Foreign investors setting up in Argentina generally choose among a few standard vehicles. The right one depends on who the owners are, how much capital is involved, and how quickly the business needs to be operating.
The main entity types
Most foreign-backed businesses fall into one of three structures:
- Sociedad Anónima (S.A.) — the corporation, generally suited to larger or investment-bound businesses.
- Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada (S.R.L.) — the limited-liability company, common for closely held businesses.
- Sociedad por Acciones Simplificada (SAS) — a simplified, digital-first vehicle designed for faster formation.
Foreign individuals and companies can generally be shareholders in these vehicles, subject to registration.
The steps
The path to an operating entity typically runs in this order:
- Reserve the company name and prepare the bylaws.
- Register the company with the corporate registry — the Inspección General de Justicia (IGJ) in the City of Buenos Aires, or the relevant provincial registry elsewhere.
- Obtain the tax ID (CUIT) from the tax authority (AFIP).
- Register a foreign parent or shareholder as required.
What foreign investors should plan for
A few requirements tend to drive the timeline. Expect to provide a local domicile and representative; apostilled and certified-translated copies of foreign corporate documents, with a traductor público translation (see our Argentina apostille guide); and powers of attorney executed and authenticated for use in Argentina. There are also banking steps to open the company's accounts. A gap in the authentication chain — a missing apostille, an uncertified translation, a power of attorney that wasn't properly legalized — is the usual cause of delay.
What we handle
For Argentina, we coordinate the full formation through admitted local professionals, along with the apostille, translation, and power-of-attorney work foreign shareholders need. You get one point of contact reporting back through each step.