American Expatriate Costa Rica

Corporate income tax will be effective on September 1st

Beginning on September 1st this year, the tax on legal persons will begin to be collected, after the regulation of Law no. 9428 was published in Gaceta last Friday.

The collection will be reactivated for all types of commercial companies, such as corporations, limited liability companies, limited partnerships, partnerships, individual limited liability company, among others.

Failure to make payments on the dates established by the Tax Authorities would imply a fine and interest that will be calculated per day, and which annually represent 11.73 %% of the total tax.

The president of the Association of Public Accountants, Ronald Artavia, explained that during 2017 only the proportion of the tax that was in force this year should be payed, i.e. between September and December, whereas, for the next year, the tax will apply in full and must be pay during the month of January 2018.

The delinquency of the payment of this tax has implications for the taxpayers. For example, they will not be able to participate in contracting with the State or any public institution, the National Registry will not issue certificates of legal status, they will not be able to register any document in favor of the taxpayers and they are exposed to the preferential legal mortgage or pledge of their assets.

Likewise, non-payment generates the penalties established in the Code of Tax Rules and Procedures, as well as the interests established in said law (approximately 0.98% per month). For example, for 2017 in inactive societies would generate a daily interest of ¢ 6.94, active societies that pay 25% of base salary will have a daily interest ¢ 11,57.

In both cases the non-presentation of the declaration eventually established by the Tax Administration, will have a fine of half a base salary that can be reduced up to 80% in case of voluntary payment.

According to article 11 of this law, 90% of the collection of the tax will be assigned to the Ministry of Public Security to invest in the construction of police delegations, purchase and maintenance of police equipment, in the attention of citizen security and Fight against crime, and 5% will go to the Ministry of Justice and the other 5% to the Judicial Investigation Agency.

crhoy.com