Costa Rica public holidays 2026, VAT rate and tax data
Costa Rica: VAT rate 13% since 1 Jul 2019; 12 public holidays in 2026 (next: Día de la Abolición del Ejército (pago no obligatorio), 1 Dec 2026); corporate tax rate 30%; minimum wage 373092.3 CRC/month; policy interest rate 3%; inflation rate (CPI) -0.32%.
11 series, each cited to the official source it was verified against; most recently verified 5 Oct 2026. Currency CRC.
verified recentlyre-verification due soonstaleColour is the age of the last check against the series' own update cycle.
Costa Rica public holidays 2026
12 days in 2026; next: Día de la Abolición del Ejército (pago no obligatorio) on 1 Dec 2026. Official source: Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 · last verified 30 Jul 2026
Fixed by law 12
| Date | Holiday | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Jan 2026 Thu | Año Nuevo (New Year's Day) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 2 Apr 2026 Thu | Jueves Santo (Maundy Thursday) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 3 Apr 2026 Fri | Viernes Santo (Good Friday) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 11 Apr 2026 Sat | Día de Juan Santamaría (Battle of Rivas) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 1 May 2026 Fri | Día Internacional del Trabajo (Labour Day) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 25 Jul 2026 Sat | Anexión del Partido de Nicoya a Costa Rica | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 2 Aug 2026 Sun | Día de la Virgen de los Ángeles (pago no obligatorio) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 15 Aug 2026 Sat | Día de la Madre / Asunción de la Virgen (Mother's Day) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 31 Aug 2026 Mon | Día de la Persona Negra y la Cultura Afrocostarricense (pago no obligatorio) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 15 Sep 2026 Tue | Día de la Independencia (Independence Day) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 1 Dec 2026 Tue | Día de la Abolición del Ejército (pago no obligatorio) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 25 Dec 2026 Fri | Navidad (Christmas Day) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
2027 dates already held (12)
| Date | Holiday | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Jan 2027 Fri | Año Nuevo (New Year's Day) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 25 Mar 2027 Thu | Jueves Santo (Maundy Thursday) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 26 Mar 2027 Fri | Viernes Santo (Good Friday) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 11 Apr 2027 Sun | Día de Juan Santamaría (Battle of Rivas) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 1 May 2027 Sat | Día Internacional del Trabajo (Labour Day) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 25 Jul 2027 Sun | Anexión del Partido de Nicoya a Costa Rica | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 2 Aug 2027 Mon | Día de la Virgen de los Ángeles (pago no obligatorio) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 15 Aug 2027 Sun | Día de la Madre / Asunción de la Virgen (Mother's Day) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 31 Aug 2027 Tue | Día de la Persona Negra y la Cultura Afrocostarricense (pago no obligatorio) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 15 Sep 2027 Wed | Día de la Independencia (Independence Day) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 1 Dec 2027 Wed | Día de la Abolición del Ejército (pago no obligatorio) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
| 25 Dec 2027 Sat | Navidad (Christmas Day) | Fixed by law | Código de Trabajo, Artículo 148 |
Status is read from the record: fixed by law follows from a standing rule (a fixed date or the Easter computus); confirmed is dated in the cited official calendar and not flagged provisional; estimated is provisional or moon-sighting dependent; substitute stands in for a statutory day that fell on a weekend or was moved. Hover a status for the reason.
