18445-H of September 9, 1988, and its amendments; also, articles 20, 21, 24, 29, 30, 31, 33, and 60 of the aforementioned decree are amended, their numbering varies and they become articles 18, 19, 21, 47, 48, 49, 51, and 57, respectively; to read as follows:
"Article 1.- Definitions. In cases where the Law or these Regulations use the following terms and expressions, they shall be given the meanings and significations indicated below:
- 1)Lucrative activity (Actividad lucrativa). An activity of a business and/or professional nature consisting of the organization, on one's own account, of the factors of production and human resources, or one of them, with the intention of obtaining profits through participation in the market of goods and services.
- 2)Tax Administration (Administración Tributaria). The administrative body responsible for managing and auditing taxes, whether it be the Treasury or other public entities that are active subjects of the tax obligation. In these regulations, it shall be understood as the Directorate or Directorate General, referring to the Directorate General of Taxation.
- 3)Tax Code of Standards and Procedures (Código de Normas y Procedimientos Tributarios). This refers to Law No. 4755 of May 3, 1971, and its amendments, titled "Tax Code of Standards and Procedures." 4) Enterprise (Empresa). Any economic unit dedicated to carrying out activities or businesses of a lucrative nature.
- 5)Alienation (Enajenación). An act by which ownership of a thing or good is transferred to another for consideration, as in a sale or exchange, or gratuitously, as in a donation or an interest-free loan.
- 6)Export (Exportación). The departure from the country, upon completion of legal formalities, of national or nationalized goods, destined for definitive use or consumption abroad.
- 7)Inheritance (Herencia). For the purposes of these regulations, inheritance shall be understood according to the provisions contained in Article 294 of the Civil Code, Law No. 30 of April 19, 1885, and its amendments.
- 8)Input (Insumo). Intermediate and final goods that are incorporated into the produced or manufactured good, as well as those used in the production or manufacture thereof that cannot be directly charged to its cost, such as greases, oils, lubricants, cleaning articles for machinery, brushes, needles, filters, packaging, baling.
- 9)Legacy (Legado). For the purposes of these regulations, legacy shall be understood according to the provisions contained in Article 596 of the Civil Code, Law No. 30 of April 19, 1885, and its amendments.
- 10)The Law (La Ley). This refers to the Income Tax Law, No. 7092 of April 21, 1988, and its amendments.
- 11)Royalty (Regalía). Constitutes the right generating payments of any kind for the temporary use or enjoyment of patents, certificates of invention or improvement, trademarks, trade names, copyrights on literary, artistic, or scientific works, including cinematographic films and recordings for radio or television, as well as drawings or models, plans, formulas, or processes and industrial, commercial, or scientific equipment; likewise, amounts paid for the transfer of technology or information relating to industrial, commercial, or scientific experiences, or other similar right or property. Also, the temporary use or enjoyment of copyrights on scientific works, including that of computer programs or sets of instructions required for their operational processes or for carrying out application tasks, regardless of the medium through which they are transmitted.
- 12)Participation Titles (Títulos de participación). A security (título valor) documenting participation in the capital stock of a company or corporation or the shareholding participation of the holder in a mercantile company. These confer upon the holder a series of rights, duties, and obligations within the scope of a social organization.
- 13)Security (Título valor). Understood as a value, which is defined in Article 2 of the Securities Market Regulatory Law, No. 7732 of December 17, 1997, and its amendments.
- 14)Profits (Utilidades). Benefits or gains resulting from the difference between the income taxed under the Income Tax on Profits, obtained by an individual, legal entity, or collective entity without legal personality as a result of carrying out a Costa Rican-source lucrative activity, and the expenses authorized by the same law, incurred in generating such income." "Article 2.- Moment when the taxable event occurs. The taxable event of the income tax on profits is considered to have occurred upon the receipt or accrual of income in cash or in kind, continuous or occasional, arising from Costa Rican-source lucrative activities, as well as any other Costa Rican-source income or benefit not exempted by the Income Tax Law." "Article 3.- Taxable material. The taxable material of the income tax on profits comprises:
- a)Income in cash or in kind, continuous or occasional, arising from Costa Rican-source lucrative activities, as defined in Article 1 of these Regulations, as well as any other Costa Rican-source income or benefit derived from those activities.
- b)Capital income and realized capital gains deriving from goods or rights whose ownership corresponds to the taxpayer of this tax and that are allocated to their lucrative activity for Income Tax on Profits purposes.
Capital gains shall be understood to be realized when, upon the transfer or alienation of the goods or rights from which they derive, a positive variation is generated in the composition of the taxpayer's patrimony or in its value. Should the resulting variation be negative, it shall be a capital loss." "Article 4.- Taxpayers. Taxpayers of the Income Tax on Profits are individuals, legal entities legally constituted in the country regardless of whether or not they carry out a lucrative activity, irrespective of their nationality or domicile, de facto companies (sociedades de hecho), professional activity companies (sociedades de actividades profesionales), State enterprises, collective entities without legal personality, permanent establishments, and joint venture accounts (cuentas en participación) existing in the country, regardless of their place of incorporation, the meeting place of their boards of directors, or the place where their contracts are concluded; likewise, entities engaged in the private provision of university education services, irrespective of the legal form adopted.
In the case of legal entities and other similar figures considered as taxpayers under paragraph a) of Article 2 of the Income Tax Law, the following definitions, among others, must be taken into consideration:
- a)Legal entities (Personas jurídicas): An independent entity endowed with its own legal personality and full capacity to fulfill its purposes and be the object of rights and obligations, constituted as established by law or by agreement in accordance with the law. Companies registered in the National Registry possess legal personality.
