In the Official Gazette number 52, it was published the law number 10068 "Law to promote the integration of customs information and the installation of non-intrusive inspection technology equipment and systems."

 

The purpose of this law is to define and promote a national policy for encouraging the integration of customs information and the establishment of inspection scanners in ports, airports and land border crossings in our national territory.

 

For these purposes, it is determined that the public institution in charge of defining the national policy in this sense will be the Ministry of Finance; taking into account for its development the opinion of the National Council for Trade Facilitation and the Costa Rican Institute on Drugs ("ICD" by its acronym in Spanish).

 

Within the transitory provisions of this law, the following terms are established for the development of certain actions by the Ministry of Finance:

a.      A period of no more than one month for the development of an optimal national policy to insert Costa Rica in the International Customs Information Integration System.

-        Within this same period, a national policy must be established in coordination with the National Council for Trade Facilitation that brings together the necessary actions to install the equipment and systems of non-intrusive inspection technology in all posts, seaports, airports and land border crossings.

b.      A period of no more than six months to carry out the installation of non-intrusive inspection technology equipment and systems in the aforementioned places.

These provisions will take effect since the past March 17^th, 2022.

Resolution number DGA-079-2022 was published on March 30^th of this year in the Official Gazette number 61.

This resolution establishes the guidelines applicable to the logistics entities related to the transit, internment, mobilization and exit of merchandise.

For applying this guideline, it was established that as of April 20th of this year the Information System for Customs Control will begin at different customs offices in Caldera, Central, La Anexion and Limon.

 

Legal entities, private trusts, non-profit organizations and third-party resource administrators must provide the necessary information to the platform managed by the Central Bank of Costa Rica (“BCCR” for its acronym) in order to subsequently recognize who are identified as their final beneficiaries, before next April 30^th of this year.

This type of registry is established in order to comply with international standards and recommendations (OECD-FATF) regarding tax and financial transparency in order to make transparent the final beneficiary of the various legal vehicles.

In addition, this registry allows having current, relevant, and timely information for the fight against tax evasion, tax fraud, money laundering.

Finally, the taxpayers in case of non-compliance with the duty to provide information on transparency and final beneficiaries are exposed to the following sanctions:

•    A pecuniary fine of 2% of the figure of the gross income of the legal person or legal structure, in the profit tax period, prior to that in which the infraction occurred.

•    The National Registry may not issue certifications of legal status or register documents in favor of those who fail to provide information.

•    Public notaries must record in the documents they issue that the party obliged to supply is in breach of the Law to Improve the Fight against Tax Fraud.

It is important to highlight that following release from Central Directo CD-008-2022 dated March 31^st, 2022 both the Special Powers of Attorney and the authorizations granted that have been registered before April 1^st, 2022, and that have already been used will remain disabled. Therefore, the corresponding special powers of attorney must be granted again for the presentation of the ordinary declaration for the 2022 period.