The norm, in detail
The RAF stops being an automotive privilege: tax-suspended inputs for all of industry
DNU 252/2026 (Official Gazette Apr 17, 2026)
in forceNATIONAL
Trade opening
What changed and who it applies to
What changed
The DNU rewrites the RAF (Decree 688/2002), which in practice operated narrowly for the automotive sector via sector-level agreements. It replaces Article 1, the first and second paragraphs of Article 3, Article 6 and Article 8 of Decree 688/2002:(1) direct, universal access — any owner of an industrial facility located in the country can register, with no prior sector agreement;(2) a new 'associated supplier' figure — suppliers to enrolled facilities can import under the regime goods that feed a production process whose output is an intermediate good destined for those facilities;(3) ARCA has a maximum of 60 days to rule (Art. 3);(4) guarantees under the procedure the agency stipulates, per Article 453 of Law 22,415 and Decree 1001 (Art. 6);(5) the power to exclude non-compliant participants. How the benefit works: imported inputs enter with taxes suspended; if the final product is exported, they are never paid; if it goes to the domestic market, they are paid. verif · Apr 17, 2026 ↗
In force
2026-04-17 verif · Apr 17, 2026 ↗
Who it affects
Manufacturing exporters across the country (auto parts, farm machinery, metalworking, hydrocarbons/Vaca Muerta services, food) and their SME input suppliers, which for the first time enter the regime as 'associated suppliers'. Also customs brokers and foreign-trade operators. verif · Apr 17, 2026 ↗
The norm
DNU 252/2026 (art. 99 inc. 3 of the National Constitution), signed on Apr 16, 2026 and published in the BO on Apr 17, 2026. It amends Decreto 688/2002, which created the RAF. The correct number of the parent decree is 688/2002 (some press outlets cited it wrongly as 688/2022). verif · Apr 17, 2026 ↗
Our reading
The RAF stops being a perk reserved for the auto industry: any manufacturer can import inputs with taxes suspended and bring its suppliers into the chain, without negotiating a sector-specific agreement with the State. Less red tape, more export competitiveness (R4 · opening and deregulation). thesis
Where it lands, province by province1
Neuquén Vaca Muerta services and industry are named by the Government itself among the sectors that now gain access to the RAF: metalworking and equipment suppliers can import inputs with taxes suspended if their output feeds intermediate goods for the chain — lowering the cost of manufacturing locally versus importing finished goods. favorable opening and deregulation thesis
The other rules on this subject14
Importing without a prior permit: from the SIRA to the informational SEDIRes. 1/2023 Trade Secretariat + Joint GR AFIP-Trade 5466/2023 (Official Gazette Dec 26, 2023)in force
Mercosur–EU ratified: 450 million consumers open up to agriculture and industryLaw 27,800 (Official Gazette Feb 26, 2026); provisional application from May 1, 2026in force
Argentina and the US sign their first trade and investment agreementBilateral agreement signed Feb 5, 2026 (no number; submitted to Congress)pending
Industrial export taxes to zero: chemicals, metals and autos export duty-freeDecree 566/2026 (Official Gazette Jul 1, 2026)in force
Ignacio Aredez· Chief analyst
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