ARCA Updates Procedures for Waiver of Criminal Complaint and Extinguishment of Tax Criminal Action, and Regulates Cases in Which No Complaint Will Be Filed

ARCA Updates Procedures for Waiver of Criminal Complaint and Extinguishment of Tax Criminal Action, and Regulates Cases in Which No Complaint Will Be Filed

Through Disposition 125/2026, published on September 30, 2026, the Customs Collection and Control Agency (Agencia de Recaudación y Control Aduanero, ARCA) approved a new internal procedure governing the waiver of criminal complaints, the extinguishment of criminal actions, and the cases in which no criminal complaint will be filed, following the amendments introduced by Law 27,799 to the Tax Criminal Regime (Régimen Penal Tributario, RPT).

The new disposition replaces the regime in force since 2018 and repeals Dispositions 192/2018, 53/2021 and 85/2023, although it keeps Form F. 3200 in effect for applying for the benefit under Article 16.

Disposition 125/2026 regulates the procedure that ARCA’s various departments must follow to apply Articles 16 and 19 of the RPT. It is primarily an internal operating rule of the agency, issued under Articles 4 and 6 of Decree 618/1997. It nonetheless has practical effects for taxpayers, since it establishes how the benefits and no-complaint cases provided by law will be implemented before ARCA.

The rule addresses two different situations. First, it covers the mechanisms that make it possible to avoid a criminal complaint or extinguish a criminal action when the taxpayer settles the tax obligations from which conduct punishable under the RPT could arise (Article 16, first and second paragraphs). Second, it covers the cases in which ARCA must refrain from filing a complaint under the criteria set out in Article 19 of the RPT.

1. Waiver of the criminal complaint (Article 16, first paragraph)

Annex I regulates the procedures applicable to the waiver of the criminal complaint provided for in the first paragraph of Article 16 of the RPT and to the extinguishment of the criminal action provided for in its second paragraph.

Under the first paragraph of Article 16, for the offenses set out in Articles 1, 2, 3, 5 and 6 of the RPT, ARCA will not file a complaint when the taxpayer unconditionally and fully pays the evaded, improperly obtained or improperly collected obligations, together with interest. This benefit may be used only once by each obligated individual or legal entity. In this case, the taxpayer must settle before the criminal complaint is filed.

Disposition 125/2026 sets out the internal procedure ARCA must follow both for agreed adjustments and for adjustments under administrative dispute (not agreed or challenged). If the competent legal department, through a report or legal opinion, considers that criminal charges are warranted and the remaining conditions are met (acceptance, unconditional and full payment, and no prior use of the benefit), the taxpayer must be notified of their right to use the Article 16 benefit.

The application is made through Form F. 3200, which must be submitted via “Presentaciones Digitales” (Digital Filings). If the taxpayer does not expressly apply or does not submit the form within 20 business days, ARCA will file the criminal complaint. The benefit may still be invoked in court under the second paragraph of Article 16 of the RPT.

Disposition 125/26 extends the period for using the benefit, since Disposition 192/2018 provided a 15-day period.

If criminal charges are not warranted, the case file must be sent to the competent department for the imposition or enforcement of the corresponding penalty.

2. Extinguishment of the criminal action (Article 16, second paragraph)

Annex I also establishes the procedure applicable when, once the criminal action has begun, the taxpayer seeks the extinguishment benefit provided for in the second paragraph of Article 16 of the RPT.

In these cases, the action may be extinguished if, within 30 business days after formal notice of the criminal charges, the taxpayer accepts and fully pays the obligations involved and their interest, plus an additional amount equal to 50% of the total sum.

The new Disposition provides that ARCA must verify compliance with these requirements. It does so upon receiving the court’s official letter, upon being given the opportunity to report on compliance with the Article 16 requirements, or upon notification of the order granting the benefit by the court handling the case. The additional 50% must be paid under the procedure established by General Resolution 5,882.

3. Cases in which ARCA will not file a criminal complaint (Article 19)

Finally, Annex II of Disposition 125/2026 establishes the procedure that the Tax Criminal Sections within the Legal Divisions of the Regional Directorates or of the Large Taxpayers Control Directorate must follow. It applies when they assess cases in which a tax criminal complaint is not appropriate under Article 19 of the RPT.

Article 19 of the RPT currently provides that ARCA will not file a criminal complaint when:

a. There is manifestly no punishable conduct. This may follow from the circumstances of the case or from the taxpayer’s behavior, where these show that the tax loss results from differences of opinion on the interpretation of the law or on technical accounting aspects of the tax computation. For this purpose, the relationship between the allegedly evaded amount and the total tax obligation for the period may also be considered.

b. The adjustment derives exclusively from presumptions. A complaint is also not appropriate when the adjusted tax or social security obligations result exclusively from the presumptions provided for in procedural laws and there is no other evidence proving the alleged offense.

c. The taxpayer previously disclosed the criterion used. Law 27,799 expressly added the case in which the taxpayer has disclosed, in a reasoned and duly justified manner, the interpretive or technical accounting criterion used to determine the tax obligation. For this ground to apply, the disclosure must be made before or at the same time as the tax return. The disclosed criterion must also not be a mechanism aimed at distorting the tax base. Disposition 125/2026 expressly includes this case among the elements that ARCA’s departments must analyze.

d. Tax returns are filed or amended before an audit. Finally, no complaint will be filed when original or amended tax returns are submitted before notice of the start of an audit for the tax and period involved.

Under the new Disposition, for the cases in subsections (a) and (b), the criminal departments must prepare a detailed report. The decision requires a legal opinion and the approval of the relevant authorities.

For the new cases in subsections (c) and (d), ARCA provides a specific procedure. A report must be prepared that expressly identifies the facts that place the conduct within those grounds. The criminal department, the Legal Division, and the Regional Directorate or Large Taxpayers Control Directorate, as applicable, must take part.

4. Effective date

The disposition took effect on September 30, 2026, the date of its publication in the Official Gazette (Boletín Oficial).