- b)De facto companies (Sociedades de hecho): Legal figure defined in Article 23 of the Commerce Code.
- c)Professional activity companies (Sociedades de actividades profesionales): Those legal entities defined in Law No. 2860 of November 21, 1961, and its amendments.
- d)Collective entities without legal personality (Entes colectivos sin personalidad jurídica): Legal figures that do not entail the creation of an entity with its own legal personality.
- e)Joint venture accounts (Cuentas en participación): An association contract by which two or more persons take an interest in one or more specific operations to be carried out by only one of them in their own name, called the manager, the latter assuming the obligation to render accounts to the participants and divide with them the profits or losses in the agreed proportion.
With respect to legal entities legally constituted in the country, compliance with formal and material duties related to the Income Tax on Profits shall depend on the following classification:
- a)Active: corresponds to those companies constituted in the country that effectively and materially develop Costa Rican-source lucrative activities, according to the definition in Article 1 of these Regulations, as a result of which they must register as taxpayers before the Tax Administration and comply with all formal and material duties associated with the Income Tax on Profits, including the filing of the annual self-assessment return for that tax.
- b)Inactive: corresponds to those companies constituted in the country that do not develop a Costa Rican-source lucrative activity, as defined in Article 1 of these Regulations. The Tax Administration shall determine the manner in which the cited companies must comply with their formal obligations.
To this end, prior to the start of the fiscal period corresponding to the implementation of the obligations, the procedure to be followed by the companies shall be disclosed through publication on the Ministry of Finance website and in a newspaper of national circulation." "Article 5.- Domiciled Persons. For the purposes of applying the Income Tax Law, the following are considered domiciled in the country:
- 1)Individuals who are in any of the following circumstances:
- a)Who remain continuously or discontinuously in the country for more than 183 days, including the days of entry to and exit from the country, during the respective fiscal period. To determine this period of permanence in Costa Rican territory, the Tax Administration shall count sporadic absences, unless the taxpayer proves their status as a tax resident in another country through a tax residency certificate.
For the purposes of the preceding paragraph, sporadic absences are considered to be those non-extended absences, with systematic returns to Costa Rican territory during the corresponding fiscal period, unless the interested party proves their tax resident status in another country for the respective period. Sporadic absences include brief and occasional trips for work, business, pleasure, leisure, health, or other reasons.
To determine which sporadic absences will be taken into account for computing the permanence of individuals in the national territory, any departure from the national territory not exceeding 30 consecutive calendar days shall be understood as a "non-extended absence." Those absences exceeding 30 consecutive calendar days shall not be counted for the purposes of computing the 183 days of an individual's permanence in the country.
In order to verify the continuous or discontinuous permanence of individuals in Costa Rican territory, including sporadic absences, the detail of migratory movements recorded by the Directorate General of Migration and Foreigners (Dirección General de Migración y Extranjería) must be used as a reference.
In the case of income taxes other than the Income Tax on Profits, whose tax period is not annual, the term "respective fiscal period" used in the first paragraph of this subparagraph shall correspond to the twelve months prior to the moment when the liquidation of the tax in question occurs, and it shall be within this same period that it must be verified whether an individual has remained in the country, continuously or discontinuously, for more than one hundred eighty-three days.
- b)Who hold official posts or representations abroad, paid by the Costa Rican State, its public entities, or municipalities. A public entity shall be understood as the autonomous or semi-autonomous institution, which is part of the decentralized State, requiring, in the first case, to have been created according to the procedure established in Article 188 of the Political Constitution, and in the second, that the vote for its creation did not require a qualified majority of the deputies' votes.
- 2)Legal entities constituted in accordance with Costa Rican legislation and de facto companies operating in the country. Other criteria for establishing the residency of legal entities may include their domicile, their place of business management headquarters, or any other element that allows their residency to be determined.
- 3)Permanent establishments of persons not domiciled in Costa Rica that operate in the country.
- 4)Trusts (fideicomisos o encargos de confianza) constituted in accordance with Costa Rican legislation.
- 5)Successions opened in accordance with Costa Rican legislation, regardless of the nationality and domicile of the deceased, unless the heirs are not domiciled in Costa Rica.
- 6)Individual limited liability enterprises and other individual enterprises operating in the country, where the entrepreneur is domiciled." "Article 6.- Entities not subject to tax. The entities referred to in Article 3 of the Law are not obliged to pay the Income Tax on Profits.
However, in the case of political parties, religious institutions, trade union organizations, cooperatives, associations declared of public utility by the Executive Branch, foundations, civil associations, and companies availing themselves of the Zonas Francas (Free Trade Zone) Regime, they must register in the Single Taxpayer Registry and file the self-assessment return for the income tax on profits, without prejudice to other obligations and requirements that the Tax Administration establishes by general resolution.
As for foundations and associations declared of public utility by the Executive Branch, they shall be considered as entities not subject to the Income Tax on Profits, provided they meet the following conditions:
- a)Destine their income and patrimony entirely and exclusively to public or charitable purposes; and b) Do not distribute, directly or indirectly, their income and patrimony among their members.
For the purposes of what is indicated in the penultimate paragraph of Article 1 and Article 3, paragraph ch) of the Income Tax Law, in the case of foundations and associations that fail to comply with the conditions previously set forth in points a) and b), they shall declare and pay the Income Tax on Profits in the corresponding proportion, as well as comply with all the formal and material duties concerning said tax.
