worldwide income as a resident (ITL art. 1).
Non cooperative jurisdictions. Residence there, or funds coming from there, removes the art. 26 u) exemptions.
Entry route. Dollars sold in the official FX market from 21 April 2025, with a local bank certificate, can be repatriated through the official market without BCRA approval, up to the coupons or sale proceeds (point 3.13.1.13). CCL money has no certificate and leaves the same way.
Instrument. Corporate bonds are exempt only if they meet Law 23.576 art. 36. Dividends pay 7%.

Worked examples

A non resident individual with an Argentine CUIT, not linked to a non cooperative jurisdiction, wires US$10,000 from their own foreign bank account to an ALyC. They buy a dollar sovereign bond settled in dollars abroad ("cable"), hold 12 months and sell. Assumptions: commission 0.50% per leg plus 21% VAT, market fee 0.01% per leg (unconfirmed); 6% current yield in dollars; exit price equal to entry price. Rate: ARS 1,563.90 per US$, dolar MEP on 23 Oct 2026 (dólar MEP selling rate (dolarapi.com)) (unconfirmed) (live: /data/mep/).

Step or item	Time	Cost ARS	Cost USD
CUIT through a representative, KYC, ALyC account	weeks (unconfirmed)	not set by the rules found	not set by the rules found
Buy: commission, VAT, market fee	day 1	95,569.93	61.11
Hold before sale for dollars	1 business day minimum	0	0
Income tax on coupons and gain	12 months	0	0
Personal assets tax	31 Dec	0	0
Sell: commission, VAT, market fee	month 12	95,569.93	61.11
Total cost		191,139.86	122.22

Step by step.

Purchase, with all in costs of 0.615% per leg: 10,000 / 1.00615 = US$9,938.89 of bond (ARS 15,543,430.07). Fees: commission 49.69 + VAT 10.43 + market fee 0.99 = US$61.11.
Coupons: 9,938.89 × 6% = US$596.33 (ARS 932,600.49). Argentine income tax: 0 (ITL art. 26 u), fourth paragraph, item (i)).
Sale after 12 months: 9,938.89 − 61.11 = US$9,877.78 (ARS 15,447,860.14), paid by cable to the investor's own foreign account (point 4.3.2.2).
Total back: 9,877.78 + 596.33 = US$10,474.11 (ARS 16,380,460.63). Net gain US$474.11, 4.74%.
Each trade (ARS 15,639,000) is far below the ARS 200,000,000 daily cap. Purchases settled in dollars skip the 1 day hold (RG 1062/2025, art. 2(i)).

Cost to do it: about US$122 in round trip fees on these assumptions; no minimum capital in the rules found; no CNV fee for the investor; Argentine tax 0 on this bond; time is mostly CUIT and account opening.

Practical traps

Old ID names in the rules. CNV art. 6 ter (April 2026) still speaks of foreign clients "with CDI or CIE", but ARCA now gives non resident individuals a CUIT. How brokers apply the cap to a non resident with a CUIT is not stated (unconfirmed). Whether the CIE regime survived RG 5803/2025 is also unconfirmed (unconfirmed).
Paying from someone else's account. Family or company accounts are third parties (point 4.3.2).
Assuming the official exit is open. Without the bank certificate under point 3.13.1.13(i), non residents need prior BCRA approval to buy dollars (point 3.13.1).

FAQ

Do I need to live in Argentina or have residency? No. RG 5803/2025 art. 6 gives non residents a CUIT through a local representative.

Can I buy Merval shares, not only bonds? Yes, through the same ALyC. Gains are exempt under ITL art. 26 u); dividends pay 7% (art. 97).

Can a foreign company invest? Yes. Entities without a CUIT can use a CDI (RG 5803/2025 art. 19). The same 4.3.2 settlement rules and the CNV cap apply.

Is there a minimum investment? No minimum was found in Law 26.831 or the CNV rules reviewed. Brokers set their own account minimums.

Published 27 Oct 2026 from our research draft. Points marked (unconfirmed) have not yet been checked against the official text; rely on the primary sources linked below.