Argentina Grain Export Taxes Not Going Away Any Time Soon

Argentina’s President, Javier Milei, recently visited the largest agricultural fair in the country and reinforced his commitment to removing export taxes on grain exports. He did not indicate when the taxes might be removed, saying it will be done when macroeconomic conditions allow it to be done. Speculation is that the taxes could be removed sometime in late-2025, but that is uncertain.

The current export taxes are 33% for soybeans, 31% for soybean oil, 31% for soybean meal, 12% for corn, 12% for wheat, and 7% for sunflowers. The soybean crushers in Argentina use the 2% tax differential between soybeans and the products as their built-in profit margin.

Milei vowed to reduce or eliminate the taxes when he took office, but in an Omnibus Law he sent to Congress, it proposed a temporary increase in the export tax. The financial situation in the country remains dire and the government needs the revenue from the export taxes. The government did eliminate export taxes on beef and dairy cattle.

Argentine farmers complain bitterly that while they have a lower cost of production compared to Brazil or the United States, they have the highest tax burden making it difficult to generate a profit growing crops.

The higher tax burden on grain exports has forced some large farming companies to look to Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia for opportunities to expand their farming operations.

Tags: grain, soybean oil, soybeans, Beef, wheat, soybean meal, Argentina, export taxes, dairy cattle, corn, sunflower