Venezuela

Designation of new value-added tax (VAT) withholding agents 

Administrative Ruling N° SNAT/2025/000054, designated VAT withholding agents, was published in Official Gazette N° 43.171, dated 16 July 2025. The main change from the previous Ruling relates to withholding agents, as the Ruling provides that all individuals designated and notified as special taxpayers who are incorporated as sole proprietorships will also qualify as VAT withholding agents. The rest of the rules regarding applicable withholding and procedure are maintained. The Administrative Ruling entered into force on 1 August 2025.

Suspension of VAT exemption on imports

The application of the VAT exemption provided by Law on the imports of basic food products, medicines, fertilisers, medical equipment, as well as books, newspapers, and specific fuels has been suspended by Presidential Decree N° 5145 published on 30 June 2025. The Decree entered into force on 5 July 2025.  

Decree N° 5145 also provides for a VAT exoneration for definitive imports of tangible personal property, carried out by the bodies and entities of the National Public Administration, as well as those carried out with own resources by natural or legal persons, classified in the tariff codes indicated in Appendix I of the Decree. The exemption will apply for a period of one year, counted from its entry into force.