ARGENTINA Trends and Developments Contributed by: Jorge Radovich, Liza Pozzi and Matias Bongiorno, Radovich & Asociados
When Argentine Customs detects a discrepancy between the quantities stated in the bills of lading and the quantities actually unloaded, the ship’s agent has 48 hours to provide a reasonable explanation for the difference (Article 142, Argentine Customs Code). If the discrepancy in cargo weight is not duly justified, Argentine Customs presumes – without admitting evi - dence to the contrary – that the missing quantity has been imported for consumption. Consequently, the shipper and the shipping agent are obliged to pay the import duties and taxes applicable to this fictitious import operation. Furthermore, if the missing quantities exceed certain thresholds – 2% for liquid cargoes and 4% for bulk solids – the situation constitutes a customs offence for inaccurate declaration, resulting in a fine ranging from one to five times the CIF value of the missing cargo. Customs Resolution No 4138-E/2017 provides that the choice of the method used to determine the weight of the discharged cargo lies with the importer, who may opt either for customs-approved shore scales or for the draft survey system. In practice, importers frequently choose shore scales, a method that does not allow for any tolerance mar - gins in the event that discrepancies are detected. By contrast, the draft survey system allows for a toler - ance margin of 0.6% or 2.54 tonnes per centimetre (TPC), whichever is greater. Conclusion While each case must be assessed on its own specific facts and circumstances, experience shows that the implementation of preventive strategies and asset-risk mitigation measures places vessels, ship-owners and operators in a significantly more advantageous posi - tion when facing potential customs contingencies in Argentina. Moreover, in cases where a customs claim has already materialised, timely follow-up, specialised legal advice and an appropriate defence strategy have repeatedly proven to be decisive in achieving a substantial reduc - tion of the amounts claimed by the Argentine Customs
Authority and, in many cases, in limiting or avoiding the imposition of penalties altogether. The Paraguay–Paraná Waterway The last point we consider important to mention relates to the system known as the “Paraguay–Par - aná Waterway”. This is a natural international river system stretch - ing 3,442 km along the Paraguay and Paraná rivers, which facilitates economic, commercial and opera - tional integration between Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Argentina and Uruguay, as a result of the international integration agreement known as the Paraguay–Par - aná Waterway River Transport Agreement (Puerto Cáceres–Nueva Palmira). This continuous river navigation route is widely used by the five countries that signed the agreement to transport bulk cargo, such as soybeans, corn, wheat and their derivatives (flour, oils, etc), as well as other plant-based cargo, iron ore and fuels. Paraguay currently transports a cargo volume of around 20 million tonnes, and Argentina exports approximately 120 million tonnes of plant-based car - go to the world via this route. Traffic on this corridor has been increasing exponen - tially year on year, making it an extremely important tool for regional and international trade in South Amer - ica.
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