In accordance with the penultimate paragraph of Article 1 of the Income Tax Law and the first paragraph of Article 9 of Law No. 6970 of November 7, 1984, called "Ley de Asociaciones Solidaristas," solidarist associations must file the return and comply with all formal and material duties concerning the Income Tax on Profits, whether or not they carry out lucrative activities. They must also pay the tax in the corresponding proportion on the income from investments and purely commercial operations carried out with third parties unrelated to the solidarist association.
Regarding religious institutions, these are considered not subject to the Income Tax on Profits, provided their income comes exclusively from tithes, first fruits, alms, donations, and other amounts received in a non-synallagmatic manner and is allocated to the maintenance of worship and to non-profit social assistance services. To comply with the foregoing, in addition to maintaining general accounting records, the religious institution must keep a special control book for income and expenses from social assistance activities.
Under no circumstances are income derived from the development of lucrative activities, such as bookstores, restaurants, or parking lots, understood as non-subject income." "Article 7.- Tax period. The fiscal period of the Income Tax on Profits is one year, running from January 1 to December 31 of each year.
However, exceptionally, the Tax Administration is empowered to establish special tax periods ex officio, provided it is duly justified and tax interests are not harmed; for this purpose, it shall issue a general resolution to be published in the Official Gazette. The resolution issued in this regard by the Tax Administration must indicate the start and end dates of the period different from those indicated in the preceding paragraph, by branch of activity and on a general basis.
Likewise, the taxpayer may request the Tax Administration to authorize special fiscal periods, for which they shall provide pertinent proof justifying the change. The indicated request shall be processed according to the provisions established in Article 102 of the Tax Code of Standards and Procedures and Articles 55, 58, and 59 of the Tax Procedure Regulations, Executive Decree No. 38277-H of March 7, 2014, and its amendments. The conditions under which the aforementioned request must be submitted shall be defined by the Tax Administration through a general resolution.
For the filing of returns in situations where the Tax Administration has established a special fiscal period, the provisions of the third paragraph of Article 19 of these Regulations must be observed." "Article 8.- Gross income. Gross income constitutes the sum of the following income:
- a)Income received by the taxpayer during the tax period, arising from the development of Costa Rican-source lucrative activities; b) All capital income or realized capital gains, obtained by the taxpayer during the tax period, in accordance with the provisions of Article 3 bis of these Regulations; and c) Gains from exchange rate differences originating from the payment of liabilities or the receipt of income from assets, as well as gains from exchange rate differences originating from the balances of assets and liabilities at the close of the tax period. For the purposes of this paragraph, the holding of foreign currency shall be considered an asset and the exchange rate difference shall be calculated when:
- 1)It is exchanged for another currency, or 2) Another asset denominated in that foreign currency or another is acquired.
- d)Any increase in patrimony that is not justified by duly recorded and declared income, exempt income, or non-subject income." "Article 9.- Electronic receipts.
1.- The taxpayers referred to in Article 2 of the Law are obliged to issue electronic receipts for each of their economic operations, these operations being understood as all financial or economic transactions they carry out in the development of their economic activities. The electronic receipts shall be duly authorized by the Tax Administration and must comply with the conditions and requirements it defines.
2.- The following persons or entities shall not be obliged to issue electronic receipts, provided they do not sell goods or provide services taxed under the Value Added Tax, in which case they shall be subject to the legal and regulatory provisions of the latter tax:
- a)Entities not subject to the payment of the Income Tax, as indicated in Article 3 of the Law and Article 6 of this Regulation, nor entities exempt by special law.
- b)Entities regulated by the superintendencies attached to the Consejo Nacional de Supervisión del Sistema Financiero, except for the Superintendencia General de Seguros.
- c)Individuals or legal entities engaged in remunerated land transportation of persons, who hold a permit or concession from the competent state authority and whose fare is regulated by the Autoridad Reguladora de los Servicios Públicos.
Neither shall taxpayers registered in the Simplified Taxation Regime (Régimen de Tributación Simplificada) be obliged to issue electronic receipts.
The Tax Administration (Administración Tributaria) is empowered to exempt from the obligation to issue electronic receipts those taxpayers established by regulation, taking into account criteria of opportunity and fiscal convenience.
Likewise, by means of a general resolution, the Tax Administration may vary the conditions and requirements that electronic receipts must meet." "Article 10.- Exclusions from gross income (renta bruta). The cases established in Article 6 of the Income Tax Law do not form part of gross income.
Without prejudice to the foregoing, the following considerations must be taken into account:
1. In the case of subsection d) of Article 6 of said Law, the following shall be understood to be excluded from gross income:
- a)Capital gains taxed in accordance with the provisions of Chapter XI of the Income Tax Law, except for those derived from assets or rights assigned to the taxpayer's activity, as indicated in Article 1 of the Law and Article 3 bis of this Regulation.
- b)Capital gains in the portion of undistributed profits coming from the transfer of shares and other participation titles in the equity of any entity, provided these titles are assigned to its for-profit activity (actividad lucrativa).
2.- In the case of subsection h) of Article 6 of the Income Tax Law, the amount obtained by reason of a distribution of dividends by a partner that is a capital company domiciled in Costa Rica shall be considered excluded from gross income, provided that it carries out a for-profit activity and is subject to the Income Tax. For the purposes of the provisions in the cited subsection, it shall be understood that the term "for-profit activity" does not include companies exclusively engaged in holding participations in other companies. When the withholding is applied to a company that does not carry out a for-profit activity and is not subject to the Income Tax, the Capital Income Tax withholding shall be applied on the first distribution, but not on successive distributions of that same available income (renta disponible)." "Article 11.- Net income (renta neta). Net income is determined by deducting from gross income the necessary, useful, and pertinent costs and expenses permitted by the Law.
