There are gatherings measured by what you learn, and others by the people you meet. The XVI Latin American Regional Congress of IFA, held from May 6 to 8, 2026 at the Hotel Casa Santo Domingo in colonial Antigua Guatemala —a UNESCO World Heritage city— was both at once. And I want to tell you about it.
I had the privilege of traveling to Guatemala to attend this congress as an attorney and as a recent member of IFA (International Fiscal Association), the world's most prestigious network in international taxation. More than 550 professionals —lawyers, tax specialists, customs experts, accountants and academics— from across Latin America gathered for three days to put on the table where the region's tax landscape is heading.
I did not go just to listen. I went to connect. And that, for me, was the true value of the trip.
Andrés Pérez Díaz at the entrance to the IFA 2026 Congress, Antigua Guatemala
Networking: the most valuable asset of the congress
Digital business and foreign trade know no borders. A client who sells through platforms, imports or exports, or structures operations across several countries needs an advisor who also does not stay within a single border. That is why the most valuable part of Antigua was not only in the classrooms, but in the spaces the congress reserved for colleagues to connect.
The "Guatemala Night" at Casa de la Ruina, the closing cocktail at the Convento de La Merced, working lunches and the meetings of the YIN (Young IFA Network) and WIN (Women of IFA Network) networks were far more than social events: they were the real opportunity to build ties with tax and customs specialists from across LATAM who, like me, work daily with digital business taxation and international trade.
For someone newly joining IFA, integrating into these communities is invaluable. Building a network of trusted colleagues across different jurisdictions is, today, part of the service: it means being able to respond with sound judgment when a transaction crosses a border and needs local insight at the other end.
"In a world where business is regional, having a regional network of colleagues is not a luxury: it is the difference between advising with perspective or advising blindly."
Participant badge — Andrés Pérez Díaz, IFA 2026
Group of professionals at the IFA Antigua Guatemala 2026 Congress
The major discussions of the congress
The academic programme revolved around two main themes: international double taxation in VAT and its challenges for the trade of goods and services in Latin America —with the general report by Ariadna Artopoulos (Argentina)— and international taxation and human rights, with its new standards and limits on the criminalisation of tax law, led by general reporter Diego Salto (Costa Rica). On this basis, seminars and panels addressed the trends redefining how the region is taxed.
01 — Digital platforms as fiscal intermediaries The YIN seminar focused on how business models that operate online are taxed and the new obligations falling on platforms: the core of digital business taxation.
02 — Foreign trade and VAT The plenary on double taxation in VAT on cross-border goods and services addressed one of the most sensitive points for those who import, export or provide services across multiple countries.
03 — Transfer pricing and related parties "Transfer pricing in court: between economic reasonableness and legal certainty", together with the valuation of intangibles and the rules on thin capitalisation and financing of multinationals. Where today's line of deductibility lies.
04 — Customs and smuggling The role of the withholding agent in international transactions (CIAT seminar) and the control of foreign trade, where the fight against merchandise smuggling plays out: a front growing with the digitalisation of commerce.
05 — Cryptocurrencies and taxation The current regulation of crypto-assets and their impact on tax evasion: terrain advancing faster than much of the region's legislation.
06 — AI and information exchange Artificial intelligence in tax proceedings and automatic exchange of information (CRS) between tax authorities: the future of tax enforcement, which for the region's audits has already begun.
The agenda was even broader —tax treaties to avoid double taxation (DTTs), international restructurings, tax incentives and limits on the criminalisation of tax law— but if the congress made one thing clear, it is that these topics are no longer "future" issues. They are already in the audits, the platforms and the international trade operations we advise every day.
Panel on Transfer Pricing in Court — IFA Antigua Guatemala 2026
View of the colonial city of Antigua Guatemala, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
Antigua Guatemala during the IFA 2026 Congress
What this means for you and your business
Beyond the academic value, this experience carries a very concrete purpose. Being a member of IFA and having added tax and customs colleagues from across Latin America to my network allows me to advise you with a tax-focused business vision and regional perspective, not just local.
Whether you sell through digital platforms, import or export goods, have operations between related companies, or are thinking about transfer pricing, my goal is the same: to anticipate trends before change catches up with you, and translate them into concrete decisions for your business. Knowing these debates first-hand, and surrounding myself with the colleagues leading them in each country, is the best way I have of fulfilling that promise.
Andrés Pérez Díaz with fellow attorneys at the IFA 2026 Congress
About the author. Andrés Pérez Díaz is an attorney and principal of Pérez Díaz Abogados, member of the International Fiscal Association (IFA), focusing on tax law, digital business taxation, international trade and transfer pricing.
