Higher corporation tax will be 189,700 colons

By the A.M. Costa Rica staff As expected, the base judicial salary on which the tax on corporations is figured has increased. Owners of active corporations will have to pay 189,700 colons by Jan. 15 to avoid interest and the freezing of the company. That is about $380. Those owning inactive corporations include many expats who hold vehicles and real estate is sociedades anónimas or limited liability corporations. The tax bill for inactive corporations will be half that for active entities or 94,850 colons, about $190. Costa Rica law sets many fines and taxes on what is called base salary. It is the salary of an auxiliar administrativo 1 who works in the Poder Judicial. When the president signed the bill for the new tax in

2011, the base salary was 316,200 colons or about $622. So the tax on corporations, which went into force this April 1 was half that, $311. But before the ink was dry, judicial workers got a raise to 360,000 colons a month, so the tax increased, too. This is the first year that owners of corporations will pay the full tax. The base salary affects many other aspects of daily life. The base salary system is used so that taxes and fines keep pace with inflation. Judicial officials are generous to employees. The 19,400-colon raise to the auxiliar administrativo 1 represents an increase of about 5.4 percent. That is more than the annual increase in the nation's minimum wages and for salaries elsewhere in the government.