Updated (3:35 pm) the link to the Marchamo consulting page.
Owners of more than 2.5 million vehicles can, starting today, at 7:00 am, check the amount owed on the 2019 Marchamo and make payment.
The Instituto Nacional de Seguros (INS) – State insurer – made the announcement on Friday.
The 2019 Marchamo was to have started on November 1. But a difference of opinion between the INS and the Superintendencia General de Seguros (Sugese), the insurance regulator, stalled the process.
Basically, INS wanted to keep the insurance portion of the Marchamo (representing 20% of the overall cost) at the same rate as 2018, actually 8% lower for passenger vehicles. However, the Sugese did not see it economically viable and thus did not authorize the rates for 2019. A court action by INS against the Sugese stalled the process even further until last week when the INS decided to cave, withdrew its court filing and raised the rates, leading to the Sugese approving an increase of 12.5% overall (over 2018) for the Seguro Obligatorio de Automóviles (SOA) – mandatory insurance portion – of the 2019 Marchamo.
For 2019, the SOA for passenger vehicles will be ¢22,192 colones, an increase of ¢812 (+3.8%) over last year. This amount is applied to all passenger vehicles irrespective of their type and value. The owner of a 1975 Landcruiser (me) will pay the same as the owner of a 2018 Landcruiser valued at over US$75,000 dollars.
Owners of motorcycles and scooters will pay ¢86,609 colones, an increase of ¢16,194 (+23%) over last year. Motorcycles and scooters represent the since largest increase and costs to the INS.
Elian Villegas, president of the INS, said that all INS offices and authorized agents will be open at 8 am this Saturday morning, closing at 3 pm, to accept payment. The INS has 2,314 points of sale across the country.
An important component of the Marchamo, for the government, is the property tax on vehicles that represents 70% of the total. The remaining 10% is made of special taxes and municipal contributions.
Any outstanding traffic fines are also added to the Marchamo collection.
Payment of the 2019 Marchamo can also be made online and at most banks and financial institutions across the country.
The 2019 Marchamo is payable by December 31.
Beginning on January 1, the traffic police will be vigilant of any delinquencies and ready to issue fines. The fine is ¢52,227 colones for each occurrence.
Check your 2019 Marchamo cost here (after 7 am, November 24).
