Monotributo vs responsable inscripto: which applies to me?

Last verified: 27 Oct 2026 · Status: Changing

Short answer. If you are an individual whose gross income from the last 12 months is at or below ARS 126,610,838.75 (category K cap from 1 Aug 2026) and you trip no exclusion rule, you may choose Monotributo: one fixed monthly payment replacing VAT and income tax. Above that cap, or once excluded, you are a responsable inscripto under the general regime.

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

Key rules

Who can join. Individuals selling goods, renting or providing services, provided that in the 12 months before joining their gross income does not exceed the category K cap, they import nothing for resale, and they run no more than 3 activities or 3 business units (Law 24.977 Annex, art. 2). Running, managing or directing companies is not a covered activity (same article).
What it replaces. The monthly payment replaces income tax (Ganancias) and VAT (Annex arts. 6 and 7), plus pension (SIPA) and health insurance (obra social) contributions (art. 39).
Categories. Eleven categories, A to K, by gross income, floor space, electricity and rent (art. 8). Amounts are updated in January and July by INDEC CPI and published by ARCA (art. 52). Since Law 27.743, service providers can use all categories up to K (arts. 2 a) and 20 a)).
Exclusion is automatic (arts. 20 and 21) when, among other causes: income over the last 12 months passes the K cap; purchases and expenses reach 40% of the K cap for services (80% for goods); bank deposits or personal spending do not match declared income; or you import goods or services for resale. Exclusion takes effect at 0:00 on the day the cause occurs, you move to the general regime, and you cannot return for 3 calendar years (art. 21). A voluntary resignation to become a VAT registrant also locks you out for 3 years (art. 19).
Responsable inscripto. You file monthly VAT (VAT Law art. 27) at 21% (art. 28). Services performed in Argentina but used abroad are not taxed and get export treatment, so input VAT is recoverable (arts. 1 b) and 43). You file annual Ganancias on the art. 94 scale (5% to 35%), and must pay autónomo pension contributions to claim the special deduction (Income Tax Law art. 30 c) 1). Provincial gross income tax (IIBB) applies in either regime.

What changes the answer

Income growth. At this MEP rate, category K allows about US$6,747 a month. Past that, exclusion is automatic.
Expenses with VAT. A registrant recovers input VAT on export costs (VAT Law art. 43); a monotributista cannot, and services expenses reaching ARS 50,644,335.50 (40% of the K cap) trigger exclusion.
Province. IIBB rules and simplified quotas differ by province; CABA figures are used here.

Worked examples

A single freelancer in the City of Buenos Aires bills a US client US$2,000 a month for software services, with no expenses or other income. Converted at dolar MEP ARS 1,563.90 per US$ on 23 Oct 2026 (rate given in some secondary summaries (unconfirmed), see /data/mep/): ARS 3,127,800 a month, ARS 37,533,600 a year.

Item	Time	Cost ARS	Cost USD
Monotributo F, national quota (services)	monthly	150,784.21	96.42
Monotributo F, national, 12 months	year	1,809,410.52	1,156.99
CABA IIBB simplified, category F	monthly	112,880.00	72.18
Monotributo total with CABA IIBB	year	3,163,970.52	2,023.13
RI: autónomo contributions, category I	year	939,258.72	600.59
RI: Ganancias 2026	year	981,851.82	627.82
RI: VAT on exported services	year	0	0
RI total (CABA IIBB exempt, see below)	year	1,921,110.54	1,228.41

Monotributo, step by step

Annual income ARS 37,533,600 is above the E cap (ARS 36,028,231.33) and below the F cap (ARS 45,151,659.41), so category F (ARCA table).
Services quota F: integrated tax 78,573.20 + SIPA 29,386.76 + obra social 42,824.25 = ARS 150,784.21 a month.
CABA joined the unified Monotributo on 1 Jan 2026: AGIP's category F quota is ARS 112,880 a month, paid with the ARCA quota (AGIP page). The City code makes this tax payable even without taxable income (CABA Código Fiscal art. 288). Whether a monotributista whose income is all exempt service exports must pay it is not settled in the sources (unconfirmed).
Total: 4.8% of gross income nationally, 8.4% with the CABA quota.

Responsable inscripto, step by step

Gross ARS 37,533,600 less autónomo contributions, assumed at category I (ARS 78,271.56 a month from 15 Oct 2026, used for all 12 months as a simplification (unconfirmed)): ARS 939,258.72. Net ARS 36,594,341.28.
Less non taxable minimum ARS 6,019,671.36 and special deduction ARS 21,068,849.78 (ARCA annual 2026 table, art. 30 a) and c) 1) (unconfirmed). Taxable ARS 9,505,820.14.
Art. 94 scale: 607,607.96 + 15% of the excess over 7,010,861.05 = ARS 981,851.82.
VAT: zero on exports. IIBB in CABA: exempt for "exports of services effected abroad" (Código Fiscal art. 298(23)); whether remote work done in Argentina for a foreign client fits that wording should be confirmed with AGIP (unconfirmed).
Total ARS 1,921,110.54, 5.1% of gross, with no health coverage included and accountant fees not quantified.

Cost to do it: no registration fee for either regime is shown in the sources; switching to the general regime takes effect from the following month (art. 19) and is locked for 3 years.

Practical traps

Wrong exchange rate. ARCA says export invoices in foreign currency use the Banco Nación buying rate of the previous day, not MEP (ARCA export of services page). Your category is measured on that figure.
Bank deposits. Exclusion can follow when bank deposits do not match declared income (art. 20 e)). Keep invoices for every foreign payment.
Stale export duty warnings. ARCA's monotributo export page still describes an export duty on services. Decree 1201/2018 art. 1 set it only until 31 Dec 2021, and no later decree was found (unconfirmed).

FAQ

Can a monotributista invoice foreign clients? Yes, within category limits, using a type E invoice through "Comprobantes en línea"; no exporters register is needed (ARCA export page).

Do I have to sell the dollars? Individuals may credit service export proceeds to their own foreign currency account at a local bank without selling them, if fiscally neutral (BCRA Exterior y Cambios point 2.2.2.1, Com. A 8481; extended to all services by Com. A 8417).

When are categories reviewed? At the end of each calendar semester, with the new category applying from the second following month (art. 9).

If I leave voluntarily, can I come back? Not for 3 calendar years if you left to become a VAT registrant for the same activity (art. 19).

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.