When the authorized expenses, costs, and disbursements are incurred to produce indistinctly taxed and non-taxed income, only the proportion corresponding to the gross taxed income shall be deducted; in this case, the mechanism used by the taxpayer must be applied for at least 4 consecutive years. When the taxpayer cannot duly justify an estimated proportion, they must deduct the sum resulting from applying the percentage obtained by relating the gross taxed income to the total income.
In the case of entities subject to the supervision of the superintendencies attached to the Consejo Nacional de Supervisión del Sistema Financiero, the provisions on the proportional deduction of expenses shall not be applicable; rather, such entities may deduct from their gross income all deductible costs and expenses permitted by law." "Article 12.- Deductible costs and expenses.
(.)
- e)Interest and other financial expenses that have been paid or incurred by the taxpayer during the tax period, according to the conditions and qualitative limitations set forth in subsection d) of Article 8 of the Income Tax Law.
Interest and financial expenses that must be capitalized for accounting purposes shall not be deductible from gross income, nor shall those that are not linked to the generation of taxable income during the tax period.
For the purposes of the penultimate paragraph of subsection d) of Article 8 of the Income Tax Law, it is understood that the taxpayer has the duty to maintain all elements of proof that allow demonstrating, in an eventual control procedure, the link between the interest and other financial expenses intended to be deducted and the generation of taxable income in the respective period.
(.)
- i)Losses originating from business activities may be deducted in the three fiscal periods following and consecutive to the one in which the loss occurred, applying the maximum possible in each year without the sum being able to exceed one hundred percent (100%) of the total original loss.
The provisions of the preceding paragraph shall be equally applicable for the case of agricultural companies, with the difference that they may deduct their losses in the five following and consecutive fiscal periods.
The right to deduct losses is subject to their being duly recorded as "deferred losses" (pérdidas diferidas) in each tax period in which they occurred and only those that are related to the for-profit activity carried out by the taxpayer.
In the case of companies that carry out combined agricultural activities and other types of business activities, they must keep separate accounts for each activity, so that it is possible to deduct the corresponding losses in accordance with the terms established in the Income Tax Law.
Losses not used under the terms described in this subsection shall not be accumulable or deductible outside the terms indicated in the Income Tax Law for the respective activity.
(.)
- l)The donations referred to in subsection q) of Article 8 of the Income Tax Law, provided they do not exceed ten percent (10%) of the net income of the donating taxpayer, without considering the donation, and that they are duly substantiated, provided that these were delivered during the fiscal period in effect.
For the purposes of the final paragraph of the indicated Article 8, the donor must comply with the following conditions:
- i)Verify, by consulting the website of the Ministerio de Hacienda, that the donee is authorized by the Tax Administration to receive donations.
- ii)Request and keep the respective receipt for the donation made.
- iii)In the event that donations are made to different donees, ensure that these as a whole do not exceed the limit provided by law.
Likewise, the donee must comply with the following general requirements:
- i)Be registered and authorized by the Tax Administration to be the subject of deductible donations for the purposes of this tax, for which they must process the authorization request or its renewal, following the procedure established for these purposes by the Dirección General de Tributación through a general resolution. The use of false information and data to manage the authorization will render it null and void, without prejudice to any administrative or criminal sanctions that may apply.
In the event that the beneficiary is the State or any of the state institutions indicated in Article 8, subsection q) of the Income Tax Law, the authorization mentioned in the preceding paragraph shall not be necessary to receive donations.
- ii)Be up to date on the totality of their tax obligations with the Tax Administration and on the payment of social charges to the Caja Costarricense del Seguro Social.
The Tax Administration shall make available to the public, on the website of the Ministerio de Hacienda, an updated list of entities that meet the tax requirements indicated above and that can receive donations deductible from gross income. This information shall be updated monthly by the Dirección General de Tributación. Donations made in favor of beneficiaries not appearing on said list shall not be accepted as deductible.
Regarding the sports committees appointed by the Instituto Costarricense del Deporte y la Recreación in rural areas, the latter shall be understood to refer to those areas of the country considered as such according to the district classification by degree of urbanization, carried out by the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos.
In the case of in-kind donations, the donor must provide a certification of the property's value, issued by an authorized public accountant, who must be accompanied by the work of an expert who is incorporated into the respective professional association, as applicable. This under the regulations of the Ley de Creación del Colegio de Contadores Públicos, N° 1038 of August 19, 1947, and its amendments.
- m)Losses due to the destruction of assets referred to in Article 8, subsection r) of the Income Tax Law, that occur due to fire, criminal acts, acts of God (caso fortuito), or force majeure (fuerza mayor), to the detriment of the taxpayer and provided that such facts are demonstrated by a certification from a public accountant supported by reliable proof (prueba fehaciente).
- n)Sums to constitute estimates, reserves, and provisions authorized by the supervisory bodies attached to the Consejo Nacional de Supervisión del Sistema Financiero or that supervised financial entities are obliged to maintain because they have been so ordered by these supervisory bodies.
Regarding what is established in the last paragraph of subsection v) of Article 8 of the Income Tax Law, the Consejo Nacional de Supervisión del Sistema Financiero must consult with the Ministerio de Hacienda prior to issuing any type of regulation containing tax-related aspects, especially if it concerns the establishment of additional estimates, reserves, and provisions that would affect the determination of the income tax.
