Although at the request of the business sector, President Varela vetoed the bill establishing an 8% tax on local and imported sugary beverages, Panama's National Assembly will insist on approving it.
The National Assembly approved in third session the new taxes, however, the business sector asked the Panamanian president at the end of February 2019 to veto the bill, which establishes a tax of 8% for sugared drinks of national production and imported and 10% for syrups and concentrates.
The new tax reform proposal presented by the Ministry of Finance of Costa Rica includes the creation of a global income system to impose and collect a tax on the profits of companies and individuals.
Taxing all of the profits of natural and legal persons, including those currently paid separately by the identity code income method, is the principal new feature of the new tax reform plan presented by the Ministry of Finance.
A bill that is being discussed in the Legislative Assembly proposes establishing a tax of 5% on the net sale price of imported or locally produced cement.
The bill establishes that "...the tax on cement produced within the national territory or imported, will be of five percent (5%) on the net sale price, both in the case of the national producer at the level of the production plantand for the importer at the level of the dispatch or storage site, excluding the corresponding sales or value-added tax, as well as any other tax".
Under study in the Legislature are 26 bills involving new taxes, increases of some existing ones and redistribution of others.
An analysis piece by Nacion.com notes that the Legislative Assembly is currently considering 26 bills introduced during the current administration which in some way involve the issue of taxes."...Of the total projects, 50% are attempts to raise them or create a new type of tax or fees. "
The new draft law on tax fraud prepared by the opposition and which must be reviewed by the Ministry of Finance excludes the concept of collection and seizure by administrative authorities.
After having negotiated for the opposition bloc in Congress to amend the bill originally submitted by the Ministry of Finance, the new bill is ready and among the changes is the elimination of the incorporation of the concept of fines and embargos imposed administratively. It maintains the collection and seizure of tax debts through the courts.
Progressing through the assembly is a bill that aims to raise the tax burden from 15% to 18% over the next five years, without establishing limitations on expenses and borrowing by the state.
The initiative includes as fiscal target to reach a minimum gross tax burden equivalent to 18% of GDP, over a period of five years.
"...The ruling, which was promoted by the FMLN, establishes a set of general goals that the Government aims to comply with over a period of five years. This proposal is far from the one proposed by ARENA in Congress since 2012, which contained measures restricting spending and government borrowing, with the same purpose: to improve finances ".
A Bill proposes that companies using electricity distribution poles pay municipalities a fee equivalent to 10% of their earnings.
The proposal presented by Deputy Jorge Rodriguez not only includes telecommunications companies, but also any natural or legal person who owns the posts. This proposal also prohibits the new rental fee for the poles being transferred to the final consumer.
The Ministry of Finance has postponed until April 17 the deadline for companies to make their comments on the draft legislation reforming income and sales taxes .
Originally the deadline for providing comments on the tax proposal was March 27, but at the request of several sectors it has been extended until April 17, according to the chief of Finance, Helio Fallas.
Requests have been made for the clarification of which telecommunications services are to be taxed with VAT, since it is unclear whether it is information services or telecommunications which would be taxed.
Currently telecommunications services are charged sales tax, even though the Costa Rican government aims to close the digital divide. With this new reform proposal, a Value Added Tax (VAT) of 15%, "would be incurred ...
A bill aims to increase fuel tax by five cents to finance the projected increase granted to pensioners and retirees of the Social Security Department.
The project submitted to the National Assembly, seeks to collect $0.05 per per liter of fuel with the goal of raising $100 million a year to fund, with $80 million, a raise for retirees and with $20 million a Program for Disability, Aging and Death (IVM by its initials in Spanish).
The government is to propose the creation of a new tax to finance part of the budget of the Ministry of Interior, which "would be directed towards the upper and upper middle class" .
This tax would not be for the entire population, since according to the Interior Minister, "... it will be directed towards the upper and upper middle class, because they have the ability to pay.
The Executive is proposing to reform the scope of the law and charge a "registration for coffee production fee" of $0.50 per hundredweight.
Despite the outbreak of coffee rust, the debt of $200 million and the funding crisis facing the coffee sector, the Salvadoran government intends to collect more taxes. Currently the bill raised by the Executive Branch is being analyzed by the agricultural legislative committee.