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Costa Rica tax guide 2026
Costa Rica taxes only what is earned inside Costa Rica: foreign salaries, pensions, dividends and gains are outside the net entirely. Local employment income is settled by a final monthly withholding of up to 25% — most employees never file — while capital income and gains pay a flat 15%. There is no inheritance, gift or wealth tax; the one boutique charge is a solidarity tax on homes worth over CRC 143 million.
- Rate range
- 0% – 25% (Costa Rican income only)
- Key allowance
- Employment income exempt up to CRC 918,000 a month; self-employed exempt up to CRC 6,244,000 a year
- Tax year
- Calendar year
- Filing deadline
- 15 March for the self-employed; employees settled by withholding
Taxes covered
- Income tax25%
Employment income: monthly withholding scale to 25%. Self-employment: annual scale to 25%. Only Costa Rican-source income counts.
- Dividend tax15%
Dividends are capital income under a flat 15% final withholding — the same rate for residents and non-residents; foreign dividends are untaxed.
- Capital gains tax15%
A flat 15% on gains from Costa Rican assets and on rental income — with habitual dealing taxed as business income instead, and foreign gains untaxed.
- Crypto tax0% / 15%
No dedicated crypto rules — the tax authority treats coins as intangible assets: local-source gains pay the 15% capital rate, foreign-platform gains are generally untaxed.
- Social security10.83%
Employees pay 10.83% of gross salary; the self-employed pay 11.5-18.75% by income level — none of it deductible for income tax.
- Inheritance tax0%
Costa Rica has no inheritance or gift tax — inheritances, bequests and marital property are excluded from income for residents and non-residents alike.
- Withholding tax15% / 25%
Remittances abroad carry final withholdings — 15% on dividends and interest, 25% on professional fees and royalties, 10% on salaries and pensions.
Special regimes
- Foreign income: 0%
The territorial system leaves foreign salaries, pensions, investment income and gains untaxed — a cornerstone of Costa Rica's expat appeal.
- No return for most employees
Salary tax is a final monthly withholding at 0-25% — with no other income there is no return, ever.
- Flat 15% on capital
Dividends, interest, rents and capital gains all settle at 15% (7% for Popular Bank securities).
- No inheritance or gift tax
Inheritances, bequests and gifts are excluded from income — 0% whoever gives or receives.
- 25% no-receipt deduction
From 2026, every independent service provider can deduct a flat 25% of gross income with no receipts at all.
Recent changes
- 2026-01The flat 25% expense deduction was extended to all independent service providers (Law 10,818), the 2026 brackets were set slightly lower with the falling price index, and the solidarity-tax exemption for homes rose to CRC 143 million.
- 2025-04The new electronic-invoicing framework phased in, with full adoption from June 2025 and scannable payment codes later in the year.