The Ministerio de Hacienda must issue a general resolution on the consultation procedure.
- ñ)The Value Added Tax borne on the acquisition of goods and services for which there is no right to apply it as a fiscal credit in said tax, in accordance with the Value Added Tax Law and its Regulation. Likewise, it is deductible insofar as it has been applied provisionally, and only until it has been duly and definitively settled in the Value Added Tax return, under the terms established in Article 24 of the Value Added Tax Law and numeral 3) of Article 34 of its Regulation.
- o)Losses from exchange rate differences (diferencias cambiarias) originating from the payment of liabilities or from the receipt of income from assets, as well as those originating from the balances of assets and liabilities at the close of the tax period. For the purposes of the provisions in this paragraph, the holding of foreign currency shall be considered an asset and the exchange difference shall be calculated when:
- 1)Currency is exchanged, or 2) Another asset denominated in that foreign currency or another is acquired.
Costs, expenses, and disbursements must be supported by electronic receipts, duly authorized by the Tax Administration, and in accordance with the conditions and requirements defined by it. The Tax Administration is broadly empowered to qualify such costs, expenses, and disbursements and to accept their total or partial deduction, as well as to reject unjustified items." "Article 16.- Tax rate. The rates established in Article 15 of the Income Tax Law shall be applied to the taxpayer's taxable income (renta imponible) corresponding to the respective fiscal tax period.
Depending on the type of taxpayer, the following rules must be observed:
- a)Legal entities (personas jurídicas) whose gross income exceeds ¢106,000,000 during the fiscal period. Understood to be included in this category, in addition to legal entities in the strict sense, are collective entities without legal personality referred to in Article 2 of the Income Tax Law, both types of taxpayers being required to apply the 30% rate on their net taxable income for the fiscal tax period.
- b)Legal entities whose gross income does not exceed ¢106,000,000 during the tax period. The applicable rate for these legal entities corresponds to the rate scale indicated in Article 15, subsection b) of the same law.
Micro and small businesses that comply with the provisions of the preceding paragraph and are registered with the Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Comercio or the Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería are understood to be included in this subsection, and may apply the rates indicated in numeral 15, subsection b) of the Income Tax Law.
During the first three years from the start of their operations, the aforementioned companies may reduce their tax debt as follows:
- i)During the first year, by 100% of their assessed tax, so they will have no tax to pay for this period.
- ii)During the second year, by 75% of their assessed tax, thus having to pay a tax corresponding to 25% of their assessed tax for this period.
- iii)During the third year, by 50% of their assessed tax, thus having to pay a tax corresponding to 50% of their assessed tax.
From the fourth year of operations, these micro and small businesses must pay the full amount of the assessed tax corresponding according to the applicable rate based on their annual income. The term "assessed tax" (impuesto determinado) shall be established in accordance with the provisions of Article 17 bis of this Regulation.
The fragmentation of economic activities by the taxpayer for the illegitimate use of the benefits contemplated in this subsection may be refuted by the Tax Administration through tax control actions and in accordance with the provisions of Articles 8 and 12 bis of the Código de Normas y Procedimientos Tributarios, as well as sanctioned with the applicable administrative and criminal sanctions.
The Tax Administration is empowered to establish, through a general resolution, additional requirements or conditions for the prevention or correction of the artificial splitting (fraccionamiento artificioso) of economic activities by taxpayers of this tax and to determine the correct tax treatment.
- c)Individuals (personas físicas) with for-profit activities.
In the case of individuals whose for-profit activity is taxed under the income tax, the corresponding rate shall be applied as indicated in Article 15, subsection c) of the Income Tax Law on their net taxable income.
The Ministerio de Hacienda shall update, by executive decree, the amounts indicated in subsections a), b), and c) of Article 15 of the Income Tax Law; these must be readjusted by the Executive Branch, based on the variations in the price indices determined by the Banco Central de Costa Rica or according to the increase in the cost of living in said period." "Article 17.- Tax credits for individuals with for-profit activities. Once the tax liability (cuota del impuesto) is calculated, individuals with for-profit activities shall have the right to the following tax credits:
- a)The amount resulting from multiplying by twelve the monthly amount contemplated in subsection ii) of Article 34 of the Income Tax Law, as an annual credit for the spouse.
- b)The amount resulting from multiplying by twelve the monthly amount contemplated in subsection i) of Article 34 of the Income Tax Law, as an annual credit for each child, provided they meet the conditions established therein.
The indicated credits may only be applied by one of the spouses when both are taxpayers of the tax. To be entitled to such credits, the taxpayer is obliged to prove to their employer, by certification from the Registro Civil or a notary public, their married status and the number of children registered in the Birth Section of the Registro Civil, as well as any of the circumstances referred to in the preceding paragraph of this article." "Article 18.- Registration, modification, and deregistration. All legal entities, collective entities without legal personality, individuals with for-profit activities, and other figures that are taxpayers of the Income Tax under Article 2 of the Law are obliged to register upon starting their for-profit activities.
Registration must be made before the Registro de Contribuyentes of the Tax Administration at the moment the activity commences. In the case of inactive companies domiciled in the country that do not carry out a for-profit activity from Costa Rican sources, they must abide by the formal obligations that the Tax Administration will communicate prior to the start of the fiscal period corresponding to the implementation of said obligations, by publication on the Ministerio de Hacienda website and in a newspaper of national circulation.
