Your Passport Can Save You Money at Argentine Hotels

(UPDATE 12-23-2019:  Hotels will only wave the tax fee if you use a foreign bank or ATM card. If you pay with cash or an Argentine card, they will charge you the IVA tax)

So here's how you can use your passport to save money at Argentine hotels. Next time you pay for your hotel stay, make sure to remind the front desk clerk that they shouldn't charge you the 21% tax fee (known as IVA). But this only works if you're a non-native or possess dual citizenship like I do.

We've stayed at the Mundial Hotel several times over the last (almost) 7 years and we saved some cash by showing our passports to the clerk. Once they verified our nationality, the next step was easy.

You'll have to pay with a debit or credit card to take advantage of this tax exemption. But you might find a hotel that will take cash and give you a tax break. This was just our experience with Mundial Hotel.

We paid 15,000 Argentine pesos (344.52 USD) for 5 nights at Mundial Hotel earlier this year and saved about 3,150 Argentine pesos (72.35 USD) with the tax break. When converting it to USD, the difference may not seem like a big deal. But whether you're saving $10 or $70, a discount is a discount. Think about it. You can use that extra 3,150 Argentine pesos to eat at a nice restaurant or buy something you didn't think was in your budget.

I know I wouldn't have blown 5,000 Argentine pesos (114.84 USD) on two items at a comic book store if it hadn't been for that tax discount. But that's a story for next time.