The Inter-American Development Bank approved a $40 million credit line that will help the country invest in the digital transformation of the tax administration.
The financial organization reported that the project is part of the efforts that the General Directorate of Revenues (DGI) has been taking since late 2019 to modernize its management in an integral manner, in coordination with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the International Monetary Fund.
In this scenario of economic crisis, falling tax revenues and the need to finance recovery programs, in Guatemala and Costa Rica it is already proposed to increase current taxes and create new ones.
Guatemalan authorities are already beginning to discuss the fiscal policy they will apply in 2021, when the economy will have to face the effects of the economic crisis generated by the covid-19 outbreak.
In order to give individuals and corporations the opportunity to catch up with this obligation interrupted by the pandemic, authorities extended until July 17 the deadline for declaring income tax payments.
The term to cancel this commitment with the Panamanian State expired on March 31, 2020, and an extension was added until May 30, given the circumstances with the effects of covid-19, the difficulties presented by many companies and the time needed by public accountants to submit such statements, explained the representatives of the General Directorate of Revenue (DGI).
Extension of deadlines for the payment of taxes and flexibility in the submission of income tax returns by natural and legal persons are some of the measures that the authorities will implement in the context of the Covid-19 crisis.
With no details on the new deadlines that will be required of taxpayers, the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) reported that the measures are contained in Executive Decree 252 of March 24.
In view of the emergency arising from the spread of covid-19, a bill was submitted to the Assembly proposing a 90-calendar-day suspension of the payment of municipal and national taxes.
The initiative also establishes the suspension for 90 days of the payment of electricity and drinking water, as well as mortgage and personal loans, among others, reported the National Assembly.
Until January 13, 2020, the Sworn Declaration of Liquidation of the Selective Consumption Tax on Soft Drinks may be presented in Panama, corresponding to November 2019.
Law 114 dated November 18, 2019, which entered into force on November 19, 2019, establishes a new rate for the Selective Excise Tax on Soft Drinks, which is why the e-Tax 2.0 system was modified. Due to these changes, the authorities decided to extend the deadline for filing this return, corresponding to the November 2019 period.
Panamanian industrialists consider that the approach under which the new tax of 7% on carbonated beverages and 5% on other sugary beverages was defined uses discriminatory fiscal measures.
On November 18, Law 114 was published in the Official Journal, entitled "What creates the Action Plan to Improve Health and dictates other provisions to establish the selective tax on the consumption of sugary beverages and the criteria for its use", which stipulates a 7% tax on carbonated beverages, 5% for other sugary beverages and 10% for syrups, and sugar concentrates for the production of sugary beverages.
For interest, penalties or surcharges to be 100% forgiven, taxpayers will have until November 30,
2019 to pay their overdue taxes.
On September 26, the National Assembly approved Bill 78 of 2019, which aims to exonerate from interest, surcharges and fines of taxes that are delinquent and owed by taxpayers.
In Panama, was approved a new law that extends the scope of the Special Free Port System for the province of Colon, through the exclusion of tax payments for the import of goods, both for domestic and non-domestic.
"Public debt in terms of simple average for the Central American region will continue growing, reaching 43.1% of GDP in 2018, after having registered 42.5% in 2017."
The Central American Institute of Fiscal Studies (Icefi) estimates that for the current year the size of public expenditure of the Central Government in relation to the respective Gross Domestic Product of each country will be 21.4% in Costa Rica, 20.4% in El Salvador, 20% in Honduras, 18.4% in Nicaragua, 17.6% in Panama and 12.1% in Guatemala.
In Panama, a bill that regulates the activities of call centers has been approved, leaving companies in the sector free of direct and indirect taxes.
The National Assembly reported that, in a third debate, approval was given to Bill 653 which regulates the activity of call centers for commercial use.
The good functioning of the institution in charge of collecting taxes is vital for ensuring economic development, as it means that honest companies who comply with their fiscal obligations are not at a disadvantage to those who don't.
From 2018 an agreement will be in effect on the exchange of financial and tax information of accounts of Argentines in Panama and of Panamanians in the South American country.
From a statement issued by the Federal Public Revenue Administration of Argentina:
In Costa Rica, the Ministry of Finance is using a predictive model designed with data mining techniques to determine the behavioral patterns of companies that might be circumventing tax payments.
Analyzing and crossing checking historical information from multiple databases, the statistical model used by the Directorate General of Taxation attempts to predict which companies are more likely to evade paying taxes depending on their historical behavior measured through transactions, tax returns and other data.By linking all of the information, they identify patterns of behavior similar to those of other companies that have evaded taxes in the past.
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