The taxpayer who needs to modify the data recorded at the time of registration or add additional information to their profile, such as information relating to secondary for-profit activities, must do so within a period of ten business days, counted from the variation of the data or the start of an additional activity.
In the event of the cessation of their for-profit activities, the taxpayer shall have a period of ten business days, counted from that moment, to deregister from the Tax Administration.
Registration, modification of data, or deregistration by the taxpayer must be carried out according to the means and form determined by the Tax Administration for these purposes, by general resolution." "Article 19.- Deadline for filing the self-assessment return (declaración autoliquidativa) and payment of the tax. The taxpayers of this tax mentioned in Article 2 of the Income Tax Law, as well as the entities included in Article 3 of the same law, insofar as they partially carry out for-profit activities on which they will be proportionally subject to the Income Tax, must file a sworn self-assessment return of the tax and pay the respective tax debt within two months and fifteen calendar days following the conclusion of the tax period.
Without prejudice to the provisions of the preceding paragraph, the entities described in Article 3 of the Law, except those indicated in subsections a) and i), are obliged to file the sworn self-assessment return of the Income Tax, without the payment of the tax.
In cases where the Tax Administration authorizes special fiscal periods, the taxpayer must file the return and pay the corresponding tax within two months and fifteen calendar days after the end of the authorized fiscal period.
The taxpayer shall be obliged to file the self-assessment return referred to in this article in the form and by the means determined by the Tax Administration, even if they do not simultaneously pay their tax debt. The omission of filing such a self-assessment return does not release the taxpayer from their duty to declare and, if applicable, pay the corresponding tax, nor from the imposition of fines and surcharges for non-filing of the return or for late payment, as applicable.
Individuals who exclusively receive income from dependent personal work or from pensions taxed under the Impuesto Único sobre las Rentas percibidas por el Trabajo Personal Dependiente o por Concepto de Jubilación o Pensión u Otras Remuneraciones por Servicios Personales are not obliged to file the self-assessment return indicated in the first paragraph of this article." "Article 21.- Withholdings at source (retenciones en la fuente). Every public or private company, whether or not subject to one or several of the taxes contained in the Law, as well as non-subject entities and the other institutions and subjects referred to in Articles 3, 23, 28 ter, and 31 quater of the same law, are obliged to act as a withholding or collection agent for the tax arising when income received from dependent personal work or from pensions or other remuneration for personal services, income subject to taxes on capital income and capital gains and losses, income remitted abroad, is paid or credited, as applicable, or when any of the other cases listed in this article occurs.
The income referred to in the preceding paragraph shall be understood as paid at the moment the beneficiary effectively receives the monetary sums and shall be considered credited when the beneficiary has the right to demand them.
As the case may be, the following provisions must be observed:
i. Employers or payers shall make the corresponding withholdings on income received from dependent personal work or from pensions or other remuneration for personal services, depending on whether it concerns persons domiciled in the country, a condition that must be determined in accordance with subsection a) of Article 5 of this Regulation. These withholdings must be made according to the provisions of Titles II and IV of the Income Tax Law. This withholding shall be considered a single and definitive tax on that income.
ii. Real estate capital income. Through a general resolution issued by the Tax Administration and based on Article 23 of the Law, the withholding on real estate capital income shall be established, for which notice shall be given at least three months before the entry into force of the withholding to be implemented.
iii. Movable capital income. Depending on the type of income involved, the following rules shall apply for making the respective withholding:
- i)Income from the transfer to third parties of own funds. The following are obliged to withhold:
1. Issuers, paying agents, custody entities, corporations (sociedades anónimas), and any other public or private entity or body that, by reason of raising resources in the financial market, pays or credits interest, grants discounts on promissory notes, bills of exchange, bankers' acceptances, or trades all kinds of securities, to persons domiciled in the country. In these cases, the withholding shall be fifteen percent (15%) on the gross amount of income paid or credited to the taxpayer.
2. The Bolsa Nacional de Valores, brokerage firms (Puestos de Bolsa), and similar entities, acting as intermediaries or intervening in repurchase or repo operations of securities, in their different modalities, for the yields earned by the investor. In these cases, the withholding shall be fifteen percent (15%) on the positive difference between the forward transaction and the current transaction, regardless of the nature of the securities subject to the transaction. If it is not possible to apply the withholding regulated in this subsection, this income must be subject to an independent return by the taxpayer.
3. Banks and financial entities, duly regulated by the Superintendencia General de Entidades Financieras, that guarantee bills of exchange or bankers' acceptances. In these cases, the withholding shall also be fifteen percent (15%), but it shall be applied to the discount value, which in all cases shall be the result of applying to the bill amount the basic passive rate determined by the Banco Central de Costa Rica for the corresponding term, plus three percentage points. The withholding applicable in these cases shall be made effective at the moment the bill is guaranteed, the guaranteeing entity being obliged to carry it out at that moment.
4. The Banco Popular y de Desarrollo Comunal, as well as savings and credit cooperatives, for the yields generated by securities issued in national currency. In these cases, the withholding shall be fifteen percent (15%) on the gross amount of the yields paid or credited to the taxpayer.
5. The payers of yields generated by securities in national currency issued by the Sistema Financiero Nacional para la Vivienda. In these cases, the withholding shall be seven percent (7%) on the gross amount of the yields paid or credited to the taxpayer.
