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D-270: A Nondeductible Expense May Still Need to Be Reported

Sep 21, 2026

By Gabriela Páez, MAF

Tax Manager – EAS LATAM


On August 14, 2026, Costa Rica’s General Directorate of Taxation issued Ruling MH-DGT-DNTI-DCN-CONS-00000053-2026 in response to an inquiry submitted under Article 119 of the Tax Code. The ruling addresses a recurring issue during accounting and tax closes: if an expense meets the objective requirements for reporting on the D-270 Information Return, may it be omitted simply because the taxpayer elected to treat it as nondeductible for corporate income tax purposes?


The Tax Administration’s position was unequivocal: the obligation to report an item on Form D-270 is a formal requirement that operates entirely independently from the substantive treatment of the expense for income tax purposes.


What the Tax Administration Decided in August

The legal basis for this position is Article 5 of Resolution MH-DGT-RES-0010-2026, which expressly provides that including transactions on Form D-270 does not automatically establish deductibility. The General Directorate of Taxation clarified that the rule works both ways:

  • Reporting does not establish deductibility: Reporting a cost or expense on Form D-270 does not automatically make it deductible or cure the absence of an electronic invoice when one was legally required.

  • Nondeductibility does not eliminate the reporting obligation: Treating an expense as “nondeductible” for tax purposes does not remove the obligation to report it on Form D-270 if the transaction falls within the return’s categories and requirements.


Accordingly, D-270 classification must be performed strictly under the rules applicable to that return rather than simply mirroring the results of the corporate income tax reconciliation.


The D-270 should be reviewed as part of the monthly close, not only when preparing the income tax return.



Selection Criteria: What Must Be Included on Form D-270?

The D-270 is an information return designed to capture specified transactions that are not supported by a validated electronic tax document. The August 2026 ruling does not mean that every nondeductible business expense must be reported. The screening process should follow an objective two-step analysis:

  1. Inclusion analysis: First determine whether the transaction falls within the categories, codes, periods, and parameters established for Form D-270. If it does not meet those selection criteria, the expense is not reported, regardless of whether it is nondeductible.

  2. Exclusion analysis: If the transaction does fall within the scope of Form D-270, it may not be excluded solely because the company elected not to deduct it on its income tax return.


Practical example: A financial fee that is not subject to value-added tax (VAT), lacks an electronic supporting document, and falls within a current D-270 category remains reportable even if the taxpayer elects not to claim it as a deduction. Conversely, a nondeductible personal expense that does not fall within the scope of Form D-270 should not be reported merely because it is nondeductible.

Two Analytical Frameworks for the Same Transaction


To mitigate compliance risk and reduce errors, companies should structure their internal review of each supporting document around two independent questions:

  • D-270 effect (formal obligation): Review the nature of the transaction, the type of supporting documentation, the period in which it occurred, the identity of the counterparty, and the applicable code. This information is provided solely to support the Tax Administration’s data-matching procedures and does not directly affect the tax calculation.

  • Income tax effect (substantive obligation): Analyze the legal and documentary requirements and the expense’s connection to the income-producing activity to determine whether the payment decreases or increases the corporate income tax base.


The most common mistake in practice is to assume a cause-and-effect relationship between the two analyses: excluding transactions from Form D-270 because they are classified as nondeductible, or assuming that items reported on Form D-270 have been accepted as deductible in a future tax audit.


Following the correct sequence prevents the tax reconciliation from being used as a filter for the information return.



Special 2026 Filing Deadlines and Monthly Controls

When Resolution MH-DGT-RES-0010-2026 took effect, the Tax Administration granted an extraordinary deadline for complying with this obligation. Although D-270 information must be organized on a month-by-month basis, returns for January through December 2026 may be filed without penalties under Article 83 of the Tax Code during the first 25 calendar days of January 2027. Beginning with the 2027 tax year, the ordinary filing schedule will resume, with returns due within the first 25 days of the following month.


Despite this extension, postponing data preparation until the end of the period substantially increases the risk of duplicate entries, inconsistencies with the accounting records, and discrepancies across Ministry of Finance platforms such as TRIBU-CR. For effective control, companies should maintain a monthly subsidiary ledger that addresses the following:

  • Identify the document: a validated electronic tax document or other supporting documentation.

  • Classify the transaction: nature, counterparty, code, and corresponding month.

  • Separate the analyses: D-270 reportability and income tax deductibility.

  • Reconcile the amounts: subsidiary ledger, general ledger, TRIBU-CR, and tax reconciliation.

  • Retain the rationale: why the item was reported and why it was accepted or rejected for tax purposes.




The special deadline is not a substitute for monthly controls and reconciliation.


In conclusion, the special deadline granted for 2026 facilitates technical implementation, but it does not replace the need to maintain separate audit trails for Form D-270 and the corporate income tax reconciliation.


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