TICO BULL – It’s funny (not in a humourous way) how my car as it gets older, its value never really goes down. I am talking about the ‘fiscal’ (tax) value, the value used to calculate the property tax, and no relation to ‘market’ value, the value to sell or buy.
For example, the tax value of my 1986 Mercedes for 2015 was ¢1,480,000 colones; for 2016 it dropped only ¢10,000, being taxed on the value of ¢1,470,000 colones.
So, as far as the tax man is concerned, in the last 12 months my Mercedes only lost ¢10,000 (US$19) in value.
Consult your 2016 marchamo here.
The stories of many others, however, is that they vehicle’s tax value actually went up. Some on the social media show proof of increases in the hundreds of thousands of colones.
All this means, of course, that with a higher tax value and a tax increase, the Ministry of Revenue (Ministerio de Hacienda) is doing its part to collect more taxes from wherever it can. And what better way than to manipulate the tax value, while keeping down the tax rate below what is acceptable by the public.
Municipalities and other government institutions profit from the ‘Hacienda’ slight of hand, their share of the tax grab that is part of the “marchamo” (the annual vehicle circulation permit) is based on the tax value as well.
To be fair, although like most I don’t like to pay tax, I wouldn’t complain as much if the tax actually went to the fixing an infrastructure on “intensive care” and new roads to alleviate the daily congestion that is now a part of daily life in the greater metropolitan area, that includes the urban areas of San Jose, Alajuela and Heredia.
A drive from Santa Ana (west side) to Curridabat (east side) is a good 45 minutes if the wind blows the right way. During rush hour it takes me 45 minutes from downtown San Jose to Santa Ana. And that is if there are no fender benders or not raining. A major accident, I might as well book a hotel for the night. Exaggerating, but not so much.
Me, I am more and more opting for public transportation. For about ¢500 colones (less than a buck) I can board a bus – modern and comfortable – a few blocks from my house to downtown San Jose, in the area known as La Coca Cola; my trip back is the same way. So, for less than US$2 I can avoid the stress of traffic, the cost of parking (almost ¢1,000 per hour), the tolls at Escazu (¢310 each way) and gasoline, which I figure about ¢2,500.
The next step would be to sell the car. Not.
1999 Toyota. Valor fiscal 2014 was 3.000.000 colones, marchamo was 94.956
Valor fiscal 2015 2.910.000 and 2015 marchamo is 96.120 They get you ‘coming & going.’
Central American Date, the online financial reporter, just
called the country an ineptocracy, meaning a place run by the inept. The Urban
Dictionary describes the term as “a system of government where the least
capable to lead are elected by the least capable of producing, and where the
members of society least likely to sustain themselves or succeed, are rewarded
with goods and services paid for by the confiscated wealth of a diminishing
number of producers”
This increase in the taxable value of a car as it becomes older is a fraud on the vehicle owning public of Costa Rica perpetrated by the Tax Department. Only a vehicle with “collector” status could possible attract such an increase in taxable value. The Tax Department is just trying to do indirectly, what they can’t do directly, and that is to increase the general tax revenue by hiding the taxes as an increase in the taxable value of a vehicle and collecting extra tax money in the corresponding increase in the Marchamo payment. The Government is promoting a Fiscal Reform proposal which highlights increased penalties for tax fraud, when it is the Government itself that is guilty of tax fraud in this instance. Minister of Revenue Fallas should tender his resignation, and if he doesn’t, President Solis should be asking him for it.