Starting September 1, 2017, the tax on corporations (Sociedades Anónimas) will be reinstated. This year the payment will be just for the months between September – December, then starting 2018 the payments will be yearly, and will apply to both active and inactive S.A.’s.
The funds obtained will be distributed as follows; Ministerio de Seguridad (Costa Rican Police) 90%, Ministerio Público 5%, and to the Organismo de Investigación Judicial (OIJ, Costa Rica’s version of the FBI) 5%.
In January 2015, the Sala IV declared the old text that created this tax illegal due to procedure flaws. Since then the Asamblea Legislativa has been working on creating the new version of this tax, and on March 16, 2017, in the second debate, this new version was approved.
It is advised to make the payments on time and not try to evade payments. For those that do default, there will be a fine + interest calculated by day, that will represent yearly 11.73% of the total amount owed. Also, those defaulters will not be able to participate in any contracts with a public entity, the National Registry will not issue them certifications of legal status, they will not be able to register any documents in favor of the taxpayers and they are exposed to the preferential legal mortgage or pledge of their assets.
| Corporations (Personas jurídicas) | Sept-Dec. 2017 | Yearly, 2018 |
| Inactive corporation (Sociedad inactiva) | ¢21,308 ($37.91) | ¢63,930 ($113.75) |
| Active corporation (Sociedad active) Income below ¢51 million ($90,747) | ¢35,513($63.19) | ¢106,550($189.59) |
| Active corporation (Sociedad active) Income between ¢51 million – ¢119 million ($90,747 – $211,743) | ¢42,616($75.83) | ¢127,860($227.51) |
| Active corporation (Sociedad active) Income above ¢119 million ($211,743) | ¢71,026($126.38) | ¢213,100($379.18) |
US$1 = CR¢562 Proper funding (or lack of) for our Police has been an issue for many years. Costa Rica is full of beautiful places attracting more tourists every year, and this is something that will contribute to maintaining the safety and peace we are all accustomed to here. This will be a huge breath of fresh air for the Police and will help in motivating them to look over this wonderful country.