Comments on: Argentina’s Unofficial Tourist Tax

By: Argentina’s Tax Revenue on Rise

Argentina’s Tax Revenue on Rise — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 17:00:47 +0000

[...] likely due to a surge in exports of fuel and grains, Argentina’s tax revenue rose 38 percent to 24.3 billion pesos ($7.3 billion) in October, the second highest level [...]

By: César González

César González — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 12:58:14 +0000

Whoops, thanks for the correction on the Aerolineas prices Dan. That price difference makes much more sense now.

By: Dan

Dan — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 11:51:33 +0000

It’s not quite that – Aerolineas for example does not, at all, charge residents in pesos and non-residents in dollars creating a 1/3 price. They simply have two prices – and the difference is about 40% – and they flat out state that it’s a discount for residents because it’s a “state supported” airline. Same with municipal theaters, government run attractions (like the amusement park in Tigre or the zoo in B.A.). It’s not that unusual for countries to offer “taxpayers” a discount – same thing is true in places like Macchu Pichu in Peru, it’s half price for citizens to go there, and there are places in the U.S. that do similar things. That’s entirely different from the local “gringo tax” – which involves non-posted prices, unlike the sign (Argentina has always used the $ sign for the peso, since the days they were pegged together) – though I’m sure there are some out there who take advantage of that. The gringo or tourist tax is one where someone who doesn’t look like they’re from here is simply quoted a higher price than someone who looks like they are would be. I’ve been quoted prices that were obviously high many a time, I flash my DNI, make a joke about the tax, and get the “real” price.

By: Tim Patterson

Tim Patterson — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 06:23:15 +0000

Ha – that sign cracked me up. I can’t blame the vendor at all. Reminds me – tangentially – of friends who put a sign out in Vermont for tourists:

“Fresh Dingleberries. Pick Your Own.”