6. Savings and credit cooperatives, as well as solidarity associations (asociaciones solidaristas), for the yields of all types of savings made by their members, excepting the interest generated by balances in demand savings accounts and checking accounts. The withholding shall be eight percent (8%) on the excess of the amount of yields paid or credited to the taxpayer that exceeds the exempt limit, equivalent to fifty percent (50%) of a base salary (salario base). This withholding must be made starting from the month in which said exempt limit is exceeded.
To determine the excess, the yields paid or credited during the fiscal period established in Article 4 of the Law, from all types of savings made, must be accumulated.
The mentioned withholdings shall be considered a single and definitive tax on that income, except when the beneficiary is also a taxpayer of the income tax and such income comes from property, plant, or equipment (elementos patrimoniales) assigned to their for-profit activity, under the terms of Article 1 bis of the Law and Article 3 bis of this Regulation, in which case the withholding shall be considered a payment on account of the Income Tax, in accordance with Articles 1 of the Law and 3 bis of this Regulation.
- ii)Income from the lease, sublease, constitution, or transfer of rights of use or enjoyment of movable property and other rights associated with intangible assets. Through a general resolution issued by the Tax Administration and based on Article 23 of the Law, the withholding on the cited movable capital income shall be established, for which notice shall be given at least three months before the entry into force of the withholding to be implemented.
- iii)The mentioned withholdings shall be considered a single and definitive tax on that income, except when the beneficiary is a taxpayer of the income tax and such income comes from property, plant, or equipment assigned to their for-profit activity, in accordance with Articles 1 bis of the Law and 3 bis of this Regulation.
Yields from distributions of available income. The following are obliged to withhold:
1. Capital companies, when they pay or credit to their individual partners, in cash or in kind, dividends of all types or any kind of benefits assimilable to these, coming from their available income, as defined in Article 27 ter, numeral 2), subsection a), sub-subsection iv) of the Law. In these cases, the withholding shall be fifteen percent (15%) on the gross amount of the benefits that were obtained by the taxpayer.
The withholding of this tax shall not apply when the partner obtaining them is another capital company domiciled in Costa Rica, insofar as it carries out a for-profit activity and is subject to the income tax, observing the provisions of Article 10, section 2) of this Regulation regarding compliance with these conditions.
In the event that the withholding is applied to a company that does not carry out a for-profit activity and is not subject to the Income Tax, the withholding shall not be applied on successive distributions of that same available income. For purposes of the provisions in the cited Article 10, section 2), it is understood that the term "for-profit activity" does not include companies exclusively engaged in holding participations in other companies.
The withholding shall also not be applied when the distribution of dividends or benefits is given in the form of registered shares (acciones nominativas) or in ownership quotas (cuotas sociales) of the very company that pays them.
The withholdings referred to shall be considered a single and definitive tax on those incomes, except when the beneficiary is a taxpayer of the profits tax (impuesto sobre las utilidades) and such incomes derive from assets related to its activity, in accordance with articles 1 bis of the Law and 3 bis of this regulation.
2. Partnerships (sociedades de personas), whether de facto or de jure, trusts and fiduciary assignments (fideicomisos y encargos de confianza), joint ventures (cuentas en participación), professional service companies (sociedades de actividades profesionales), and undivided estates (sucesiones indivisas), provided they are taxpayers under article 2 of the Law, shall withhold the income obtained by their partners, members, or beneficiaries as a result of the distribution of available income (renta disponible). For these purposes, it shall be understood that one hundred percent (100%) of the available income of the previously mentioned entities belongs to their partners, members, or beneficiaries who are individuals domiciled in the country. In these cases, the withholding shall be fifteen percent (15%) on the total amount paid or credited according to the taxpayer's participation in that available income.
The withholding shall not be made when the available income is capitalized, in which case such act must be recorded in the accounting records, which must be carried out within three months following the end of the tax period.
In addition, the capitalization must be recorded in the corresponding legal books.
When obtaining income, gains, or profits that are taxable, or exempt under this law or others, received or accrued during the fiscal period, they must be added to the result obtained, in accordance with the rule of the second paragraph of this subparagraph iv) subparagraph a) paragraph 2) of article 27 ter of the Law, for the purpose of determining the available income or income.
3. Cooperatives or other similar entities, for one hundred percent (100%) of the surplus (excedentes) paid to their members. In these cases, the withholding shall be ten percent (10%) on the gross amount of the surplus paid or credited to the member during the tax period. This withholding shall be considered a single and definitive tax on those incomes.
4. Solidarity associations (asociaciones solidaristas), for the surplus or profits paid to their members. In these cases, the withholding shall depend on the amount of the surplus or profits paid or credited to the member during the fiscal period and shall be:
a. Five percent (5%) on the surplus or profits that do not exceed one base salary (salario base).
b. Seven percent (7%) on the surplus or profits that exceed one base salary but do not exceed two base salaries.
c. Ten percent (10%) on the surplus or profits that exceed two base salaries.
This withholding shall be considered a single and definitive tax on those incomes.
iv. Capital gains obtained by non-domiciled persons. In the case of transfers of immovable property located in the national territory by non-domiciled persons, the acquirer must withhold and pay the amount corresponding to two point five percent (2.5%) of the total value agreed for the disposal of the immovable property.
In the case of the full transfer of ownership of other assets or rights other than immovable property by non-domiciled persons, the acquirer must make the same withholding described above only if the acquirer qualifies as a taxpayer of the profits tax, according to article 2 of the Income Tax Law (Ley del Impuesto sobre la Renta).
This withholding shall have the status of an advance payment (pago a cuenta).
