Home › Forums › Costa Rica Living Forum › Selling for cash and reporting income
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May 23, 2011 at 12:00 am #160097CharlieMember
I see so many people selling things in the street so to speak , from just about anything you can find at a retail store , for much less . I doubt that any of them pay taxes from the income they generate. I am curious though as Ive heard all kinds of expert advice from non experts . One being that if you dont have a commercial location , retail store , or signage of any kind , you can sell anything you want without a permit. Another one is , if you make less than $1000 in profits you dont have to report your income anyways , the list goes on and on to the real believable one , I make just enough to pay my family expenses I wont give the corrupt govt 1 colon .
My real question is , as a permanent resident without conditions , I am free to earn an income in CR as self employed person . If I were to sell things out of my home like the many ticos that do , what is the real legal and correct way to report those earnings assuming that it would be a few hundred dollars at most per month and a Corporation SA would not be needed. By the way a local accountant I visited told me why report anything if Im making so little and sent me away . I am not interested in that answer I want the lawful answer irregardless of whether its a good business decision or not .
May 23, 2011 at 10:10 pm #160098maravillaMemberyou can earn x million colones without having to report the income. depending on the exchange rate, i think it’s something like the equivalent of $5,000, but check with an accountant on that.
May 23, 2011 at 10:26 pm #160099CharlieMember[quote=”maravilla”]you can earn x million colones without having to report the income. depending on the exchange rate, i think it’s something like the equivalent of $5,000, but check with an accountant on that.[/quote]
Is that $5.000 a month or quarterly . The accountant I visited wasnt exactly helpful with information, just asked what I was doing or thinking of doing and said dont worry about it .
May 23, 2011 at 11:02 pm #160100DavidCMurrayParticipantCharlie, I have to ask . . . Can I expect to buy a cell phone case from you the next time the line gets backed up at the tollgate on the autopista? If yes, how will I know you?
May 24, 2011 at 12:23 am #160101CharlieMember[quote=”DavidCMurray”]Charlie, I have to ask . . . Can I expect to buy a cell phone case from you the next time the line gets backed up at the tollgate on the autopista? If yes, how will I know you?[/quote]
I dont think so. The people I run into that I am referring to sell things like silver , jewelry , designer clothes – accesories , cell phones ( not cases ) and much more . Some of these items sell for hefty amounts and peolple pay. I wanted to test out some items I can import and sell and see how that goes . What im interested in is how to report sales of this kind as a sole propietor would in the USA.
May 24, 2011 at 12:41 am #160102maravillaMemberi was told that the figure i quoted was for the year. after that, well, get busy with the tax forms.
May 24, 2011 at 12:46 am #160103CharlieMember[quote=”maravilla”]i was told that the figure i quoted was for the year. after that, well, get busy with the tax forms.[/quote]
ok makes sense if one makes a few hundred a month, thanks
May 24, 2011 at 1:23 am #160104waggoner41Member[quote=”Charlie”] One being that if you dont have a commercial location , retail store , or signage of any kind , you can sell anything you want without a permit. Another one is , if you make less than $1000 in profits you dont have to report your income anyways , the list goes on and on to the real believable one , I make just enough to pay my family expenses I wont give the corrupt govt 1 colon.[/quote]
If you have ever spent any time in San Jose you will have noticed how fast the street vendors disappear when the Fuerza Publica arrives. It isn’t legal withour a license.
May 24, 2011 at 2:21 pm #160105orcas0606ParticipantCharlie, the people who sell on the streets in many cases are called ” Polacos “, and usually , depending on the location is illegal. Also, many of these guys sell on credit so how would you ever collect unless you went door to door to track them down. Sounds to me like it would be a hard way to make a buck. Just my opinion.
quote=”Charlie”][quote=”maravilla”]i was told that the figure i quoted was for the year. after that, well, get busy with the tax forms.[/quote]
ok makes sense if one makes a few hundred a month, thanks[/quote]
May 24, 2011 at 2:47 pm #160106AndrewKeymasterIt was explained to me that the ‘Polacos’ term was used to refer to the Polish Jews who came here a long time ago from Polonia (Poland) who offered their products for sale with “easy payments” – where you could pay a small amount each week (at an outrageous interest rate of course) over a long period of time.
I doubt any of the polacos on the streets today are actually Jewish but I’m told most of the real estate in San Jose is owned by Jews (and they are a tiny percentage of the population) so they’ve done well for themselves as they do in most places.
Scott
May 24, 2011 at 2:53 pm #160107claytonMemberShould you not be more worried about the sales tax than the income for which you should easily offset with some expenses.
May 24, 2011 at 5:07 pm #160108orcas0606ParticipantCorrect Scott, but with time anyone who used this sales system also became a “Polaco” and thus the Costa Rican verb, “polacear”, an ar ending irregular verb…Spanish 101
Does this mean to Polish or Polack……?
[quote=”Scott”]It was explained to me that the ‘Polacos’ term was used to refer to the Polish Jews who came here a long time ago from Polonia (Poland) who offered their products for sale with “easy payments” – where you could pay a small amount each week (at an outrageous interest rate of course) over a long period of time.I doubt any of the polacos on the streets today are actually Jewish but I’m told most of the real estate in San Jose is owned by Jews (and they are a tiny percentage of the population) so they’ve done well for themselves as they do in most places.
Scott[/quote]
May 24, 2011 at 5:58 pm #160109spriteMemberI wonder whether the concern is about the legality or the morality of any personal sales tax?
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