Inflation in Argentina

I must say that I feel like my grandfather whenever I say, “Yes, I remember the day when a Fernet and Coke was just 8 pesos.”

Unlike my grandfather who is referencing the 1930s when talking about prices, however, I am referencing 2006. For those of you have been in Argentina for a couple years, I know you too have reminisced about the golden days of ridiculously inexpensive prices. While prices in Buenos Aires are still very much a bargain when compared to those in the US or Europe, the average gringo can no longer spend money like Mike Tyson after his first payday. Many of us have only read about inflation in text books, but it is a fact of life here in Argentina, a fact of life to which one is forced to adapt.

Truth is, inflation is as old as paper money. In the 1920s, the German Reichsmark went from an exchange rate of four per dollar to four trillion per dollar. It was so valueless that it was used as wall paper and as fire kindling. In 1981, Argentina had a $1,000,000 note and prices changed by the minute. Argentines have told me jokingly (or maybe not) that they would drink in the morning because by the evening the price of beer would be more expensive. And even more recently, Zimbabwe has been experiencing an inflation rate of 13.2 trillion percent per month.

It’s hard not to let out a chuckle when thinking of people using banknotes for wallpaper and a Coca-Cola costing $1,000,000,000,000 Zimbabwe Dollars. However, inflation is no laughing matter because it leads to serious human suffering. Demoralized Germans fell for a charismatic megalomaniac, an out of control currency which helped provide fertile grounds for a golpear militar in Argentina, and Zimbabweans are currently experiencing a surge in brutal violence.

Finish reading the article on LandingPad BA.

Job Search can be hard!

Making the assumption that the aim of a successful job search is to secure a position is not entirely true. To be successful in any job search, you must secure a position that suits you and your personal requirements. Define the type of organization or environment in which you choose to work. Consider all aspects of the business that will specifically impact you, i.e. Management Structure, Culture, Location, Products, Services, Size amongst others. Consider the factors that personally influence you and analyze the considerations that would make it a perfect role.

Once all these considerations have been reviewed and you are satisfied with your answers you may begin to formulate and construct your resume in a manner, which allows you to target the correct job market.

Do not be under any false illusions; a job is not just a job. To be successful you must be 100% motivated to perform effectively and to gain the type of job satisfaction you deserve. Bearing in mind that there will never be one specific job made just for you, give yourself the scope to locate a position that meets your needs. Format your resume so that it may define your suitability for a variety of roles based on your skills and personal attributes.

The advancement of the Internet has changed many of our lives and one particular area is access to the Job Market.

The Internet is being used to give job hunters a competitive advantage if they are prepared to put in the time and do the research. As a tool it is becoming more widely used and accessible, don’t discount it, it is now a Mecca for head-hunters, recruitment agencies, job postings and careers fairs. It gives major benefits to both the job seeker and to employers in both it’s speed and convenience.

Think about the old methods of job seeking, rushing out to get the new edition of each paper, trawling through the job adds, placing the all important phone call and drafting a cover letter that specifically targets the information contained within the advert.


Finish Reading the article on Argentina Travel.

Independent Contractors vs. Employees

We have a question that comes today about hiring employees vs. independent contractors.

Reader's Question
Can a US company that does not have a legal presence in Argentina hire an independent contractor (argentinian national or other national) to do work in Argentina on behalf of a global contract. Client’s client wants some temporary work performed in Argentina. Can client craft an IC contract or insist that the Argentinian national become a sole proprietor and not end up as a defacto employee. This could be occasional work, eg auditing.

I am aware some countries are very strict about IC arrangements and therefore deem IC’s employees and then end up resulting in permanent establishments for tax purposes. I am aware Argentina is fairly pro labor.

How to Set-up an Independent Contractor Arrangement in Argentina
The proper way to setup this arrangement would be to ask the worker to register either as a monotributista or in the regimen general (depending on how much he will be charging). After that, he'll need to register as an exporter with the customs office (since he will be performing services for export). This second step wouldn't be necessary if the company had a presence in Argentina.