Every current Costa Rica value
Rate schedules and breakdowns
Withholding tax rates
5.5–30% across 7 withholding taxes — no single rate · in force from 2022-12-21 · Official source: Ley 7092, Ley del Impuesto sobre la Renta, art. 59 'Tarifas' (consolidated… · last verified 10 Aug 2026
Rates by payment type
| key | label | rate | applies to | effective from | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| dividends | Dividends and profit distributions | 15 | profits, dividends and social participations paid or credited to persons not domiciled in Costa Rica | 2019-07-01 | Ley 7092, art. 59 g): 'Por las… |
| VARIANT: the article literally reads '15% or 5%, as applicable', but the arts. 18 and 19 it cross-refers to were REPEALED by Ley 9635 (título II, aparte 18), which moved dividend taxation to the capital-income chapter (art. 31 ter, general rate 15%). The historic 5% case… | |||||
| interest | Interest, commissions and other financing costs | 15 | interest, commissions and other financial expenses, and capital-goods lease payments, paid or credited by persons domiciled in Costa Rica to entities or individuals abroad, unless already taxed under the capital-income rules | 2022-12-21 | Ley 7092, art. 59 h), as amended by Ley… |
| VARIANTS AND EXEMPTIONS in art. 59 h): (1) 5.5% where an entity supervised by SUGEF pays interest to a foreign entity subject to supervision in its own jurisdiction ('se pagará una tarifa del cinco coma cinco por ciento (5,5%)'); (2) the Ley 9635 phase-in for foreign banks in a… | |||||
| royalties-technical-advisory | Royalties, patents, trademarks, franchises and technical-financial advisory | 25 | technical-financial or other advisory services, and payments for the use of patents, supply of formulas, trademarks, privileges, franchises and royalties, paid to persons not domiciled in Costa Rica | 2019-07-01 | Ley 7092, art. 59 j): 'Por el… |
| One head covers royalties, franchises AND technical assistance/advisory of any kind, all at 25%. | |||||
| fees-personal-services | Professional fees, commissions and independent personal services | 25 | honorarios (fees), commissions, per diems and other personal services performed without an employment relationship, paid to persons not domiciled in Costa Rica | 2019-07-01 | Ley 7092, art. 59 c), as amended by Ley… |
| Salaried remuneration (employment relationship) falls under art. 59 b) at 10% instead. | |||||
| transport-communications | Transport and communications | 8.5 | transport and communications services paid to persons not domiciled in Costa Rica | — | Ley 7092, art. 59 a): 'Por el… |
| reinsurance-insurance-premiums | Reinsurance, re-surety and insurance premiums | 5.5 | reinsurance, re-surety (reafianzamientos) and insurance premiums of any kind paid abroad | — | Ley 7092, art. 59 d): 'Por los… |
| other-remittances | Any other remittance (residual rate) | 30 | any other remittance of Costa Rican-source income under arts. 54 and 55 not covered by a specific head | — | Ley 7092, art. 59 l): 'Por cualquier… |
Personal income tax brackets
0–25% across 5 bands · in force from 2026-01-01 · Official source: Decreto Ejecutivo N.º 45333-H 'Actualización de los tramos del impuesto sobre… · last verified 17 Jul 2026
| min | max | rate |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 918000 | 0 |
| 918000 | 1347000 | 10 |
| 1347000 | 2364000 | 15 |
| 2364000 | 4727000 | 20 |
| 4727000 | — | 25 |
Statutory social-insurance contributions
0–14.75% across 8 contribution branches · in force from 2026-01-01 · Official source: Constitución Política de la República de Costa Rica, art. 73 (seguros sociales… · last verified 11 Aug 2026
| key | label | rate total | rate employee | rate employer | unit | base | currency |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| sem | Seguro de Salud — Seguro de Enfermedad y Maternidad (SEM), Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social | 14.75 | 5.5 | 9.25 | percent | The worker's salary or remuneration reported on the CCSS planilla. NO CEILING. Subject to the base mínima contributiva fixed periodically by the Junta Directiva de la CCSS, below which contributions are computed on that minimum rather than on actual pay. The State contributes a further 0,25 %, which is not a payroll charge on either the worker or the employer. | CRC |
