The annual company tax for 2021 is due by January 31, 2021. The company tax for inactive companies will be US$115 for 2021. (The amount in Colones is 69,330 so check the exchange rate at the time you will pay it since the exchange rate fluctuates)
For active companies the annual tax rate is based on the annual Gross income of the company pursuant to the following sliding tax scale.
- $191 (Colones 115,500) For Gross Income between 0 and 120 base salaries = 25%
- $229 (Colones 138,660) For Gross Income between 120 and 28 base salaries = 30%
- $382 (Colones 231,100) For Gross Income above 280 base salaries = 50%
What is the Company Tax ?
The annual company tax is known locally as the Ley de Impuestos a Las Personas Juridicas, Law Number 9248 which establishes a mandatory annual tax on every Company registered in Costa Rica. For inactive companies the amount is a flat fee. For companies that are registered with the tax department and file an income tax return every year the rate is based on a sliding fee schedule. That scale is based on the base salary of a Costa Rican government employee. For 2021 the base salary established by the government was 462,200 Colones or approximately $764 at the current rate of exchange.
How do I Check if my Company is Tax Compliant ?
The Ministry of the Treasury of Costa Rica has an online portal called the virtual tax administration or Administracion Tributaria Virtual in Spanish and which you can access at https://www.hacienda.go.cr/ATV/Login.aspx
The image below is the log in page for the Virtual Tax Administration
On the menu options on the left-hand side select Consulta Información Tributaria which means tax information request. Then select the sub-menu Consulta Situación Tributaria which is the current tax compliance status.
That will take to the information form which is set forth below. In the selection option you will select in type of identification the Cedula de Persona Jurídica option which means a search by way of the company identification number.
In the next window you will enter the corporation identification number for the company. In Costa Rica all companies are issued a 10 digit number called the cedula jurídica. They will begin with the number 3- and then 101 for an S.A. company or 102 for an LLC (SRL) company. Once you enter the number and click the CONSULTAR button the system will display the result.
This is what the results page would look like. Focus on the information contained on the right side of the screen where it indicates: ES MOROSO and ES OMISO. If the company if up to date and tax compliant it will indicate NO in both of those sections. If it indicates SI (Yes) as the example below it means that the company has some outstanding tax forms to complete. You can click on the tab ES OMISO and it will tell you which tax obligation is outstanding.
In the event the company is not compliant with the annual company tax it will be indicated in this section as well and will inform you of the amount that is owed.
How do I pay the Annual Company Tax ?
If you have a Costa Rican bank account and your bank has an online payment system then you can pay it using your account. You would go to the SERVICES section of the payments platform and then select MINISTERIO DE HACIENDA which is the tax department and the select the option Impuesto a las Personas Jurídicas. If you don’t have access to a local bank account then it can be paid at any branch of Banco de Costa Rica.
If you follow the steps above and complete the payment for your company in Costa Rica you shall be compliant with this particular obligation. Depending on the use of your company and economic activity you may have other tax obligations and filings to complete aside from payment of the annual company tax.
