Overview
- An SEC filing shows Mercado Libre booked $50 million in income‑tax exemptions and $17 million in social‑security credits in January–September 2025, totaling $67 million and running about 50% above the same period in 2024.
- The benefits stem from the Economy of Knowledge promotion regime, which approved Mercado Libre in 2021 and grants reduced income tax on promoted activities and a fiscal credit usable against national taxes.
- Mercado Libre maintains it complies with the law and argues the incentives are outweighed by its tax burden, citing $1.128 billion in its own taxes and $2.081 billion withheld in 2024 and stating it “tributes 20 times more” than it receives.
- Journalistic tallies based on the company’s filings put cumulative incentives over recent years in the low hundreds of millions of dollars, fueling scrutiny from unions and some politicians over subsidies to a dominant platform.
- The disclosure lands as company leaders urge regulation of low‑cost Chinese platforms Shein and Temu, prompting a public exchange between Marcos Galperín and lawmaker Miguel Ángel Pichetto, while Mercado Libre reports strong Q3 results.