Initially the ordinary period to declare the beneficial owners of the companies was due on April 30, but the authorities decided to extend the deadline to May 31.
This declaration was to be submitted during the month of April; according to resolution N°DGT-ICD-R-06-2020, however, due to the state of emergency facing the country due to the Covid-19 pandemic, these institutions agreed to extend the deadline, in order to guarantee the fulfillment of this obligation and facilitate voluntary compliance, informed the Ministry of Finance.
In Costa Rica, the Constitutional Chamber ruled in favor of the Observatorio Ciudadano de Transparencia Fiscal, an institution that filed an appeal to obtain information on how many individuals appear as owners of shares.
After the Observatory requested to the Ministry of Finance statistical information that can be obtained from the Registry of Shareholders and Beneficial Owners (RABF), the authorities refused.
In Costa Rica, the Legislative Assembly approved in first debate a bill to avoid fines for errors in the declaration of the shareholders' registry for two months.
In its first debate, the file 21,758 Law of Moratorium for the Application of Sanctions corresponding to the ordinary declaration of the 2019 period, related to the transparency and final beneficiaries’ registry, provided for in the Law to Improve the Fight against Tax Fraud, was approved. The initiative gives an extension for shareholders of corporations to submit their lists, before applying sanctions, reported the Legislative Assembly.
Businessmen ask for an immediate extension in the application of any fines, as many representatives of companies have not yet managed their digital signature and at this time, there is no capacity installed in the authorized posts.
As of September 1, approximately 370,000 legal entities will be required to comply with the Registry of Transparency and Final Beneficiaries, with the legal documents ending in 0 and 1 being the ones that must do so first.
However, as of September 1, 2019, legal entities who prefer it, regardless of the last digit of their identity card, may make their declaration and send it in advance.
Because of doubts that have arisen in the business sector, in Costa Rica it was reported that the start of shareholder registration was postponed six months and will enter into force on September 1 of this year.
The aim of this process is to facilitate compliance with the obligation that companies must inform the Treasury on the composition of its share capital, as well as the identification of final beneficiaries, under the provisions of the Law to Improve the Fight against Tax Fraud, a statement from the Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR).
Although the Central Bank has not yet defined the date on which companies must present information, the new regulation on transparency and final beneficiaries registration has already been published.
The regulation was published at the end of April in the official newspaper La Gaceta, and details which entities are obliged to provide information regarding the substantive and final beneficiary interests, established in the Law to Improve the Fight Against Tax Fraud.
The First Chamber has dismissed a motion by the Chamber of Industries, and the Taxation department will be able to require large taxpayers to present information deemed sensitive in the AMPO system.
From a statement issued by the Ministry of Finance:
First Chamber confirms the power of Taxation to request information through the AMPO
With the legislative endorsement of the law against tax fraud the Ministry of Finance will be able to have access to the list of shareholders of corporations, and the people behind other legal entities.
The bill which was approved in second debate by the Legislature stipulates: an obligation to accept as a method of payment, in addition to cash, credit cards and debit cards; an obligation to be up to date with tax payments before making contracts or applying for permits, concessions or authorizations with any state institution; the introduction of penalties for tax advisers engaged in illegal maneuvers to evade or reduce the amount to be paid by taxpayers; and strengthening of the processes of judicial collection.
The OECD has noted the non compliance with the standards required in terms of disclosure of information on the final beneficiaries of legal persons.
In the revision made by the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information, at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Costa Rica appears in the list of nations that still have not made significant progress in fiscal transparency.
A bill approved in the Legislative Commission creates a register of shareholders to which the tax authority would have unrestricted access.
The main objective of the project against tax fraud is to enable the Directorate General of Taxation to seize the assets and bank accounts of taxpayers classified as delinquent, under the order of a judge.The embargoes could be extended for a period of up to two years.
Traders, industrialists and entrepreneurs in the agro sector disagree with the position of the main private sector union over the negotiation of new taxes.
Three business unions have ratified their opposition to new taxes in Costa Rica and have made known their total lack of empathy with the way the Uccaep, an organization that unites most of the unions in the private sector, has dealt with the Solis administration over tax issues, the negotiation of a shareholder register proposed by the government and other aspects related to the fiscal problems affecting the country.
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