In a gesture towards the middle class and with the aim of promoting consumption, Minister Sergio Massa submitted to President Alberto Fernández a draft decree increasing to $ 880,000 the amount of gross salaries exempt from the payment of Income Tax on the half bonus that is paid before the end of the month.
In this way, the gross salary of dependent workers in both the public and private sectors rises from $ 506,230 to $ 880,000, which will be exempt from the payment of earnings on the first installment of the Christmas bonus. The $ 880,000 is equivalent to 10 minimum wages, vital and mobile. The SMVM in June is $87,987.
This increase in the cap (from $ 506,230 to $ 880,000) benefits 513,000 workers in a dependency relationship above those who were already exempt. Consequently, it is estimated that 95% of workers in a dependency relationship will not pay this tax on the half bonus.
How much is the average benefit per employee?
According to the Ministry of Economy, "the average pocket improvement per employee is $112,600." And as in the case of the Christmas bonus, the withholding of the tax is calculated month by month, the project proposes "to return what was withheld for these salaries in two monthly installments, equal and consecutive, together with the collection of the monthly remunerations accrued in the months of June and July".
In addition, the Ministry of Economy clarifies that "employers must expose the refund in a separate line of the salary receipt, clearly identifying the benefit of the measure."
In the fundamentals of the measure, Economia points out that it is "a one-time extraordinary benefit for workers who pay income tax with the aim of recomposing purchasing power and projecting that this improvement in the pocket salary translates into greater consumption and economic activity."
The gross fiscal cost of the measure would be about $ 50,000 million but Economy estimates that there will be an important recovery through the greater collection that should cause greater consumption.
Of the 513,000 workers benefited, 176,872 reside in the province of Buenos Aires, 110,285 in CABA, 42,576 in Santa Fe and 33,575 in Córdoba. The rest is distributed in figures in minors in the remaining Provinces.
By economic activity, the most benefited are employees in manufacturing (92,640), followed by education (70,938), financial intermediation and insurance (56,059), transport and storage services (43,570) and information and communications (41,633).
The gross salary exempt from earnings, including the Christmas bonus - differentiated from the non-taxable minimum - was established at the beginning of 2021 and was set at $ 150,000, with the power of the Government to update it.
In January of this year the amount exempt from profits already amounted to $ 404,062 gross. It was updated according to the variation of the RIPTE index (formal wage index) between October 2021 and the same month of 2022, which was 78.83%, below inflation.
Since then, the RIPTE until February 2023 in 4 months, increased 25.3% so since May the gross salary exempt from Earnings rose to $ 506,230.
Due to higher inflation, formal wages (RIPTE) are increasing at a faster rate. It was 9.8% in March and 9.8% also in April.
Consequently, it is discounted that with the dissemination of the RIPTE of May in the first days of July, the Government should raise again the salary amount exempt from the payment of Earnings, so that 90% of dependent workers continue exempt from the payment of Earnings.
It is discounted that the decree will be disseminated in the coming days so that companies can prepare wage settlements in term.
SN
