Please be advised of the following  new regulations and processes that have commenced in Argentina as of February 2012.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

• Argentina Federal Tax Authorities (AFIP) – Early Import Declaration System: AFIP’s General Resolution 3252 requires that all importers file a declaration providing the tax authorities with certain information related to all importations. AFIP estimates that the average time to process and declaration will be from 3 to 10 days. Note that this additional process will affect the total transit time of importations since a declaration needs to be accepted and approved before an import can arrive into the country. For more information please review this link

The declarations are submitted by a customs broker on behalf of an Importer. We are in negotiations with our contracted customs brokers in Argentina to determine a cost for the process these declarations will require. We hope to have a final determination on the related costs shortly.

• ANMAT (MOH) Fee: The Ministry of Health in Argentina has increased the fee associated with the import declarations (15 point form) required for each importation. The fee has increased from $100.00 to $250.00 USD. As of now this increase is only applicable to import declarations.
• Customs Manifest Fee: The government of Argentina has imposed a new Customs Fee on shipments originating in, destined to or transiting through Argentina that began on Feb. 1st. A fee of $25.00 USD will be assessed to each responsible party (Carrier & Importer/Shipper) for each manifest transmitted to Argentina Customs. These charges result in a total cost of $50.00 USD per manifest declared that will be assessed to Marken.

In summary the regulations and new processes described above will result in a significant financial impact for the transactions involving Argentina. Marken is working with all the agencies involved as well as our local contractors and suppliers to minimize this impact as much as possible for our clients. We will maintain all interested parties advised of our progress and any new developments that should arise.

 Should you require any specific or additional details concerning these matters, please contact your local Marken representative or Customs Service department in US: +800 Marken1   www.marken.com