El Salvador's 2024 Tax Amnesty (DL 86): Fixing IVA and Income Tax Returns with DTE Cross-Verification
What's Different About This Tax Amnesty
El Salvador's Decreto Legislativo 86 (Legislative Decree 86) has opened a new tax amnesty window, but this one comes with a significant twist. For the first time, the Ministerio de Hacienda (Ministry of Finance) is using cross-verification of DTE — Documentos Tributarios Electronicos, the country's electronic invoicing system — as a control mechanism. In plain terms: the DGII (Direccion General de Impuestos Internos, El Salvador's tax authority) can now automatically compare what you declared on your IVA (sales tax) and Renta (income tax) returns against what your electronic invoices actually show.
The good news is that the decree lets taxpayers correct their returns with a full waiver of penalties and interest. The part you can't ignore is that Hacienda already has the data to spot discrepancies between what was declared and what was invoiced. This amnesty marks a turning point: we're moving from a system where inconsistencies could go unnoticed to one where everything is on record and verifiable in real time.
Context for those abroad
If you own a business in El Salvador, have investments there, or are listed as a legal representative on a Salvadoran company, this affects you directly. Tax obligations don't pause because you live in the US. If your business had reporting errors — especially during the transition to electronic invoicing — this amnesty window is your chance to fix them without penalties. Talk to your accountant in El Salvador now, not after the deadline passes.
Why This Matters for Your Business
If there were ever differences between what your tax returns reported and what your DTE records show — invoices that weren't reported, amounts that don't match, or DTE that were never properly registered — this is the moment to fix it. These are the kinds of errors that, outside this amnesty window, can trigger audits and financial penalties.
The expectation is now straightforward: the numbers on your IVA and Renta declarations must match the electronic records that Hacienda's system already holds. There's no room for the kind of inconsistencies that used to fly under the radar.
This is especially relevant if your business made mistakes during the transition to electronic invoicing. The shift to the DTE system was a learning curve for everyone — errors were practically inevitable. The amnesty acknowledges that reality and gives you a chance to get current without being penalized for honest mistakes made during the switchover.
Concrete Steps to Take Advantage of the Amnesty
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Reconcile your tax returns against your DTE records. Review your IVA and Renta declarations for the periods covered by the decree and compare them against the DTE you issued and received. The goal is to find any gap between the two sets of records.
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Identify and document the discrepancies. Look for unreported invoices, incorrect amounts, or DTE that were never registered. Once you know what needs correcting, prepare the declaraciones sustitutivas (amended tax returns) for each affected period.
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File your amnesty application before the deadline. Submit your application along with the corrected returns to the Ministerio de Hacienda within the period established by DL 86. Don't wait until the last day — the reconciliation process can take longer than you expect.
Key Dates to Keep in Mind
The amnesty period under Decreto Legislativo 86 begins in September 2024. I recommend checking the text of the decree directly to confirm the exact filing deadline, as cutoff dates are strict and non-negotiable.
What is certain: once this window closes, any discrepancies that Hacienda detects through DTE cross-verification will trigger audit procedures and the corresponding penalties. The system is already running, and it won't wait.
Fix It Now or Face the System Later
With DTE integrated into tax enforcement, fiscal consistency is no longer something that only gets checked during occasional audits. It's now a continuous, automated process. This amnesty is, in practice, the last opportunity to correct errors before the system catches them on its own.
If you're not sure where to start with the reconciliation, or if the volume of records to review feels overwhelming, get professional help. At Contabilidad Hidalgo, we can help you review your records, prepare the amended returns, and file everything properly before the deadline closes.
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