Declaring Your Income in Paraguay: A Practical Guide from the DNIT

When discussing taxation in Paraguay, expatriates naturally focus on IRP (income tax) and IRACIS (corporate income tax). But there's another tax—less well-known but equally important—that directly affects any expatriate who pays themselves a salary, distributes dividends, or pays local service providers: withholding tax. And at the heart of this mechanism is the tax declaration with the DNIT—your periodic obligation as a Paraguayan taxpayer.

This guide concretely explains how to declare your income in Paraguay with the DNIT: which declarations, when to file them, how the Marangatu portal works, and why our accounting service at €30/month is the best investment you'll make for your tax peace of mind.

The DNIT: The Paraguayan Tax Authority

The SET has become the DNIT

An important update: the Paraguayan tax authority, historically known as SET (Subsecretaría de Estado de Tributación), has been restructured and renamed DNIT (Dirección Nacional de Ingresos Tributarios). The functions remain the same—tax collection, declaration management, tax control—but the name and organization have changed. In everyday life, many Paraguayans still use the term "SET." The online portal remains Marangatu.

The Marangatu Portal

Marangatu is the DNIT's online portal where all your tax declarations are made. It is the Paraguayan equivalent of impots.gouv.fr in France. You file your monthly declarations (IVA, withholding tax) and annual declarations (IRACIS, IRP) there, check your tax situation, download your certificates, and manage your timbrado (invoicing authorization).

The portal is in Spanish and its interface is not the most intuitive in the world. This is one of the reasons why even Paraguayan entrepreneurs entrust their declarations to an accountant—and all the more so for French-speaking expatriates.

Tax Declarations: Who Must Declare What

You are self-employed (Trabajador Independiente)

If you operate as a sole proprietor in Paraguay, your reporting obligations depend on your tax regime:

IRP Regime (Impuesto a la Renta Personal):

• Annual IRP declaration: to be filed in the first quarter of the following year. Summarizes your Paraguayan source income, your deductions, and calculates the tax due (8-10% on local income). If your income is 100% foreign source, the declaration is zero—but it must be filed.
• Monthly IVA declaration: if you invoice local services subject to IVA. For service exporters (foreign clients), the IVA is zero, but the monthly declaration remains mandatory.

IRPC Regime (Impuesto a la Renta del Pequeño Contribuyente):

• Reduced obligations—simplified annual declaration
• Even lower effective rate than standard IRP
• Accessible if your Paraguayan turnover remains below a certain threshold

Our guide to IRP in Paraguay and our IVA guide detail these mechanisms.

You have an SRL in Paraguay

If you have created an SRL in Paraguay (€1,500, one week via our services), the obligations are more structured:

• Monthly IVA declaration: summarizes the IVA collected on your sales and the deductible IVA on your purchases. The balance is paid to the DNIT.
• Monthly withholding tax declarations: if your SRL pays service providers or suppliers, certain withholdings must be deducted and declared.
• Annual IRACIS declaration: annual balance sheet of the SRL's profits and calculation of the 10% tax. If the income is exclusively foreign source, the taxable profit is zero—but the declaration is mandatory.
• Maintenance of accounting books: journal, ledger, inventory—in Guaranis, in accordance with Paraguayan standards.
• Timbrado management: periodic renewal of invoicing authorization.

You are a tax resident without local activity

Many French-speaking expatriates are tax residents in Paraguay but have no local source income—all their income comes from abroad (European clients, pensions, international dividends). In this case:

• Your IRP is zero (foreign income not taxed due to territoriality)
• But you must still be registered with the RUC and file your declarations—even if they are zero
• These zero declarations are proof of your tax compliance in Paraguay and a crucial part of your tax residency file in case of an audit by the tax authorities of your country of origin

Never underestimate the importance of zero declarations. As explained in our guide on the Paraguay-France tax treaty, a history of Paraguayan tax declarations is one of the most powerful elements to prove the reality of your tax residency.

The Tax Calendar: When to Declare

Monthly Deadlines

Monthly declarations (IVA, withholding tax) are due the month following the period concerned. The exact deadline depends on the last digit of your RUC:

Last digit of RUC	Deadline
0	7th of the following month
1	9th of the following month
2	11th of the following month
3	13th of the following month
4	15th of the following month
5	17th of the following month
6	19th of the following month
7	21st of the following month
8	23rd of the following month
9	25th of the following month

Each late declaration incurs an automatic penalty—even if the amount to pay is zero. Penalties are modest (a few tens of dollars) but accumulate quickly if you miss several months. This is wasted money and energy for nothing.

Annual Declarations

• IRACIS (companies): generally due between March and June of the following year, according to the calendar set by the DNIT
• IRP (individuals): generally due in the first quarter of the following year

Crypto Reporting (New for 2026)

As per Resolution 47/2026, crypto transactions exceeding USD 5,000/year must be reported via Marangatu. The first declarations are due in early 2027 for the 2026 fiscal year. Our crypto guide in Paraguay details this new obligation.

Why You Should NOT Manage Your Declarations Yourself

The Marangatu portal is not for amateurs

Marangatu is a technical portal, in Spanish, with codified forms, obscure reference numbers, and an administrative logic that bears no resemblance to what you know in Europe. Even educated Paraguayans entrust their declarations to an accountant—it's not out of laziness, it's out of pragmatism.

Errors on Marangatu—wrong form, wrong amount, wrong period, omission of a declaration—trigger automatic penalties and can complicate your tax situation for months. Correcting an error is often longer and more expensive than doing it right the first time with a professional.