Each time he needs to receive a payment, he will issue you an invoice with an "E" (for export) at the top. These invoices are numbered starting at 00000001. You can then wire transfer the funds to his account and he can collect the funds by presenting his copy of the "E" invoice to his bank.

Independent Contractors vs. Employees
Even though you may ask him to sign an independent contractor contract, in Argentina, labor rights cannot be renounced willingly by an employee. The labor courts can very well rule that your arrangement is a simulated independent contractor arrangement and that it was being used to cover up the employee/employer relationship. This is something that happens frequently in Argentina due to the fact that it is extremely costly to maintain employees on the payroll (due to social security charges).

How does the court determine if the employee is actually an independent contractor? The same way they do in the United States. They look to see whether you were the only employer of this person (i.e. checking the invoices). If you are receiving sequentially numbered invoices from the worker, you know that you are the only employer and you're putting yourself at risk. If you are paying monthly invoices that always have the same amount, it looks like a wage instead of pay for a specific work product. They also look to see where the work was performed, who provided the materials to complete the work, whether the worker was directed in his work, or whether he worked independently and was paid for a finished product.

Read more, go to argentinabusiness.blogspot

Your Planet Ambassador Program

Description: The YouPlanet Ambassador program enables you to earn money while traveling. As a YouPlanet ambassador, you will approach hotels, restaurants and experience providers and offer them the opportunity to become partners which will enable them to reach travelers worldwide. The Partner pays a yearly fee of which you as an ambassador get a large share, transferred directly to your online e-wallet account.

By being a YouPlanet ambassador, you can travel to places around the world earning instead of spending money. With only a few sign-ups every week you will earn more than enough money to explore the world.

Highlights: We want three things with YouPlanet:

- Enable our users to earn money while they are out traveling

- Our users to have access to a great travel community where they, among other things, will be able to find updated information from smaller hotels, hostels, restaurants and experience providers

- Let these smaller hotels, hostels, restaurants, and experienced providers get online with tools they manage themselves and reach an international base of travelers that has not been accessible before.

Therefore we have created the YouPlanet ambassador program. You will get the chance to finance your trip - while you are on the road!

Qualifications: Social, English language skills

Job Types :

Marketing, Ad, PR Sales Tourism

Salary / Pay: Provision based salary - up to 60 euros per sale!

Experience Required: no

This Program is open to American, Australian, Canadian, European, Kiwi, South African and Worldwide Participants.

Participants Travel Independently.

For more info, visit Jobs Abroad.

WORK IN ARGENTINA

Find a job in Argentina is not easy, there are many Argentines scrambling for work, although there are plenty work opportunities in Non-governmental Organizations in Buenos Aires, almost always is a voluntary work, by example, in the national parks system. There are occasionally opportunities as a paying volunteer in environmental and archaeological projects with the Earth-watch Institute, 57 Woodstock Rd, Oxford OX2 6HJ,

There are no restrictions or quotas for the employment of foreigners in Argentina, while they fulfill immigration regulations.

Foreigners need to have a valid residence permission, local regulations on immigration establish three sorts of residence: permanent, temporary and transitory. To set up any business in Argentina its necessary to have permanent or temporary residence.

A work visa is required, this visa is issued by the Direccion Nacional de Migraciones de Argentina (National Directorate of Migration), exists a charge for making a visa application.

The main work visas issued are:

• Visas issued for short term work in Argentina (if initial validity of 15 days and can be extended for another 15 days once);
• Temporary Residence Visa, for labour contract, this visa is issued for employees on internships contracted by companies in Argentina, employees will be treated a local employees; by example,a Unique Code of Labor Identification CUIL (Código Único de Identificación Laboral) has to be applied as well, the minimum duration is 6-12 months;
• Secondment-Temporary Residence Visa, this visa es issued to employees send abroad by their companies for at least 6-12 months. A labour contract is not required.

To engage foreign workers the work contract shall obey with current labour legislation in all the national territory.

