Collection recovers after 10 negative months

After 10 months of consecutive falls, the central government’s tax revenues grew in January 2024 and totaled S/14,261 million, reported the National Superintendence of Customs and Tax Administration (Sunat). With this, collection registered an advance of 3.4% compared to the same month last year.

One of the reasons for this result, explained the collecting entity, is the “relative improvement” that would have occurred in the economic activity during December 2023, the month linked to the majority of internal tax obligations for which taxes are paid during the month of January.

In the same way, the income obtained as a result of the control actions influenced by Sunat, especially to the mining sector and the subjects who maintain balances in their Withdrawal System accounts.

By type of tax, the income tax grew by 0.3% (S/6,084 million), the general sales tax (IGV) increased by 4.6% (S/8,551 million) and the selective consumption tax (ISC) did so by 2.1% (S/859 million), Sunat revealed.

How is the collection going?

At the end of 2023, tax revenues reached S/147,246 million. This amount is 12.3% lower compared to what was collected in 2022. During last year, tax collection only grew in February, when it progressed by 2.3%.

In this regard, CooperAcción specified that Peru’s tax pressure registered a constant drop in 2023. In December it reached its lowest level, with 15.1% of the GDP. “This result is 2.1 percentage points below what was observed in the same month of 2022,” he noted.

Likewise, CooperAcción mentioned that Peru’s tax revenues—as a percentage of GDP—are below average of the countries of the region; and much further away from the average of the countries belonging to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Keys

• Simplification. In January, the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) presented Bill No. 06768/2023-PE, through which it proposes eliminating the MYPE Tax Regime (RMT) and the Special Income Tax Regime (RER).
• Fiscal deficit. At the end of 2023, a fiscal deficit of 2.8% of GDP was reached, a value above the limit established by law (-2.4% of GDP for this year).