The measure eliminates prior authorizations, recognizes foreign certifications, and maintains environmental controls.
The Minister of Deregulation and State Transformation, Federico Sturzenegger, defended the reform and explained that if a battery has already demonstrated its compliance before internationally recognized technical bodies, Argentina will recognize that accreditation without requiring the entire procedure to start from scratch.
The Government of Javier Milei has moved forward with a new key deregulation to reduce costs, simplify imports, and eliminate duplicate procedures in the marketing of primary batteries and cells, everyday products found in watches, toys, remote controls, calculators, flashlights, and thousands of electronic items.
The measure was formalized through Joint Resolution 1/2026 of the Secretariat of Tourism and Environment and the Secretariat of Industry, Commerce, and Small and Medium Enterprises, published in the Official Bulletin. The new scheme regulates the changes introduced by Decree 431/2025 to the Portable Electric Energy Law No. 26,184.
The State has stopped requiring prior authorizations to import and market batteries and cells, moving to a system based on sworn declarations of compliance, accompanied by test reports or certifications issued by recognized technical bodies. Fewer stamps, lower costs, and controls more focused on what really matters.
Until now, the regime forced the repetition in Argentina of certifications that many products had already passed in international markets. For the Government, this duplication did not improve safety but rather increased the cost of mass goods and acted as a barrier to entry for importers, manufacturers, and retailers.
The official also harshly criticized the previous scheme, pointing out that it ultimately functioned as an added cost for everyday products. According to him, behind the supposed goal of preventing the marketing of products with dangerous levels of mercury, cadmium, and lead, there was, in fact, a system that benefited local certifiers and increased access costs to basic goods.
The new regulation does not eliminate environmental controls. On the contrary, it maintains the maximum allowable limits of mercury, cadmium, and lead established by current legislation. Products that do not meet these parameters will be considered hazardous waste and will be subject to the corresponding penalties.
The difference is that the control will now be carried out subsequently, both documentarily and physically, instead of blocking the import or marketing in advance with prior procedures. Thus, the State seeks to preserve safety standards without turning every commercial operation into a bureaucratic obstacle course.
