Author: Ramón Jiménez

Some Important Aspects About the Christmas Bonus

Nov 27, 2022 | General

Next December, many Costa Rican workers will receive their aguinaldo or “thirteenth month.”

The Christmas bonus is the additional payment received by every salaried worker for having worked for the same employer for more than one calendar month. Their payment is mandatory by law and is applicable to salaried workers in the public and private sectors if they work part-time, full-time, or hourly, of whatever kind they are and whatever the way in which they perform their work.

The maximum date for the payment of the Christmas bonus is the first twenty days of December of each year. If the employer does not comply with the above, he may incur an infraction of undue withholding of salary, which is a serious offense and will be credited with the fine established by law.

For the calculation of the bonus, all ordinary and extraordinary salaries, salary in kind, overtime, commissions, and any other incentive that the worker has accrued, from the period between the first of December of a year to the thirtieth of November of the following year, must be added, the resulting amount is divided by twelve and this result is the amount that must be paid for the bonus.

If the worker does not work the full year, in the same way, the calculation of the Christmas bonus is obtained, d the average of the salaries and other amounts indicated, divided by twelve, the result will be the amount of bonus that corresponds to the salaried worker.

The period during which the worker is incapacitated due to illness, given the suspension of the employment contract, cannot be considered for the purposes of calculating the Christmas bonus.

In the case of women who enjoy disability due to maternity leave, the calculation of the Christmas bonus is made on one hundred percent of their salary and is the only case of a disability that is considered for the purposes of calculating the Christmas bonus.

However, if during her pregnancy, the woman becomes incapacitated due to illness, these periods are not considered for the calculation of the Christmas bonus. The Christmas bonus may not be the subject of compensation, sale, or assignment, nor may it be seized, except for alimony.

To conclude, it is important to know that the Christmas bonus should not be reduced for social charges, taxes, or income tax.

Costa Rica Marchamo

Nov 20, 2022 | General

The “Marchamo” is a mandatory cancellation of vehicle insurance, which is paid once a year, to the National Insurance Institute (INS). It is an indispensable requirement for every driver to be able to circulate on the roads in Costa Rica and is also called the “right of circulation”. The collection of the marchamo begins on November 1 of each year, being the deadline to make your payment on December 31.

It is important to emphasize that a vehicle that circulates without the marchamo, if stopped by a traffic officer, will be fined ¢51,000 and is exposed to the withdrawal of the vehicle from circulation. In addition, the National Insurance Institute (INS) imposes a penalty for each day you fall behind on the payment.

The amount to be paid for the marchamo is calculated on basis of three elements: devaluation of the vehicle (annual depreciation rate of 10%), accumulated inflation in the last year (12.13%), and change in the tax burden (0%) applied to vehicles. According to this formula, by 2023, the vehicle fleet will have an increase of 2.13% in the fiscal value, which means that the property tax of these vehicles will grow compared to the previous year.

Among the requirements to be able to make the payment of the corresponding marchamo is: 1. Have the identity card of the person who is going to make the payment (if you do not have this identification document, the citizen must present the residence card or passport). 2. Certificate of technical review approved and current. In case this is not the case, you can pay the marchamo, and once you have the approved technical review, you can add the “sticker” or proof of payment that adheres to the windshield of the vehicle. 3. Vehicle license plate number. 4. Vehicle owner identification data.

Keep in mind that it is a payment that must be made every year if you own vehicles that circulate in the Costa Rican territory.