Puerto Rico

Employment income

Employment income includes gains, profits, and income derived from salaries, wages, or compensation for rendered services, and received in any form of payment (i.e. cash or in kind), unless specifically excluded. Typically, taxable compensation includes salaries, wages, Christmas bonus, incentive compensation, benefits in kind, etc.

Reimbursement of expenses incurred by the employee to carry out their duties or responsibilities may be considered business expenses. For example, if an employee must travel for business meetings to another location where they must stay overnight, the expenses incurred for travel and lodging in such a case are generally considered business expenses incurred on behalf of the employer. The reimbursement of these expenses may be excluded from compensation if certain requirements are met.

Capital gains and investment income

All capital gains and investment income of a Puerto Rican resident are taxable for Puerto Rican purposes.

Capital gains

The holding period to qualify as long-term capital gain will depend on the date of sale or exchange. Long-term tax treatment will apply to those capital assets held for more than one year.

Long-term capital gains are subject to a special tax rate of 15%. Short-term capital gains are subject to the regular gradual rates.

In the case of long-term capital gains, Puerto Rican non-resident foreign nationals are subject to a flat withholding rate of 25%. Puerto Rican non-resident US citizens are only subject to a flat withholding rate of 15% on long-term capital gains.

Investment income

Investment income is subject to regular gradual rates unless specific requirements are met. For example, interest may be subject to a flat rate of 10% or 17% and dividends to a flat rate of 15%.

In the case of Puerto Rican non-resident foreign nationals, investment income, such as rent and interest income, is subject to a flat rate of 29%, and dividends to a flat rate of 15% (or a lower flat rate in certain cases).