This withholding shall not apply in cases of contribution of immovable property, in the incorporation or capital increase of companies domiciled in the national territory.
v. Remittances abroad. The individual or legal entity domiciled in the national territory that pays, credits, transfers, or makes available to a person not domiciled in the country Costa Rican-source income, as provided in articles 54 and 55 of the Law, is obligated to withhold the tax on remittances abroad. In these cases, the withholding shall be the result of multiplying the rate established in article 59 of the same law by the Costa Rican-source income in question.
In particular, the representatives of branches, agencies, and other permanent establishments of persons not domiciled in the country, operating in the national territory, shall be obligated to withhold on the available income credited or paid to the parent company domiciled abroad. For these purposes, it shall be understood that one hundred percent (100%) of the available income of the previously mentioned entities belongs to the parent company. In these cases, the withholding shall be fifteen percent (15%).
This withholding shall be considered a single and definitive tax on those incomes.
vi. Presumptive income (rentas presuntivas) of non-domiciled companies. Payments or credits made to branches, agencies, or permanent establishments of persons not domiciled in the country, for the provision of the services mentioned in subparagraphs a), b), c), and ch) of article 11 of the Income Tax Law, shall be subject to tax withholdings, in accordance with the following provisions:
i. In the event that the companies providing the aforementioned services have a permanent representative in Costa Rica, the user companies contracting with them must withhold three percent (3%) on the amounts paid or credited. The withholding made shall be considered an advance payment of the Profits Tax.
ii. In the event that the companies providing such services do not have a permanent representative in the country, the user companies must withhold the amounts resulting from applying the rates established in article 23 subparagraph e) sub-subparagraphs i), ii) and iii) of the Income Tax Law. This withholding shall be considered a single and definitive tax.
vii. Income originating from bids (licitaciones), contracting, business, or operations carried out by the State, autonomous or semi-autonomous institutions, municipalities, public enterprises, and other public entities. The State, autonomous or semi-autonomous institutions, municipalities, public enterprises, and other public entities are obligated to withhold on income originating from public or private bids, contracting, business, or operations carried out by them and that are paid or credited in favor of individuals or legal entities domiciled in the country. In these cases, the withholding shall be two percent (2%) on the total amount of such income made available to the taxpayer, except when it involves:
- i)Transactions carried out between public entities that are exempt or not subject to the profits tax.
- ii)Payments made to non-domiciled persons, when these were taxed with the tax on remittances abroad.
- iii)Credits or payments made to persons or entities exempt from the Profits Tax.
- iv)Payments on which the three percent (3%) withholding referred to in subparagraph e) of article 23 of the Income Tax Law has been made.
The withholding referred to in this section shall be considered an advance payment of the profits tax that the taxpayer must pay. Likewise, at the taxpayer's request, the Tax Administration may authorize the application of the withheld amounts to the partial payments of the profits tax for the corresponding period.
The tax withholdings described in all the previous subparagraphs must be made by the withholding agent at the time the respective payment is made or credited, whichever occurs first. The withholding agent must file a monthly self-assessment return (declaración autoliquidativa) that includes all the withholdings made and pay the corresponding amount, following the model established by the Tax Administration. The amount of the withholdings made must be deposited in banks of the National Banking System (Sistema Bancario Nacional) or in their agencies or branches authorized by the Central Bank of Costa Rica (Banco Central de Costa Rica), or in the collecting entities authorized by the Ministry of Finance (Ministerio de Hacienda), within the first fifteen calendar days of the month following that in which the withholding was made.
When it is not possible to apply the withholding regulated in subparagraphs b), c), and d) of this article, these incomes must be subject to a self-assessment return by the taxpayer of the Profits Tax or in the self-assessment return for real estate capital income (rentas de capital inmobiliario), movable capital income (rentas de capital mobiliario), and capital gains, as applicable." "Article 47.- Object of the tax.
(.)
The term "employer (patrono)" refers to any person, whether individual or legal, public or private, who employs the services of another or others, by virtue of an employment contract, express or implied, verbal or written, individual or collective. The expression also includes the term employer." "Article 48.- Rates. The tax referred to in article 32 of the Income Tax Law shall have the character of a single and definitive tax and must be withheld and applied by the employer on the total monthly income received by the worker, in accordance with the rates set forth in article 33 of the same law.
The above rates shall tax the incomes referred to in subparagraph a) of article 32 of the Income Tax Law, regardless of whether they are subject to the payment of social charges (cargas sociales) or are included in the calculation of the year-end bonus (aguinaldo).
Taxpayers who receive income as set forth in subparagraphs b) and c) of article 32 of the Income Tax Law shall pay fifteen percent (15%) on the gross income, without tax credits." "Article 49.- Credits. Once the incomes from subparagraph a) of article 32 of the Income Tax Law have been calculated, taxpayers shall be entitled to deduct the credits indicated in article 17 of this Regulation." "Article 51.- Accessory income (Rentas accesorias). For the purposes of determining the tax, accessory or supplementary salary income additional to those mentioned in subparagraphs a) and c) of article 32 of the law shall be attributed as received or accrued in the corresponding monthly period. They shall be considered to correspond to the same period when they have been received or accrued in a regular pay period. If such income was produced in more than one regular period, it shall be computed in the respective periods in which it was received or accrued.
Accessory income shall be understood as those additional income items received or accrued separately from the ordinary monthly income." "Article 57.- Taxable base. The withholding percentages referred to in article 59 of the Income Tax Law must be applied to the gross amounts that are credited, paid, or in any way made available to persons not domiciled in the country for the concepts set forth in articles 54 and 55 of the same law."