| THE LARGEST BRANCH IN THE COSTA RICAN SET and the biggest single employer line. Nearly two to one against the employer, 9,25 % to 5,50 %. NO CEILING — the full 14,75 % runs on the whole salary however large, which is unusual in this region and makes Costa Rica very expensive at… | |||||||
| ivm | Seguro de Invalidez, Vejez y Muerte (IVM) — Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social | 9.91 | 4.33 | 5.58 | percent | The worker's salary or remuneration reported on the CCSS planilla, on the same basis as the SEM contribution, with the same base mínima contributiva and NO CEILING. The State contributes a further 1,75 %, which is not a payroll charge. | CRC |
| THE RATE MOVED ON 1 JANUARY 2026 AND WILL MOVE AGAIN ON 1 JANUARY 2029. This is a legislated staircase, not a one-off: Transitorio XI del Reglamento del IVM, approved back in 2019, programmed a sequence of increases to shore up the pension fund. The 2026 step added 0,16 points… | |||||||
| banco_popular | Aportes al Banco Popular y de Desarrollo Comunal | 1.5 | 1 | 0.5 | percent | The worker's salary, on the same CCSS planilla basis, with no ceiling. Collected by the CCSS and transferred to the Banco Popular. | CRC |
| THE ONLY BRANCH IN THIS RECORD WHERE THE EMPLOYEE'S CONTRIBUTION IS A SAVING RATHER THAN A CONTRIBUTION. The worker's 1 % is an ahorro obligatorio credited to him at the Banco Popular and repayable, not a premium; it is nevertheless a compulsory payroll deduction and must be… | |||||||
| asignaciones_familiares | Aporte patronal al Fondo de Desarrollo Social y Asignaciones Familiares (FODESAF) | 5 | 0 | 5 | percent | The employer's total payroll, on the same CCSS planilla basis, with no ceiling. Collected by the CCSS. | CRC |
| EMPLOYER-ONLY, and after SEM and IVM the third-largest employer line — five full points of payroll, larger than most countries' entire secondary levy set. It is a social-development levy, not a social-insurance branch: the worker acquires no individual entitlement from it. It is… | |||||||
| imas | Aporte patronal al Instituto Mixto de Ayuda Social (IMAS) | 0.5 | 0 | 0.5 | percent | The employer's total payroll, on the same CCSS planilla basis, with no ceiling. Collected by the CCSS. | CRC |
| EMPLOYER-ONLY, small, and universally applicable — no small-employer exemption, unlike the INA levy. Like FODESAF it is a social-assistance levy collected on the CCSS planilla rather than a social-insurance branch, and the worker receives nothing individually attributable for it. | |||||||
| ina | Aporte patronal al Instituto Nacional de Aprendizaje (INA) — vocational training levy | 1.5 | 0 | 1.5 | percent | The employer's total payroll, on the same CCSS planilla basis, with no ceiling. EXEMPT: non-agricultural employers with fewer than five (5) permanent employees do not pay it. | CRC |
| THE ONLY COSTA RICAN LEVY WITH A SMALL-EMPLOYER EXEMPTION, and the reason the two headline employer totals differ: 26,83 % for an employer in scope, 25,33 % for a non-agricultural employer with fewer than five permanent employees. The test is on PERMANENT headcount and on… | |||||||
| lpt_fcl_rop | Ley de Protección al Trabajador — Fondo de Capitalización Laboral (FCL) y Régimen Obligatorio de Pensiones Complementarias (ROP) | 4.5 | 0 | 4.5 | percent | The worker's monthly salary, on the same CCSS planilla basis, with no ceiling. Collected by the CCSS and transferred to the operadora de pensiones complementarias chosen by the worker and to his labour-capitalisation account. | CRC |
| SERVED AS A COMBINED 4,50 % BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT THE EMPLOYER PAYS AND IT IS THE ONLY FIGURE ON WHICH THE SOURCES AGREE. The two limbs — FCL and ROP — are legally distinct and the split between them was changed by la Ley N° 9906, which moved share from the FCL to the ROP; Costa… | |||||||
| ins_riesgos_trabajo | Póliza de Riesgos del Trabajo — Instituto Nacional de Seguros (INS) | — | 0 | — | percent | The employer's declared payroll. Priced by the Instituto Nacional de Seguros as a premium rate graded by the employer's economic activity and its claims experience. No statutory national rate and no statutory ceiling. NOT collected on the CCSS planilla — billed separately by the INS. | CRC |
| NO NATIONAL RATE — rate_employer deliberately null, because it is a graded insurance premium set by the INS for the employer's activity, not a statutory percentage. THIS IS WHY THE 26,83 % FIGURE IS NOT THE WHOLE COST: that total is the CCSS planilla only, and the riesgos del… | |||||||
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