VAT Calculator
Guatemala: standard rate: 12%
VAT Calculator calculates the VAT amount as well as the price with and without VAT. The VAT % is pre-filled, but you can change it or clear the value. The results are rounded to your desired precision. You can also make a currency conversion.
You can also choose the VAT% by clicking the percentages in the tables below.
Guatemala | |
| standard rate | 12% The standard VAT rate is 12% of the taxable amount and must be included in the selling price of goods or the value of services. It applies to most taxable sales and imports of goods and supplies of services unless an exemption or special rule applies. The first sale or exchange of real estate is also subject to VAT; subsequent transfers are treated differently. There is no general reduced VAT rate. |
| exempt exports with input VAT credit / refunds | The VAT Act treats exports of goods and services as exempt transactions rather than supplies subject to a separate statutory 0% rate. Exporters retain input VAT credit connected with their export activities and may apply for refunds under the procedures provided by the VAT Act. Article 23 also provides for refunds of input VAT directly connected with sales of goods or supplies of services to exempt persons, subject to the statutory requirements. |
| VAT exemptions | VAT exemptions, subject to their statutory requirements and limits, include specified retail sales of food, certain generic and alternative medicines, specified services supplied by institutions supervised by the Superintendency of Banks and certain transactions of cooperatives with their members. Specific exemptions also apply to qualifying education services and transactions involving universities, the Guatemalan Social Security Institute (IGSS), sports bodies, diplomatic missions and international organisations. Exemptions must not be confused with a 0% rate, and the input VAT treatment depends on the rules applicable to each transaction. From 1 October through 31 December 2026, Decree 22-2026 temporarily exempts premium gasoline, regular gasoline and diesel from VAT; the ordinary tax treatment resumes on 1 January 2027. |
| outside VAT | Work performed under an employment relationship is not an independent supply of services subject to VAT. The VAT Act taxes the first sale or exchange of real estate; second and subsequent sales or exchanges are generally subject to the 3% Fiscal Stamp Tax instead of VAT. This treatment must be distinguished from the first transfer of the property. |
| VAT withholding | Guatemala does not use a general reverse-charge mechanism equivalent to that used, for example, in the European Union. Instead, specified persons and entities designated by law or by SAT act as VAT withholding agents and withhold part of the tax on purchases of goods or services. The percentages and rules depend on the type of withholding agent and transaction. For Small Taxpayer invoices, a 5% withholding on the total invoice applies where required by the withholding rules; this percentage is a withholding under the special regime, not a reduced VAT rate. |
| second-hand goods: no general margin scheme | The VAT Act does not provide a general margin-taxation scheme for resales of second-hand goods, so the general VAT margin calculator is not applicable to Guatemala. Used vehicles have their own special rules. Land motor vehicles of the current model year, the following model year or the preceding model year are taxed at the standard 12% VAT rate. Cars two to three model years older than the current year are subject to a fixed Q1,000 amount, and those four or more model years older to Q500. For motorcycles, the corresponding amounts are Q300 and Q200. These are fixed amounts based on age, not tax calculated on the difference between the purchase and selling prices. |
| Small taxpayers and special regimes | The Small Taxpayer Regime is available where annual sales of goods or supplies of services do not exceed 125 current monthly minimum wages for the non-agricultural sector, excluding the incentive bonus. For 2026, SAT gives a threshold of Q500,285. A small taxpayer pays 5% of monthly gross income from sales and services as a final payment. VAT is not determined by offsetting output VAT against input VAT, and Small Taxpayer invoices do not give the purchaser an input VAT credit. A taxpayer exceeding the limit must move to the General Regime under the applicable rules. Decree 31-2024 also created the Primary and Livestock Regimes, now administered within the Impuesto a la Confianza Tributaria (ICT). They are separate simplified tax regimes and their rates are not VAT rates, so they are not included in this calculator. |
| Upcoming changes: | |
| 1 Jan 2027 | The temporary VAT exemption for premium gasoline, regular gasoline and diesel ends. The ordinary tax treatment resumes. Congress of the Republic of Guatemala — Decree 22-2026 |
| Past changes: | |
| 1 Oct 2026 | From 1 October through 31 December 2026, premium gasoline, regular gasoline and diesel are temporarily exempt from VAT under Decree 22-2026. Diario de Centro América — Decree 22-2026 |
| 9 Apr 2025 | Decree 31-2024 takes effect. The Small Taxpayer Regime threshold increases from Q150,000 to 125 current monthly minimum wages for the non-agricultural sector, excluding the incentive bonus. The new Primary and Livestock special regimes are also introduced. Congress of the Republic of Guatemala — Decree 31-2024 |
| 1 Aug 2001 | The standard VAT rate increases from 10% to 12%. Congress of the Republic of Guatemala — Decree 32-2001 |
Note! The VAT information on this page is general information, not tax advice. The information is not exhaustive. VAT rules include many exceptions and special cases. Check the treatment of your situation in the legislation and guidance of Guatemala's Superintendency of Tax Administration (SAT). Information last checked 5 Oct 2026.
Articles:
VAT rounding: the EU, the UK and other European countries
The EU VAT Directive and the Court of Justice of the European Union leave VAT rounding rules to be decided at national level. National rules vary. In the UK, HMRC allows VAT on B2B invoices to be rounded down to the nearest whole penny.
Roundings in VAT calculation: Mathematically impossible prices?
There are a whole range of VAT-inclusive prices that cannot be mathematically arrived at if the tax is calculated from the VAT-free price. One example is 3.99. These prices are also possible, but then the VAT-free price must be interpreted as rounded.
VAT Gap - How much VAT is left uncollected in EU countries?
9.5% of VAT was left uncollected in EU countries. See the list of EU countries and candidate countries.
In Europe there is VAT - in the US sales tax
In Europe, companies belonging to the production chain account for the VAT paid by the consumer to the state in proportion to their value added. The US sales tax, on the other hand, is billed entirely by the company that made the consumer sale. Sales tax is paid to local operators, not to the state.
Many of today's taxes were already in use in Antiquity. Deciding on taxation has moved from autocrats to parliaments and the level of taxation has risen. In earlier times taxes were used to wage wars, today taxes are used to maintain welfare states.