Latin American Regulatory Hurdles Examined
Think tanks identified regional trade and tax barriers that impact business growth and employment opportunities.
Updated on Sept. 25, 2026 in Employment
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Experts convened in Bogota to analyze how bureaucratic constraints and regulatory complexity hinder economic progress across Latin America. The forum focused on identifying specific barriers to work and investment in several key regional markets.
Why it matters
Understanding these regulatory obstacles is essential for gauging the environment for small business growth and the stability of informal labor markets. The initiative aims to map out paths for reform to improve economic freedom for households and enterprises.
Data shows that informal employment in Bogota reached 32.6% between May and July 2026, affecting 1.3 million people. Meanwhile, research in Argentina identified 150 distinct taxes and fees that businesses must navigate.
The players
Center for International Private Enterprise
A global organization that supports democratic development and works to strengthen market institutions by identifying regulatory and economic barriers.
The details
Partner organizations highlighted how varying levels of bureaucracy, such as sanitary license processing times in Guatemala that reached five to eight months in 2025, create significant costs for small businesses. These regulatory hurdles restrict access to formal markets, where small enterprises often represent the majority of exporters, such as 86% of firms in El Salvador. By mapping these constraints, researchers aim to address the administrative friction that prevents households from scaling production or securing stable formal employment.
Timeline
Trade in El Salvador reached 49.6% of GDP in 1990.
Small businesses comprised 86% of El Salvador's exporters in 2022.
Sanitary license processing in Guatemala required five to eight months in 2025.
The LATAM Sin Barreras forum convened in Bogota on September 17, 2026.
Informal employment in Bogota hit 32.6% during the May-July 2026 period.
Money Landscape
This effort follows a pattern of regional policy analysis aimed at identifying structural barriers to economic mobility. It highlights the divergence between growing trade integration and the persistent internal regulatory costs facing small business owners.
Changes in regulatory efficiency and tax compliance requirements directly influence the cost of doing business and the availability of formal jobs. Households should consult with a qualified financial or tax professional to understand how shifting business regulations in their region may affect their income or enterprise planning.
The takeaway
The research underscores that administrative complexity acts as a hidden tax on economic growth for small businesses and informal workers. Readers should monitor future updates on the proposed economic freedom framework as a potential indicator of impending regulatory shifts in their specific country.
Further reading
Explore more analysis of labor trends and regulatory impacts in the Employment section.
More information
Review the detailed findings in the CIPE full report and blog article.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Manila times.
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Should governments prioritize simplifying regulatory processes to support small business growth and formalization?
