---
name: guatemala-iva
description: "Use this skill whenever asked to prepare, review, or classify transactions for a Guatemala IVA return (SAT-2237) for any client. Trigger on phrases like \"prepare IVA return\", \"Guatemala VAT\", \"SAT return\", \"IVA Guatemala\", or any request involving Guatemala value added tax filing. This skill covers Regimen General IVA filers only. Small taxpayer (Pequeno Contribuyente) regime and ZOLIC free-zone entities are in the refusal catalogue. ALWAYS read this skill before touching any Guatemala IVA work."
license: AGPL-3.0-or-later (code) / OpenAccountants Guide License v1.0 (content)
metadata:
  source: openaccountants
  jurisdiction: INTL
  category: tax
  quality: source-cited draft
  openaccountants_url: "https://openaccountants.com/skills/guatemala-iva"
  obligation: CT
---

# Guatemala IVA Return Skill (SAT-2237) v2.0

> **General reference only.** This skill is general tax/accounting reference material for AI-assisted workflows. It has not been reviewed for any specific person's facts, documents, elections, deadlines, residency, filing status, or local procedures. Do not rely on it to file, pay, amend, or take a tax position without review by a qualified professional in the relevant jurisdiction.

## Section 1 — Quick reference

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Country | Guatemala |
| Standard rate | 12% |
| Small taxpayer rate | 5% flat (replaces IVA and income tax — separate regime) |
| Exempt supplies | Unprocessed agricultural products (first sale), generic medicines, agricultural inputs (artisanal), books, medical services, education, financial interest, insurance, residential rental, public transport, electricity/water (domestic) |
| Return form | SAT-2237 |
| Filing portal | https://portal.sat.gob.gt (Agencia Virtual) |
| Authority | SAT (Superintendencia de Administracion Tributaria) |
| Currency | GTQ (Guatemalan Quetzal) |
| Filing frequency | Monthly |
| Deadline | Last business day of month following period |
| Contributor | Open Accountants Skills Registry |
| Validated by | Pending |
| Validation date | Pending |

**Key SAT-2237 lines:**

| Line | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 1 | Taxable sales and services (ventas y servicios gravados) |
| 2 | Output IVA (debito fiscal) = Line 1 x 12% |
| 3 | Exports at 0% |
| 4 | Exempt sales |
| 5 | Total sales (1+3+4) |
| 6 | Reverse charge on imports (auto-declared IVA) |
| 7 | Total output IVA (2+6) |
| 8 | Input IVA on local purchases |
| 9 | Input IVA on imports (customs) |
| 10 | Input IVA on expenses/services |
| 11 | Total input IVA (8+9+10) |
| 12 | Adjustments (blocked/apportioned) |
| 13 | Net input IVA (11-12) |
| 14 | IVA payable (7-13) |
| 15 | Prior credit balance |
| 16 | IVA retentions |
| 17 | Total payable / carry-forward |

**Conservative defaults:**

| Ambiguity | Default |
|---|---|
| Unknown rate on a sale | 12% |
| Unknown IVA status of a purchase | Not deductible |
| Unknown counterparty country | Domestic Guatemala |
| Unknown business-use proportion | 0% recovery |
| Unknown blocked-input status | Blocked |
| Unknown document type | No credit until valid FEL confirmed |

**Red flag thresholds:**

| Threshold | Value |
|---|---|
| HIGH single-transaction size | GTQ 50,000 |
| HIGH tax-delta on a single conservative default | GTQ 5,000 |
| MEDIUM counterparty concentration | >40% of output OR input |
| MEDIUM conservative-default count | >4 |
| LOW absolute net IVA position | GTQ 100,000 |

---

## Section 2 — Required inputs and refusal catalogue

### Required inputs

**Minimum viable** — bank statement for the month. Acceptable from: Banco Industrial, Banrural, BAM, G&T Continental, Banco de los Trabajadores, or any other.

**Recommended** — FEL (Factura Electronica en Linea) documents, constancias de retencion.

**Ideal** — complete Libro de Compras y Ventas, prior SAT-2237, FEL register.

### Refusal catalogue

**R-GT-1 — Pequeno Contribuyente.** *Trigger:* client is under small taxpayer regime (income up to GTQ 150,000). *Message:* "Small taxpayers pay 5% flat tax and do NOT file IVA returns or claim input credits."

**R-GT-2 — ZOLIC free zone.** *Trigger:* client in ZOLIC. *Message:* "Free zone benefits require valid authorization. Escalate."

**R-GT-3 — Partial exemption.** *Trigger:* mixed taxable/exempt. *Message:* "Proportional method required. Flag for reviewer."

---

## Section 3 — Supplier pattern library

### 3.1 Banks
| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| BANCO INDUSTRIAL, BI | 12% for fees; EXCLUDE for interest | |
| BANRURAL, BAM, G&T | Same | |

### 3.2 Government (exclude)
| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| SAT, SUPERINTENDENCIA | EXCLUDE | Tax payment |
| IGSS | EXCLUDE | Social security |

### 3.3 Utilities
| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| EEGSA, ENERGUATE | Domestic 12% | Electricity |
| TIGO, CLARO, MOVISTAR | Domestic 12% | Telecoms |
| EMPAGUA | Exempt (domestic water) | |

### 3.4 SaaS non-resident (reverse charge)
| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| GOOGLE, MICROSOFT, ADOBE, META | Reverse charge 12% | Line 6 output, Line 10 input |
| ZOOM, SLACK, NOTION, ANTHROPIC, OPENAI | Reverse charge 12% | Same |

### 3.5 Food and entertainment (blocked)
| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| PAIZ, WALMART, LA TORRE | Default BLOCK | Personal provisioning |
| RESTAURANT, RESTAURANTE | Default BLOCK | Entertainment |

### 3.6 Professional services
| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| ABOGADO, NOTARIO, CONTADOR | Domestic 12% | Requires valid FEL |

### 3.7 Internal transfers
| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| TRANSFERENCIA PROPIA | EXCLUDE | |
| PLANILLA, SALARIO | EXCLUDE | |

---

## Section 4 — Worked examples

### Example 1 — Non-resident reverse charge
**Input:** `NOTION LABS INC ; DEBIT ; GTQ 245`
**Treatment:** Reverse charge 12%. Output Line 6. Input Line 10. Net zero.

