Originally published in Mercojuris on September 27, 2026. Reproduced on the MJE Foreign Trade website with the author's permission. Read the original article on Mercojuris
By Dr. Andrea Zavatto | Customs Law · Foreign Trade · Current Events | September 27, 2026
Resolution 29/2026 of the General Directorate of Customs raises a central question for the Courier regime: can a measure that modifies the operating conditions of a regime of general scope produce effects without official publication?
The act and its form of effectiveness
On September 22, 2026, the Director General of Customs signed Resolution RESOL-2026-29-E-ARCA-DGADUA. This resolution revokes the authorizations that allowed bonded warehouses to allocate space for courier operations under Point 15 of Annex IV of General Resolution No. 4352/18, and orders that these spaces be cleared within thirty calendar days. It also stipulates that pending procedures be completed in the jurisdiction where the merchandise is located and refers the procedural and release guidelines to the "International Shipments" microsite of ARCA. Article 4 orders its registration, notification to the entities authorized by the revoked resolutions, and communication to the Argentine Chamber of International Air Express Service Providers and the Chamber of Private Bonded Warehouses. It does not order its publication in the Official Gazette. At the time of writing, it was not possible to locate it in the Official Gazette, in InfoLEG or in the ARCA Electronic Library.
At first glance, the choice of medium seems coherent. If the Resolution only revokes authorizations granted to specific individuals, these would be acts of particular scope, and for such acts, notification is sufficient. However, the Resolution does not identify which resolutions it revokes. It refers generically to "those resolutions" issued by two General Sub-Directorates "or their dependent areas," without listing them. Furthermore, its effects extend to more people than just warehouse permit holders, since it revokes part of a General Resolution, which affects operators in general. It also affects courier services that operated in those spaces, and importers whose shipments passed through them—many of whom consumers who unknowingly act as importers—and, ultimately, to the functioning of the entire system, because the release process is now concentrated in the airport jurisdictions of entry. Furthermore, the Resolution delegates the procedural rules that will govern going forward to a website. This raises the fundamental question: can a measure that reorganizes where and how shipments are released under an entire simplified system take effect without official publication?.
The legal framework: publication vs. notification
The Law 19.549 It provides a clear answer regarding acts of general scope. Article 11, in its current version, establishes that for an administrative act of particular scope to become effective, it must be notified to the interested party, and for one of general scope, it must be published in the Official Gazette. The Regulations for Administrative Procedures follow the same line: acts of general scope take effect from their official publication, and if no date is specified, eight days after the day following that publication.
The Regulation itself provides for an exception, which is the strongest argument in favor of the Administration. Regulations concerning the Administration's organizational structure and internal orders, instructions, or circulars are exempt, taking effect without the need for publication. The question is whether a decision that mandates the vacating of private operational spaces within thirty days, postpones the completion of pending procedures, and modifies the release process for third parties outside the administrative organization can be classified as internal. The answer appears to be no. An internal instruction governs the conduct of the Agency's agents; this resolution, however, redefines the conditions under which private individuals operate.
A deadline with no certain starting point
The lack of publication also has a practical consequence that the resolution fails to address. Article 2 calculates the thirty days "from the date of entry into force of this resolution," but the text contains no effective date clause. Without publication and without an express date, the period has no definite starting point. If each deposit calculates it from its own notification, the regime will have as many effective dates as there are notifications, and the affected third parties will have none. This type of uncertainty is precisely one of the risks we seek to anticipate in our work on strategic foreign trade planning together with importing and exporting companies.
The international standard: GATT and Trade Facilitation
The analysis is not limited to domestic law. Article X of the GATT, The regulation, dedicated to the publication and application of trade regulations, stipulates that administrative provisions of general application relating to, among other matters, the transport, storage, and inspection of imported goods must be published promptly so that governments and traders can be informed. Its second paragraph adds that no measure of a general nature that imposes a new or more burdensome requirement, restriction, or prohibition on imports may be applied before its official publication. It is debatable whether the concentration of clearance in the airport zone constitutes a "more burdensome" requirement within the meaning of paragraph 2. However, the inclusion of the measure within the scope of paragraph 1 leaves little room for doubt: it regulates the storage and verification of imported goods.
The standard is reinforced by the Trade Facilitation Agreement of the WTO. Article 1 of the WTO Agreement obliges each Member to promptly publish, in a non-discriminatory and easily accessible manner, import, export, and transit procedures, including those applicable at ports, airports, and other points of entry. Article 2 stipulates that each Member, to the extent feasible and in accordance with its domestic law, shall provide traders and other interested parties with adequate opportunities and time to submit comments on proposals for new laws and regulations of general application relating to the movement, release, and clearance of goods. The "International Shipments" microsite could fulfill the online dissemination function envisaged by these agreements. However, it does not replace the official publication required by domestic law as a condition for effectiveness, nor does it substitute for the prior comment period that the resolution completely omitted.
A broader reflection
None of the above calls into question the objective of the measure. The Resolution itself acknowledges that the courier regime experienced exponential growth that exceeded its original projections, and it is reasonable for the customs service to want to concentrate control at a specific terminal. Nor is the precariousness of the authorizations in question. The issue invites broader reflection on a phenomenon that is not new in the customs practiceThe reorganization of general regimes through formally specific acts, notified to a few and communicated to sectoral chambers, whose effects reach an indeterminate universe of operators. Predictability is one of the central values of customs law and the multilateral system that Argentina has committed to respect, and it requires that acts that modify how goods circulate be published through the channel established by law.
You might also be interested in
- Strategic Planning of Foreign Trade
- Customs Law in Argentina
- Buying through international e-commerce: when the consumer is also an importer
- Trademark fraud: the silent risk of the digital importer
Do you need advice?
At MJE Comercio Exterior, we advise companies, bonded warehouses, and courier service providers on the analysis of the effectiveness and applicability of administrative acts that impact their operations, providing preventive solutions to minimize the risks of customs and exchange contingencies.
If your company needs specialized assistance, you can contact our team to analyze your operation and receive specific advice.
Author
Dr. Andrea Zavatto
Attorney – Specialist in Customs Law, Foreign Exchange Law, and Legal Metrology
Director – MJE Comercio Exterior SRL
Consulting Partner – MJE Global (USA)
General Directorate – Dumping Experts
Was DGA Resolution 29/2026 published in the Official Gazette?
No. The Resolution does not order its publication in the Official Gazette; it only provides for its registration and notification to the subjects authorized by the resolutions it repeals, in addition to its communication to the chambers of the sector.
Who is affected by the Resolution, beyond the notified tax custodians?
Its effects extend to a wider range of operators: courier service providers, importers whose shipments circulated through those spaces, and in general the entire functioning of the system, since the release becomes concentrated in the airport jurisdictions of entry.
When does the thirty-day period for vacating the spaces begin?
The regulation does not specify this with certainty. Article 2 calculates the period from the date the Resolution enters into force, but the text does not establish an express effective date nor was it officially published, which raises doubts about the starting point of the calculation.
What does international law require regarding the publication of customs regulations?
Article X of the GATT and the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement require that generally applicable administrative provisions relating to the transport, storage and inspection of imported goods be published promptly and in an accessible manner.