Legal framework

The rules that govern your purchase

Argentina has a clear, long-standing legal framework for property ownership by foreigners. This page explains the laws that will touch your purchase and what each one means for you in practice.

1. Foreigners can own property

The Argentine Constitution (article 20) gives foreigners the same civil rights as citizens, including the right to buy, own and sell real estate. There is no residency, visa or citizenship requirement to own urban property, and no restriction on the number of properties or on renting them out. Title is held in your own name, or in the name of a company if you prefer.

2. The one exception: rural land

Law 26.737 (Rural Land Protection Regime, 2011) limits foreign ownership of rural land: no more than 15% of the rural land in the country and in each province may be foreign-owned, no single foreign owner may hold more than 1,000 hectares in the core agricultural zone (or the equivalent elsewhere), and land containing large permanent bodies of water is excluded. Separately, Decree-Law 15.385/44 requires prior authorization to buy in border security zones.

In practice: apartments, houses and lots in cities and towns are not affected. Córdoba is in the centre of the country, far from any border zone. If you are interested in a farm or a large rural plot, tell us early and we will check your specific case. A reform of Law 26.737 is being debated in Congress in 2026; we will update this page if it passes.

3. Your Argentine tax ID: the CUIT

Every party to a property deed needs an Argentine tax identification number. Since 2 March 2026 (ARCA General Resolution 5803/2025), the number for a non-resident individual is the CUIT; the older "CDI" no longer exists for individuals. The application is filed online, through the tax authority's Presentaciones Digitales service, by a representative with an Argentine address, with a copy of your passport, proof of your address abroad and a power of attorney. You do not have to travel. Our accountant handles it; it typically takes two to four weeks.

4. Powers of attorney and foreign documents

A document signed abroad is valid in Argentina if it is either signed at an Argentine consulate (no further formality needed) or signed before a local notary and legalized with an apostille under the Hague Convention of 1961, to which Argentina and most of our clients' countries belong. Documents in a language other than Spanish must be translated by a sworn translator registered in Argentina. We prepare the wording and tell you which route is simpler from where you live.

5. Who may sell you a property: Córdoba's brokerage law

Provincial Law 9445 regulates real estate brokerage in the Province of Córdoba. Only a broker registered with the Colegio Profesional de Corredores Públicos Inmobiliarios (CPI) may intermediate in a sale, and the broker signs the reservation and the preliminary contract as the responsible professional. This protects you: the broker is accountable for having verified the property and the seller before you commit money.

Buy in Argentina is not a brokerage. Your case manager guides you and coordinates the process; every transaction is intermediated and signed by our partner broker, Yanina Pescetti, CPI registration no. 7286.

6. How ownership is transferred: the Civil and Commercial Code

Under the National Civil and Commercial Code (article 1017), a sale of real estate must be made by public deed (escritura pública), signed before a notary public called an escribano. Ownership passes when the deed is signed and the property is delivered; the deed is then registered at the provincial registry (in our case, the Registro General de la Provincia de Córdoba), which makes it enforceable against third parties.

Before the deed, parties often sign a preliminary contract (boleto de compraventa, article 1170) with a partial payment. Before either, the escribano runs a title study: chain of ownership, mortgages, liens, embargoes, unpaid property taxes and utilities, and the seller's legal capacity to sell. The escribano is a public officer who is personally liable for the validity of the deed, which is why this step is never skipped.

7. Taxes and closing costs

• Stamp tax (impuesto de sellos): a provincial tax on the deed, a percentage of the price, customarily shared between buyer and seller.
• Registration and notary fees: registry fees plus the escribano's professional fee, usually borne by the buyer.
• Broker's commission: in Córdoba, customarily paid by both parties, each a percentage of the price.
• Transfer tax on the seller: the former ITI was repealed in July 2024 (Law 27.743). Sellers of properties acquired after 2018 may owe income tax on the gain; this is the seller's cost, not yours.
• After the purchase: annual provincial and municipal property taxes, and, for non-residents, the national personal assets tax (Bienes Personales) on Argentine assets above a threshold, filed through a local substitute taxpayer. Our accountant files it for you each year.

Together, closing costs usually amount to a single-digit percentage of the price. Before you reserve a property we give you a written, itemized estimate for that property.

8. Bringing the money in

Property in Argentina is priced and paid in US dollars. Funds from abroad enter through the regulated foreign-exchange system (MULC) via an Argentine bank or an authorized transfer channel. The escribano is required by the Financial Information Unit (UIF) rules to document the origin of funds for every real estate deed, so you will be asked for evidence such as bank statements or a sale contract. We tell you exactly what to prepare, and which transfer route costs what, before you move any money.

9. Your data

To run your purchase we handle personal data including your passport. How we protect it, where it is stored and your rights over it are described in our privacy policy. Argentine Law 25.326 on personal data protection applies, and for residents of the EU and the UK we also follow the GDPR and UK GDPR.