Costa Rica VAT Rates 2026
Costa Rica levies Value Added Tax as IVA (Impuesto al Valor Agregado). The standard rate is 13%, applied to most goods and services. Reduced rates of 4% and 2% and 1% apply to private health services, airline tickets.
Costa Rica has no public registry we can query in real time, so a number cannot be confirmed as active from outside. The VAT number checker still checks it against the national format, which catches transcription errors before they reach your accounting system.
Current rates — 2026
| Type | Rate | Applies to |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | 13% | Most goods and services |
| Reduced | 4% | Private health services, airline tickets |
| Reduced | 2% | Medicines, private education, personal insurance |
| Reduced | 1% | Basic-basket foods (canasta básica), agricultural inputs |
| Zero-rated | 0% | Exports |
Registration and filing
| Registration threshold | No general threshold — all economic activities register with Hacienda; a simplified regime covers small traders |
| Tax authority | Ministerio de Hacienda — Dirección General de Tributación |
| Filing frequency | Monthly returns via the TRIBU-CR / ATV platform |
Access rates via API
The TaxID API returns current VAT and GST rates for 200+ countries and territories. Use the /api/v1/rates/CR endpoint to get Costa Rica data programmatically. Responses are cached for 24 hours.
curl https://www.taxid.dev/api/v1/rates/CR
# No authentication required for rate lookups
# Response:
# { "country_code": "CR", "tax_type": "vat",
# "standard_rate": 13, "reduced_rates": [4, 2, 1],
# "currency": "CRC", "last_updated": "2026-06-12" }Fetching the rate in code
// Fetch current Costa Rica VAT rates (no auth required)
const rates = await fetch('https://www.taxid.dev/api/v1/rates/CR').then(r => r.json());
// → { standard_rate: 13, reduced_rates: [4, 2, 1],
// currency: 'CRC' }
applyRate(rates.standard_rate);About Costa Rica VAT
Costa Rica converted its old sales tax into a full IVA in 2019, keeping the 13% headline but finally taxing services — and softening the blow with a four-tier rate ladder (13/4/2/1) that gives the basic food basket a token 1%. Electronic invoicing predates the IVA itself and is universal. Cross-border digital services are captured by card-issuer withholding on payments to listed foreign platforms, an approach later copied elsewhere in the region.
VAT in Costa Rica is administered by the Ministerio de Hacienda — Dirección General de Tributación.
Sources: PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries · Ministerio de Hacienda (accessed Jun 2026)
Rate history
- 2019IVA replaced the old 13% general sales tax, extending the base to services
Frequently asked questions
What is the VAT rate in Costa Rica in 2026?
13% standard with reduced rates of 4% (health, air tickets), 2% (medicines, education) and 1% (basic food basket).
When did Costa Rica adopt IVA?
In July 2019, replacing the 13% sales tax and extending taxation to services for the first time.
Related concepts and guides: