How is rental income taxed for a foreign property owner?

Last verified: 27 Oct 2026 · Status: Changing

Short answer. The tenant or local agent withholds a final 35% income tax on a presumed net of 60% of the rent, that is 21% of gross rent (Income Tax Law arts. 102 and 104(g)). From 2026 rent on a tenant's permanent home is exempt, but whether non residents qualify is unsettled. Housing leases are VAT exempt.

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

Key rules

Final withholding, 21% of gross. Whoever pays Argentine source income to a foreign beneficiary withholds 35% as a single and final payment (Income Tax Law, t.o. 2019, art. 102), applied to the presumed net income (art. 103). For rent of property in Argentina the presumed net is 60% of the amounts paid (art. 104(g)): 35% x 60% = 21%. This holds even when a local agent collects the rent; a payer who fails to withhold owes the tax (art. 102, third paragraph).
Actual expenses option. The owner may opt instead for gross rent minus Argentine expenses to earn and maintain it, as expressly recognised by ARCA (art. 104, penultimate paragraph). It pays off only if expenses exceed 40% of rent. How ARCA recognises them is not set out in the sources (unconfirmed).
The 2026 housing exemption, and the open question. From fiscal years starting 1 January 2026, rent from a dwelling (casa habitación) is exempt (ITL art. 26(n), replaced by Law 27.802, art. 192, BO 6 March 2026). Decree 406/2026 (BO 1 June 2026, art. 1) applies the test to the tenant's single, family and permanent home, for rent accruing from 1 January 2026. Art. 26(n) does not exclude foreign beneficiaries, while item (j) does; the decree mentions residents "abroad" only for sales gains (art. 2). ITL art. 28 denies exemptions that would transfer revenue to a foreign treasury, unless a treaty applies. This is unsettled; no ARCA guidance on non resident landlords was found (unconfirmed).
Who withholds and how. The payer withholds at payment (AFIP RG 739/1999, art. 5). A local agent or representative who collects for the owner must pay in the tax if the payer did not withhold (art. 7). Dollar rent converts at the actual FX rate, or else the previous day's Banco Nación selling rate (art. 3). Since 2015 these withholdings go through SIRE, not SICORE, with certificate F. 2003 and monthly return F. 997 (AFIP RG 3726/2015, arts. 1, 3, 9 and 10). How an unregistered individual tenant should do this is not settled (unconfirmed).
VAT. Leases are taxable at 21% (VAT Law, arts. 3(e)(21) and 28), but leases used exclusively as the home of the tenant and family are exempt (art. 7(h)(22)).
Personal assets tax. Whoever in Argentina holds or administers a non resident's property pays 0.50% of its 31 December value as a final payment, recoverable from the owner (Law 23.966, Title VI, art. 26; Law 27.541, art. 31). Homes let under duly registered contracts, up to the art. 24 value, are exempt (art. 21(l)) (unconfirmed).
Treaties. Treaties let Argentina tax the rent (for example Chile DTC, art. 6(1)); relief is a credit in the owner's home country. The United States has no income tax treaty with Argentina (see Treaties).
Provincial taxes (CABA example). Gross income tax exempts rent from up to three housing units of up to ARS 1,101,000 a month each (CABA Tax Code T.O. 2026, art. 298(9); Ley Impositiva 2026, Annex art. 23); otherwise the rate is 1.50%, or 6.00% for tourist lets (Annex art. 19, items 33 and 34). Stamp tax: housing leases exempt, except furnished tourist lets (Tax Code art. 365(6)); commercial leases 0.50% (Tax Code art. 340; Annex art. 35). Other provinces differ.

What changes the answer

Use of the property. Commercial, mixed use or tourist lets lose the housing and VAT exemptions and may pay gross income and stamp tax.
A company owner. Decree 406/2026 covers "individual or undivided estate" landlords; a foreign company holding the flat directly also pays double personal assets tax (Law 23.966, art. 26).
Residence. An owner who proves stable residence in Argentina is not a foreign beneficiary (ITL art. 102).

Worked examples

A non resident individual lets a CABA flat, unfurnished, as the tenant's permanent home for ARS 900,000 a month, paid to a local agent. No other CABA lets. Pesos convert at dolar MEP ARS 1,563.90 per US$ on 23 Oct 2026, rate supplied by some secondary summaries (unconfirmed), see /data/mep/.

Step or item	Time	Cost ARS	Cost USD
Gross rent	Monthly	900,000	575.48
Income tax withholding, 21% (if exemption denied)	Each payment	189,000	120.85
Income tax withholding (if art. 26(n) applies)	Each payment	0	0.00
VAT (exclusive housing)	n/a	0	0.00
CABA gross income tax (below ARS 1,101,000)	Monthly	0	0.00
CABA stamp tax (housing lease)	At signing	0	0.00
Net rent, worst case	Monthly	711,000	454.63
Net rent, worst case	12 months	8,532,000	5,455.59

Presumed net: 900,000 x 60% = 540,000 (ITL art. 104(g)).
Withholding: 540,000 x 35% = ARS 189,000 (US$120.85) a month; ARS 2,268,000 (US$1,450.22) a year.
Expenses option: with ARS 450,000 of monthly expenses in Argentina, tax would be 35% x 450,000 = ARS 157,500 (US$100.71), saving ARS 31,500 a month if ARCA accepts the expenses.
If the housing exemption applies to the non resident, withholding is zero and net rent is the full ARS 900,000 (US$575.48).
Personal assets: on an assumed tax value of ARS 120,000,000, 0.50% = ARS 600,000 (US$383.66) a year, paid by the local substitute, unless art. 21(l) applies.

Cost to do it: no ARCA fee to withhold or file; agent fees are market based (unconfirmed). Capital: none. Time: monthly.

Practical traps

Using SICORE. RG 739 still describes SICORE, but foreign beneficiary withholdings moved to SIRE (RG 3726/2015, art. 10).
Assuming the 2026 exemption covers you. If ARCA later rejects it for non residents, the tenant or agent who failed to withhold owes the tax (ITL art. 102).
Ignoring personal assets tax. A local agent who administers the flat can owe it as substitute (Law 23.966, art. 26).

FAQ

Is the 21% final? Yes. It is a single and final payment (ITL art. 102), so no Argentine return is filed on it.

Does VAT apply to a furnished flat? Not if it is exclusively the tenant's home, except temporary lets with hotel like services in buildings (Decree 692/1998, art. 38).

Can a treaty cut the 21%? Rarely, since treaties leave real estate income taxable where the property sits. Any treaty claim needs a residence certificate before payment (ARCA RG 5855/2026, art. 3).

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.