To apply for a work visa, is necessary fulfill the following requirements:

• Work contract with the company in Argentina.
• Birth certificate, translated into Spanish by a certified translator.
• Marital certification, translated into Spanish by a certified translator (if an application is being made for a spouse).
• Passport with a minimum validity of 18 months remaining (for each family member).
• Three passport photo’s for each family member (4x4; preferably light blue background; ¾ profile right side).

foreigners with previous work contract must fulfill the following requisites to get into the country:

• Labour contract signed by the employer and the contracted foreigner, with the signature certified by public attorney or agent of the National Immigrations Office.
• Statutes or company’s incorporation contract, duly recorded.
• Proof of payment to pension fund by the employer for all employees in the last six (6) months.
• Proof of record in the tax system and compliance of the last three (3) due payments.
• Tax Revenue Office Form stating payroll at the beginning of the company’s activity.
• Municipal authorization to operate (if applicable).

Keep reading the article on Argentina Travel

Uncertainty: The Only Certainty In Argentina Business

Doing business in Argentina means living with uncertainty. Due to the foibles of each government, long-term planning isn't really possible and one could even say shouldn't be attempted. Anyone initiating any kind of business venture in Argentina needs to think about recovering all the money invested (and making a profit) in fewer than 5 years. A few examples I can think of businesses that have been destroyed by the government's administrative decisions:

• Lunch ticket companies (the government began to tax these tickets as normal wages and thus caused their elimination from the market)
• Private pension funds (the government appropriated all "AFJP" funds)
• All producers of products in the consumer price index (price controls)
• Farmers (brutal increase in export taxes)
• Utilities (price controls)
• Airlines (price controls & official interference by the Transport Ministry)
• Public transit (price controls / constantly changing subsidy regimes)
  
• Energy (price controls)

The list goes on and on. These are just some recent examples I thought of in about a minute or two. If I were to put together a comprehensive list, it would be much larger. All these industries have seen their conditions change dramatically through decisions by the government to either impose price controls, increase taxes to confiscatory levels, or in the case of Aerolineas Argentinas, destroy the company outright by fomenting union agitation to a level that renders the company totally inoperable.

"Normal" Surprises
In addition to brutal government changes that can effect an entire sector (such as what I described above), businesspeople should be prepared for more "normal" surprises that can arrive in the form of union negotiated pay raises or government decrees giving pay raises or special bonuses to employees.

read the full article on argentinabusiness.blogspot.

Mate-Argentina's National Drink video

How to prepare an Argentine mate!



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Job Opportunities. US Embassy

The Human Resources Office provides human resources and recruitment services to the U.S. Embassy Buenos Aires. We cannot help you seek employment in other organizations either in Argentina, the United States or other countries. Since we do not have a database you will need to submit your resume every time you want to apply for a vacancy. Please send your resume ONLY if you are applying for any of the positions listed below.

We generally advertise positions for ten working days. Vacancies are deleted after the closing date. Therefore, we suggest visiting this page periodically for an updated list of vacancies.

An applicant must either be an Argentine citizen or have the required work and/or residency permit allowing the individual to work in Argentina before applying for any of the positions below. Applicants will be asked to provide documentation to support their legal right to work in Argentina, in accordance with Argentine Migration Law No. 22.439.

Please note that if you are selected for a position within the Embassy you will be required to go through an Embassy Security Investigation prior to your appointment.

Our Human Resources Office might contact you to request the submission of certificates or documents that support the information in your resume (e.g. school degrees, course certificates) if it is deemed necessary.

Read more on argentina.usembassy.gov

WHAT IS Bueno, entonces... exactly?

Bueno, entonces... is the best selling language-learning program for the iPhone, now available on DVD and instant download! Featured by Apple as New & Noteworthy, tens of thousands are already learning Spanish with Bueno, entonces…

Taking the most effective elements from traditional audio books and software programs, Bueno, entonces... has revamped language-learning by incorporating those features into a 1-on-1 Spanish lesson format, where you sit in on private classes with fresh audio/visual teaching tools, a huge improvement over programs currently available on the market.

