CABYS Codes for Businesses and Independent Professionals

If you own a business or work as an independent professional, consider that last December 1st, all products, and services charged with the VAT need to include its corresponding CAByS (Catalog of Goods and Service) code when billing.

The CAByS, or Catalog of Goods and Services, is an informative compendium that seeks to standardize the coding of economic transactions in the country concerning the rest of the United Nations’ member countries (UN). A unique 13-digit code identifies all the goods and services included in the catalog. You can check the complete list at cabys.co.cr, in Spanish.

This new tool’s importance lies in facilitating voluntary compliance for the taxpayer, who will also identify the goods and services with a reference VAT rate, enabling inventory and transaction control.

Meanwhile, for the Revenue Service (Ministerio de Hacienda), the new code system will allow traceability of information, better tax collection, and accurate information for its databases.

All taxpayers, physical or legal, must implement the CAByS codes, except those incorporated in the Simplified Regime, since they are not obligated to issue receipts.

To Bear in Mind

• Those CAByS codes that have the initials NPC (Not Previously Classified) function as generic codes. They can be used when there is no specific CAByS code for the service or product.
• It is possible to use the same CAByS code for several related services as long as they belong to the same services line.
• If you have a billing provider, be sure to coordinate with them correctly. The codes should be reflected in the XML of the electronic invoices.
• If your product catalog is very extensive, we recommend asking assistance to homologate your catalog of products and services. Many products and services are not listed in the catalog, so that homologation can become a tedious process without proper knowledge.

If you have questions or technical issues with the CAByS codes, contact Hacienda at 800-8000-645 or by email at cabys@hacienda.go.cr