To the fear of being deported, migrants add up to anxiety for a possible 5% tariff in remittances, the high cost of the basic basket and rentals, they affirm representatives of organizations.
“There is a lot of uncertainty. All that decreases the total remittances sent to our families. In addition, remittances decrease due to the high cost of living here. The basic basket has increased by 20% and rent by 25%, says Elmer Sandoval, representative of the Guatemalan Civic Association of Mercer County,” in New Jersey.
To this, according to Sandoval, is added the fact that many migrants remain hidden by the fear of being deported.
Juan Carlos Pocasangre, president of the Guatemalan organization in New York, says that migrants in that city do not dimension the consequences that this measure is approved, since they maintain hope that it does not happen.
“We are worried, waiting for you not to have to do, because we are already affected by the increase of everything, of mainly food. The rentals are too expensive and it seems that it is only the beginning,” he said.
No approval
Claudia Estrada, a Guatemalan migrant who has lived and works in the United States for more than 25 years, told Free press That, where appropriate, he sends weekly remittances to his father, who lives in Guatemala City, through a certified remittance.
In his opinion, it is still early to feel some effect on the possibility of a 5% tax on remittances sent from that country, since it must still be approved by Congress.
However, he considers that, in the medium term, of becoming approved, that 5% tax will represent an impact, because, where appropriate, she sends US $ 300 per week and the remitizer charges a minimum percentage. But if you should add that new taxes, then you would have to send more money for your relative to continue receiving the same amount without being affected.
Estrada shares that, in this case, he will have to generate more income or find a way to reduce his expenses in the place where he lives, in order to continue sending the same amount of roughness or even more to his father, who needs his support because he does not receive any pension or assistance from the State.
Tariff
Members of the Resource and Arbitration Committee of the Republican Party Representatives Chamber are the ones who promote a fiscal project that includes, among several measures, the application of a 5% tax to remittances that leave the United States.
Republican leaders will present the initiative in the House of Representatives for initial analysis. Subsequently, the project must be sent to the Senate with a view to its approval next July.
Economic analysts estimate that this measure could reduce the entry of remittances to the Central American countries that depend on that flow. In Guatemala, remittances represent one of the main support pillars for thousands of families and constitute a significant percentage of the gross domestic product.
According to the EFE agency, on Tuesday, May 13, the Mexican Senate showed his disagreement before the bill proposed by Republican congressman Jason Smith, who seeks to impose said remittance tax.
Affected
According to the AP agency, more than 40 million people would be covered by the aforementioned tax, including non-immigrant visas, such as those of type H-1B, H-2A and H-2B and holders of permanent residence permits.
He also publishes that the American ruler announced a few days ago that, although no more details are known, he works on the completion of a presidential memorandum to “end remittances” sent by people who are in the United States without authorization.
This agency also emphasizes that the legislation to control remittances through taxes on national and international money transfers has been proposed in 18 states in recent years, but almost all proposals have been rejected.
The exception is Oklahoma, he adds, that in 2009 he endorsed a tax on remittances, of US $ 5 for any transfer of money less than US $ 500 and 1% over any higher amount.
Other senior Trump government officials have also supported efforts to harden controls on remittances. When he was a senator for Ohio, in 2023, Vice President JD Vance was one of the proponents of the Wired Law, which would have imposed a 10% rate to remittances sent from the United States.
According to the World Bank, remittances sent to countries of origin in 2023 totaled around US $ 656 billion, equivalent to Belgium Gross Domestic Product. The money that Mexican migrants send to their relatives grew 7.6% in 2023, reaching a record of US $ 63,300 million in that year.