Bueno, entonces... takes you inside 30 private Spanish lessons with Jimena, a gorgeous Spanish instructor, and David, her jackass student from London as he learns Spanish in beautiful Buenos Aires. Like learn-Spanish reality TV, but without the guilt of getting addicted, because in just 5 weeks you'll be speaking Spanish conversationally.

Developed by world-class linguists and seasoned comedy writers, Bueno, entonces... is the most entertaining, effective language program available. Instead of your Spanish lessons being torture, you’ll look forward to every class and want to watch them over and over again!

Bueno, entonces… is the only learn-Spanish program offering true Spanish language immersion. We relocated personnel from 6 countries to produce on-location in Latin America so students get a taste of authentic language and cultural immersion.

To learn more about Bueno, entonces, go to General Linguistics.

US dollar ends at ARG$ 3.83

Local exchange market

The American currency traded for ARG$ 3.83/ARG$ 3.79, remained unchanged compared to yesterday's close in the main banks and foreign exchange houses in Buenos Aires downtown.

The US dollar increases 10.4 percent since January.

Read more on Ambito.

"One semester of Spanish" video. Really fun!!!

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WORK PERMIT IN ARGENTINA

In general, a foreign applicant (the "employee") assigned to work in another country must evidence a degree of proprietary knowledge, specialized skills, or managerial/ executive-level skills that are not readily available in the destination country's domestic labour market.

The following is a general summary of the types of employment visa categories that are common to corporate, international transfers into Argentina.

"Regularization" of immigration status from Visitor status to Work Status

A foreign national employee from a bordering country can convert his or her immigration status from a Visitor status to Work status while remaining in Argentina; however, this process may take upwards of six months to conclude.

During the "regularization" period, nationals from a bordering country can apply for a special certificate, called a "Certificate of Precarious Residence" which will allow these nationals to reside, work, study, and re-enter Argentina while the long-term work and residence permits are awaiting approval. These are specialized applications that will require the review of this firm's Argentine immigration advisor.

For those nationals coming from non-bordering countries, these nationals CANNOT regularize status in Argentina from a Visitor to a Work status. While the application to obtain work status can be made directly with the DNM, non-bordering foreign nationals are not allowed to work in Argentina. Non-border nationals can physically remain in Argentina as a visitor while the work permit application is pending approval; however, once the work permit application is approved, the employee and family members must return to their country of legal residence to apply for the work and residence visa.

Types of Work Visas

The major types of Argentine employment visa categories are as follows:

A) Article 29 (e) Visa – Valid for providing short-term, temporary work duties (or technical duties) while in Argentina. This visa is valid for an initial period of 15 days and can be issued by either an Argentine consular post or by Migrations in Argentina. This visa can be renewed for an additional 15 days with the migration authorities in Argentina. This visa requires prior approval of the migrations authorities and is generally required for visa nationals of non-bordering countries if in Argentina for short visits while the migrations authorities process a long-term work permit application.

B) Article 23 (A) Visa ("Labour Contract - Temporary Residence" Visa) – This visa is designed for those employees who are contracted by corporations settled in Argentina for at least a 6 – 12 month period AND will be assigned to the Argentine payroll as a "localized" employee. If the employee is to be paid from the Argentine payroll. A formal Labour Contract must be executed between the employee and the Argentine sponsor. This visa requires prior approval from the migrations authorities prior to applying for this visa at an Argentine consular post.

C) Article 23 (E) Visa ("Secondment -Temporary Residence" Visa) under Provision 18/94 – This visa is designed for those employees who are transferred to Argentina by a subsidiary corporation or from the same corporation group, for at least a 6 – 12 month period. This is the typical type of transfer for most assignments to Argentina. This visa does not require a Labour Contract but prior approval from the migrations authorities prior to applying for this visa at an Argentine consular post.

Read full article on Allo' Expat.

Argentina's map

To find more maps of Argentina and other countries, visit Visiting Argentina.