Happy New Year to all you lucky people, fellow Tax Residents in Colombia where your host government is doing its best to make life interesting for us in 2016 and 2017. Not only have we got to get up to speed on the new Formulario 160 (see separate thread), but now the Comision de Expertos Tributarios al Gobierno has just issued its recommendations for tax reforms required to reduce the budget deficit.
Roll up, Roll up, here is some of what may be waiting for you:
-Proposed increases in all levels of Iva, including inclusion of numerous items that were previously exempt and raising the top level from 16%, to 19%.
-Impuesto al Consumo (Restaurants, cafes, etc) rate to be increased from 8% to 11%.
-Income tax (Impuesto sobre la Renta) to start from monthly incomes over COP 1,500,000 (say US$ 500) from current level of nearly the double.
-Pension incomes to become taxable for everybody. “Se propone imponer a las pensiones la misma tributación y limites que tendrían los trabajadores asalariados”. If adopted, this would eliminate the discrimination that presently exists whereby foreign source pensions are taxed in Colombia, but not local source pensions.
-Capital gains tax of 15 to 20% to be introduced on property sales.
These are the main points that I can see and my personal interpretations (which obviously need verifying).
How sure are you that Colombia is still a cheap place to live?
Roll up, Roll up, here is some of what may be waiting for you:
-Proposed increases in all levels of Iva, including inclusion of numerous items that were previously exempt and raising the top level from 16%, to 19%.
-Impuesto al Consumo (Restaurants, cafes, etc) rate to be increased from 8% to 11%.
-Income tax (Impuesto sobre la Renta) to start from monthly incomes over COP 1,500,000 (say US$ 500) from current level of nearly the double.
-Pension incomes to become taxable for everybody. “Se propone imponer a las pensiones la misma tributación y limites que tendrían los trabajadores asalariados”. If adopted, this would eliminate the discrimination that presently exists whereby foreign source pensions are taxed in Colombia, but not local source pensions.
-Capital gains tax of 15 to 20% to be introduced on property sales.
These are the main points that I can see and my personal interpretations (which obviously need verifying).
How sure are you that Colombia is still a cheap place to live?