### Example 2 — Standard domestic sale
**Input:** `SA CLIENTE ; CREDIT ; GTQ 112,000`
**Treatment:** Net = 100,000. IVA = 12,000. Line 1/2.

### Example 3 — Entertainment, blocked
**Input:** `RESTAURANTE KACAO ; DEBIT ; GTQ 2,240`
**Treatment:** Blocked. No input credit.

### Example 4 — Coffee export
**Input:** `US ROASTER INC ; CREDIT ; GTQ 200,000`
**Treatment:** Line 3. Zero-rated. Full input credit.

### Example 5 — Motor vehicle, blocked
**Input:** `AUTOMOTRIZ GT ; DEBIT ; Sedan GTQ 150,000`
**Treatment:** Blocked. No input credit.

### Example 6 — Purchase without FEL
**Input:** `VENDEDOR X ; handwritten receipt ; IVA GTQ 600`
**Treatment:** NOT deductible. No valid FEL = no credit.

---

## Section 5 — Tier 1 classification rules (compressed)

### 5.1 Standard rate 12% (Decreto 27-92 Art. 10)
Default for all taxable supplies.

### 5.2 Small taxpayer 5% (Decreto 27-92 Art. 45)
Flat tax. No IVA charged, no input credits. Buyers get no IVA credit from pequeno contribuyente.

### 5.3 Exempt goods (Art. 7)
Unprocessed agricultural (first sale), generic medicines, artisanal agricultural inputs, books, live animals (production).

### 5.4 Exempt services
Education, medical, financial interest, insurance, residential rental, public transport, domestic electricity/water.

### 5.5 Exports
Zero-rated. Line 3. Full input credit.

### 5.6 Reverse charge — non-resident services
Self-assess 12%. Line 6 output, Line 10 input.

### 5.7 FEL mandatory electronic invoicing
All invoices must be FEL-certified. Input IVA only valid with FEL.

### 5.8 Blocked input IVA (Art. 16, 18)
Entertainment, motor vehicles, personal use, exempt operations, without valid FEL.

### 5.9 Factura Especial (Art. 52)
Purchase from unregistered person: buyer issues Factura Especial, self-assesses IVA 12% and ISR 5%.

### 5.10 IVA retention regime
Designated agents retain varying percentages of IVA. Credit card processors: 15%. Government: 25%. Exporters: 65%.

---

## Section 6 — Tier 2 catalogue (compressed)

### 6.1 Agricultural first sale
*Default:* flag. *Question:* "Confirm qualifying first sale."

### 6.2 Real estate
*Default:* flag. *Question:* "First sale new construction (12%) or subsequent/bare land (exempt)?"

### 6.3 Cross-border Central American services
*Default:* flag. *Question:* "Consumed outside Guatemala? Export?"

### 6.4 Transport vehicle
*Default:* flag. *Question:* "Exclusively for goods/passenger transport business?"

---

## Section 7 — Excel working paper template
Standard layout. Column H accepts SAT-2237 line numbers.

---

## Section 8 — Bank statement reading guide
**Format:** Banco Industrial CSV, DD/MM/YYYY, GTQ. **Language:** Spanish.

---

## Section 9 — Onboarding fallback

### 9.1 Tax regime
*Inference:* if filing SAT-2237, Regimen General. *Fallback:* "Regimen General or Pequeno Contribuyente?"

### 9.2 NIT
*Fallback:* "What is your NIT?"

### 9.3 Prior credit
Always ask: "Prior credit balance? (Line 15)"

---

## Section 10 — Reference material

### Sources
1. Decreto 27-92, Ley del IVA — Articles 3, 7, 10, 16, 18, 37, 45, 48, 52
2. Decreto 10-2012, Ley de Actualizacion Tributaria
3. SAT FEL regulations

### Change log
- **v2.0 (April 2026):** Full rewrite to 10-section architecture.
- **v1.0:** Initial skill.

---

## Disclaimer

This skill and its outputs are provided for informational and computational purposes only and do not constitute tax, legal, or financial advice. Open Accountants and its contributors accept no liability for any errors, omissions, or outcomes arising from the use of this skill. All outputs must be reviewed and signed off by a qualified professional (such as a CPA, EA, tax attorney, or equivalent licensed practitioner in your jurisdiction) before filing or acting upon.

The most up-to-date, verified version of this skill is maintained at [openaccountants.com](https://openaccountants.com). Log in to access the latest version, request a professional review from a licensed accountant, and track updates as tax law changes.

---

_Source: [OpenAccountants](https://openaccountants.com/skills/guatemala-iva) — open tax Guides for AI, reviewed by named CPAs/CAs/EAs. Quality: **source-cited draft**. For always-current figures and named-accountant backing, connect the OpenAccountants MCP server (`openaccountants-mcp`)._