El Salvador proposes tax and customs amnesty through 2026

The El Salvador Legislative Assembly's Finance Commission has approved a proposal for a special and transitory law to grant tax, customs, and traffic fine amnesty. The initiative, titled “Special and Transitory Law Granting Facilities for Voluntary Compliance with Tax, Customs, Traffic, and Other Obligations,” aims to allow taxpayers to regularize debts by paying the principal amount while being exempt from interests, surcharges, and penalties.

Presented by Marvin Esaú Sorto, Director General of Internal Taxes, the measure would remain in effect until December 11, 2026. It targets obligations accumulated up to September 30 of the current year and applies to individuals, companies, cooperatives, and associations. The scope includes debts under audit, administrative appeals, and judicial collection processes involving the Attorney General's Office, though it excludes cases with definitive sentences.

In addition to tax and customs obligations, the amnesty covers certain traffic fines related to the Land Transport, Traffic, and Road Safety Law. However, officials clarified that the measure does not exempt individuals from the original sanctions imposed by police or traffic officers, but rather the accumulated interest and surcharges. Taxpayers may also access installment payment plans, starting with an initial payment of 10 percent of the debt.