The Government will pay part of salaries of employees in a dependency relationship

The government decided to respond to calls for more drastic measures to help troubled companies and self-employed people whose incomes fell sharply due to quarantine.

In a decree whose text was leaked to the press on Sunday night, new measures are established, among which the establishment of a complementary salary for all workers in dependence on companies that have been impacted by the economic situation. The maximum amount of this aid will be two minimum wages, that is, about $ 34,000.

In fact, it involves doubling the assistance provided for in the previous decree, which capped aid for SMEs with less than 20 employees in a minimum wage.

The aid, as detailed in the text of the decree, expands the universe of beneficiaries and establishes that the payment will be for half the salary received in February, but with one floor it will be equivalent to the minimum wage, that is, $ 17,000.

The so-called Complementary Salary, “will consist of a sum paid by the Anses for all or part of the workers and dependent workers whose employers meet the established requirements.”

The amount of this allowance will be “equivalent to 50% of the worker’s net salary for the month of February 2020, not being able to be less than a sum equivalent to a minimum wage, vital and mobile or exceed two minimum wages, vital and mobile, or the total net salary for that month, “clarified the regulations.

Faced with this measure, the Ministry of Labor maintained that this translates into more direct assistance from the State. “There is no more REPRO, but a complementary wage for all workers under the private sector.”

More than 420,000 private employers had registered on the AFIP website to access the Work and Production Assistance Program (ATP).

In addition, it is expected that small taxpayers and self-employed have access to zero-rate credit lines, that is, fully subsidized, with a guarantee from the national State. These people had been excluded from the aid established in the previous decrees, where assistance had only been provided for monotributistas of the two lowest income categories.

The conditions for these interest-free loans will be set by the Head of Cabinet and by the National Bank.

For this measure, other previous provisions were modified by which the State constituted a guarantee fund that allowed to accelerate the granting of credits by the banking system. The decree increases these guarantees with the aim of expanding the universe of beneficiaries.

For this reason, it is established that the new National Productive Development Fund will subsidize all interest and the financial cost. The Head of Cabinet will readjust budget items, in order to assign to this point the sum of $ 11,000 million.

In addition, the Ministry of Productive Development will be authorized to change the destination of uncommitted funds, in order to transfer those resources to trust funds that allow financing to the private sector.

Furthermore, an increase in the subsidy to the unemployed was arranged. The decree raises the sum to a maximum of $ 10,000.

The aid established in the decree expands the universe of companies and taxpayers reached in previous measures, given that it establishes the date of March 12 as the beginning of the problems derived from the fall of the activity. And it also establishes that, even when the quarantine can be lifted, also the beneficiaries whose cases justify it will be able to continue enjoying the special benefits until October.

The most important points of the DNU

• Complementary salary for all workers under the private sector.
• Zero rate loans for monotributistas and self-employed with a guarantee from the National State that will pay the interest.
• The reduction in employer contributions is maintained.
• Unemployment insurance will be $ 6,000 to $ 10,000.
• Everything will become a supplementary salary up to 50% of the net salary and cannot be less than a living and mobile salary. You cannot exceed two vital and mobile wages.
• Those who registered until Friday in the REPRO will reconvert to this system.

Credits for freelancers and monotributistas

Meanwhile, the 0% rate credit for independent workers (monotributistas and self-employed) will be granted to Those who have “substantial drops in their billing”. The idea of ​​the Ministry of Productive Development is to implement it through a credit card.

The loan amount, according to official sources, will be related to the average billing of each category.

“The loan will be equivalent to one month of billing and is granted for three months, with a maximum of $ 150,000 in total,” they explained and added that “the loan foresees six months of grace and will be repaid in twelve installments, at a 0% rate. The guarantees are granted by the State, which also bears the cost of the fee. “

Financing will be disbursed in three equal and consecutive monthly installments. Also, unemployment insurance will be from $ 6,000 to $ 10,000.

Until now, there have been no measures related to State aid to these self-employed sectors. There was only the Emergency Family Income (IFE), but it was limited only to categories A and B of the monotax.

The decree also establishes that this package of measures may be extended “until June 30, inclusive“Although” for the activities, companies and independent workers that continue to be affected by the measures of social distancing, even when the preventive and compulsory social isolation has ended, the benefits may extend until the month of October 2020 inclusive. “

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