Costa Rican income tax brackets for 2026

In one sentence: the bracket amounts are updated by decree every year. The 2026 ones were set by decree 45333-H, published on 5 December 2025. What does not change are the rates.

Employees, retirees and pensioners

Calculated on gross monthly salary:

Monthly income	Rate
Up to ₡918,000	Not subject
₡918,000 to ₡1,347,000	10 %
₡1,347,000 to ₡2,364,000	15 %
₡2,364,000 to ₡4,727,000	20 %
Over ₡4,727,000	25 %

Plus the credits, which are subtracted from the tax itself: ₡1,710 a month per child and ₡2,590 a month for a spouse.

It is a progressive scale, not a cliff. Earning one colón more than ₡918,000 does not make the whole salary taxable: only the excess is taxed, each band at its own rate. Nobody earns less by moving up a bracket.

Individuals with a business activity

Here the scale is annual:

Annual net income	Rate
Up to ₡6,244,000	Not subject
₡6,244,000 to ₡8,329,000	10 %
₡8,329,000 to ₡10,414,000	15 %
₡10,414,000 to ₡20,872,000	20 %
Over ₡20,872,000	25 %

Annual credits: ₡20,520 per child and ₡31,080 for a spouse. How to register and what else applies is in invoicing as an independent professional.

Companies: two regimes by gross income

If your gross income for the period does not exceed ₡119,174,000, the reduced scale applies to your net income. If it exceeds it, the rate is a flat 30 %.

Net income	Rate
The first ₡5,621,000	5 %
Excess up to ₡8,433,000	10 %
Excess up to ₡11,243,000	15 %
Excess over ₡11,243,000	20 %

Watch the trap of the two incomes. The threshold that decides which regime applies is measured on gross income. The scale is applied to net income. Confusing them is one of the most common errors in estimating a company's tax.

The small-business benefit, and why people lose it

On top of the reduced scale, a registered small business gets an exemption that tapers off: the first three years it pays nothing.

Year of activity	Pays	Exempt
1st, 2nd and 3rd	0 %	100 %
4th and 5th	25 %	75 %
6th	50 %	50 %
7th onwards	100 %	No benefit

And here is what costs money. The “first year of operations” counts from registering as a taxpayer — not from incorporating the company and not from the first sale. If you registered three years ago and certify as a small business now, the 100 % exemption years are gone. And they do not come back.

If you are about to start, register the small-business status at the same time as you register with the tax authority. It is a free procedure that can be worth three years of tax.

Two warnings about these figures

The amounts change every year; the rates do not. The structure — 5, 10, 15 and 20 % for the reduced scale, 30 % for the general one — is fixed by law. The colón amounts are updated by decree with the price index.
The decree for the period governs, not the text of the law. The current text of the Income Tax Act carries a different threshold because it reflects an earlier decree. To file, use the decree for the period you are filing.

From Ticuenta

The accounting-to-tax reconciliation, done

The income statement comes from the entries, with comparatives and an Excel export: the starting point of the reconciliation, already balanced.

See how it works

About this article. The 2026 brackets come from decree 45333-H (published 5 December 2025); the rate structure, from article 15 of the Income Tax Act; the small-business benefit, from Law 10392. Always confirm the decree for the period you are filing.

Verified as of 24 September 2026. Tax rules change. This is information, not tax advice.

Sources: Current legal texts (Sinalevi) Ministry of Finance