RIGI is Argentina's Incentive Regime for Large Investments (Régimen de Incentivo para Grandes Inversiones). It grants qualifying projects of US$200 million or more a package of tax, customs and foreign exchange benefits, locked in for 30 years. Introduced under President Javier Milei in 2024, it has become the legal backbone of Argentina's mining investment revival.
Where RIGI Comes From
For decades, the biggest obstacle to investing in Argentina was not geology or talent, but unpredictability: capital controls, shifting export taxes and rules that could change faster than a mine could be built. RIGI was designed to break that pattern. It was enacted in mid-2024 as part of the Milei government's sweeping reform law known as the Ley Bases (Law 27,742) and regulated in August 2024. The core idea is simple: if an investor commits large, long-term capital to Argentina, Argentina commits its rules to the investor for 30 years.
Who Qualifies for RIGI?
RIGI is open to projects in mining, energy, oil and gas, infrastructure, technology, steel, industrial forestry and tourism. The key conditions are: a minimum investment of US$200 million (higher thresholds apply in oil and gas), a dedicated single-project vehicle that holds the project, and at least 40 percent of the committed amount invested within the first two years. Projects must apply during an adhesion window, which the government extended to July 8, 2027 by decree in early 2026.
What Benefits Does RIGI Grant?
Tax. Corporate income tax falls from the standard 35 percent to 25 percent for the project vehicle. Investments can be depreciated on an accelerated schedule, tax losses can be carried forward without time limit, and VAT on the investment phase can be settled with tax credit certificates rather than cash. Dividends are taxed at 7 percent, dropping to 3.5 percent after seven years.
Customs. Capital goods, spare parts and components for the project can be imported free of duties. Export duties on the project's products end after three years, or after two years for projects classified as long-term strategic exports.
Currency. Projects gain staged freedom over their export revenues: 20 percent of proceeds can be kept abroad after two years, 40 percent after three years and 100 percent after four years, with a faster schedule for strategic export projects. For an industry that spent years unable to repatriate profits, this is arguably the most important aspect of the RIGI program.
Stability. All of the above is guaranteed for 30 years from adhesion. Later changes to national tax, customs or foreign exchange rules cannot be applied to an adhered project to its detriment. In other words, subsequent adverse legal or regulatory changes do not apply to the project — it can continue to operate for 30 years under the regime in place at the time of adhesion.
What RIGI Has Meant for Mining
Mining has become the regime's biggest user. By mid-2026, industry counts put the approved RIGI pipeline at roughly US$30 billion across 16 projects, with a further US$68 billion in pending applications. The single largest approval to date is the Vicuña copper project in San Juan Province, a BHP and Lundin Mining joint venture with an approved investment plan reported at US$9.7 billion. Copper accounts for the largest share of Argentina's projected mining investment, at an estimated US$42 billion of a US$62.7 billion national pipeline.
The government has since proposed follow-up changes to the initial RIGI program. This follow-up program, informally called Super RIGI, is aimed at industries new to Argentina such as semiconductors and data centres, with a US$1 billion entry threshold. For mining investors, the relevance is less the details than the direction of travel: Argentina is competing for capital on stability.
Why RIGI Matters for Mining Investors
A copper mine takes a decade or more from discovery to production — longer than any Argentine presidential term. RIGI's 30-year horizon is the first legal instrument that matches the length of a mining investment cycle, which is why it repeatedly appears in the investment decisions of the majors now committing to Argentine projects.
Two nuances are worth understanding. First, mining in Argentina is regulated at the provincial level; RIGI is a federal layer on top, and provinces differ in how actively they support mining. Second, RIGI is built for large construction-stage projects. Exploration-stage companies typically operate below the US$200 million threshold and do not adhere to RIGI directly. Their exposure is indirect but real: a credible path from discovery to a RIGI-protected development makes exploration ground in Argentina more valuable than it was before the regime existed.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does RIGI stand for?
Régimen de Incentivo para Grandes Inversiones, Spanish for Incentive Regime for Large Investments. It was created by Argentina's Law 27,742, the Ley Bases, in 2024.
How long do RIGI benefits last?
Thirty years from a project's adhesion to the regime. The window to apply currently runs until July 8, 2027, following an extension by decree.
Does RIGI apply to exploration companies?
Generally, not directly. RIGI requires a minimum investment of US$200 million, which typically corresponds to mine construction budgets, rather than exploration budgets. Exploration companies benefit indirectly, because the regime improves the economics of any future development of their projects and thus should make exploration investments more attractive.
How many projects have been approved under RIGI?
As of mid-2026, roughly 16 projects representing about US$30 billion had been approved, with a much larger amount pending. Mining, led by copper, has become the largest sector in the pipeline.
The Bottom Line
RIGI turned Argentina's biggest weakness, rule instability, into a marketing argument measured in decades. It will not build a single mine by itself, but it has changed the calculation for everyone holding copper ground in the Argentine Andes.