The fiscal stamp is eliminated in Costa Rica

Law 10586, known as the "Tax Simplification to Improve Efficiency and Competitiveness (Phase 1)," came into effect following its publication in the official gazette La Gaceta. This legislation eliminates several taxes, including the slaughter and import tax on cattle, the stamp duty for the Ciudad de las Niñas Association, and the rehabilitation stamp. However, the most significant change impacts the payment of the fiscal stamp duty, which applied to appraisals for registrable acts in the National Registry, as well as to acts and contracts in general.

This stamp duty was paid under two distinct concepts: the first related to the reimbursement of paper, regulated by Articles 239 to 248 of the Fiscal Code; and the second, the fiscal stamp tax, regulated by Articles 272, 273, and 274 of the same code.

In the case of acts executed through public deeds, the elimination of this tax may not be very significant, considering that the maximum amount payable was 625 colones for testimonies of public instruments with amounts exceeding 1,500,000 colones. However, the impact will be more noticeable with the elimination of the fiscal stamp tax, which carried a rate of 5 colones for every 1,000 colones and applied in the following situations (Art. 272 C.F.):

• Testimonies and certifications of instruments or public documents not registrable in the National Registry.

• Private contract documents, as well as those specified in Article 273.

• Powers of attorney or guarantees apud acta.

• Judicial writings related to transactions, settlements, assignments, sales, partitions, or adjudications of non-registrable assets.