The subtleties you cannot know

The Paraguayan tax system has its subtleties that only a local accountant masters:

• Which expenses are deductible and which are not
• How to treat mixed income (local + foreign) in the same declaration
• Applicable withholding tax rates depending on the type of service provider
• USD/PYG conversion rules for declarations in Guaranis
• Regulatory changes (the DNIT regularly publishes resolutions that modify procedures)
• Renewal of timbrado and electronic invoicing obligations (SIFEN)

The cost of a local accountant vs. the cost of errors

A local accountant in Paraguay costs between USD 150 and 400/month for a standard SRL. This is an investment that protects you against penalties, adjustments, and RUC blockages. The cost of errors—fines, lost time, stress—always exceeds the cost of the accountant.

Our Service: €30/Month for Total Compliance

What's Included

For €30 per month, our certified accountant handles all your tax obligations in Paraguay:

• Monthly IVA declarations via Marangatu—including zero declarations for service exporters
• Monthly withholding tax declarations if applicable
• Annual IRACIS or IRP declaration
• Maintenance and updating of accounting books
• Timbrado management—monitoring expiration dates and renewal
• Crypto reporting via Marangatu (Resolution 47/2026)
• Regulatory watch—you are informed of changes that concern you
• Response to DNIT requests—if the administration contacts you, our accountant handles it

This €30/month rate applies to simple structures (self-employed or SRL without employees with a moderate volume of invoices). For companies with employees, significant activity volume, or a holding setup, a personalized quote is provided. All details are on our ancillary services page.

Why €30/month is an unbeatable price

In France, a chartered accountant for an SARL costs between €150 and €500/month. In Spain, a gestor charges €100 to €300/month. Even in Paraguay, an independent local accountant generally charges USD 100 to 300/month. Our €30/month rate is possible because we have industrialized the process for French-speaking expatriates with similar profiles—international income, simple activity, standardized reporting obligations. You benefit from a dedicated expert accountant at the price of a Netflix subscription.

The advantage of an accountant who understands expatriates

Our expert accountant doesn't just manage classic Paraguayan taxpayers. She understands the specific issues of French-speaking expatriates: territoriality applied to mixed income, necessary documentation for the tax authorities of the country of origin, strategic zero declarations, crypto reporting, and coordination with tax obligations in other jurisdictions (France, USA if LLC). This is niche expertise that you won't find with a run-of-the-mill Paraguayan accountant.

Withholding Tax: The Mechanism to Understand

The Principle

If your SRL pays local service providers (suppliers, consultants, Paraguayan subcontractors), you are required to withhold tax from the amount paid and remit it to the DNIT. This is a deduction you make on behalf of the State—the service provider receives the net amount, and you pay the withholding to the DNIT via Marangatu.

Withholding Rates

Rates vary depending on the type of service and the status of the service provider. The most common cases:

• IVA withholding: 30% of the IVA invoiced by the service provider (for certain types of transactions)
• Income tax withholding: 3 to 4.5% of the gross amount for local service providers, depending on the type of service
• Dividend withholding: 5% for dividends distributed to residents, 15% for non-residents

Withholdings are declared and paid monthly via Marangatu. This is a technical mechanism that your accountant routinely handles—not something you need to master yourself.

Errors That Trigger Problems with the DNIT

Not filing declarations

Each missing declaration generates an automatic penalty and, if the situation persists, a blockage of your RUC. A blocked RUC means you can no longer invoice, deduct IVA, or operate normally. Unblocking requires regularizing all missing declarations, paying penalties, and making a formal request—a process that can take weeks.

Declaring with errors

An incorrect amount, a wrong rate applied, a forgotten withholding—each error requires an amended declaration. Rectifications are possible but involve additional steps and can draw the DNIT's attention to your file. It is better to get it right the first time.

Allowing the timbrado to expire

An expired timbrado makes all your invoices invalid. Your customers cannot deduct IVA, and you risk penalties. Renewal is a formality—but you must think about it before expiration, not after.

Not keeping purchase invoices

Deductible IVA on your purchases is only accepted if you have the original compliant invoice. No invoice = no deduction = more tax to pay. Systematically transmit all your purchase invoices to your accountant each month.

Mixing personal and professional flows

If you have an SRL, maintain a strict separation between your personal account and the company's account. Mixed payments (personal expenses from the SRL account, professional income to the personal account) create accounting chaos and weaken limited liability protection.

The link between tax declarations and tax residency

Your declarations = your proof

Each tax declaration filed via Marangatu is a timestamped and official proof of your fiscal existence in Paraguay. A history of regular declarations (even zero declarations) over several years constitutes a solid file in case of a tax audit from your country of origin. The French tax authorities examining your situation will see:

• An active RUC in Paraguay
• Regularly filed monthly declarations
• Consistent annual declarations
• A transparent and documented tax history

This is exactly what our guide on the Paraguay-France tax treaty recommends to secure your tax residency.

Consistency with your bank accounts

Your tax declarations and bank statements must tell the same story. If your IRP declaration shows zero local income but your bank account shows Guaraní receipts from local clients, there is an inconsistency. Our accountant checks this consistency every month to avoid any problems.

The Complete Ecosystem: From Residency to Declaration

Tax declaration is the last link in the chain of your financial expatriation—but without it, the entire chain collapses:

• Tax Residency (from €1,400, 3 months): you become a resident → you obtain your cédula
• RUC Registration: you become a taxpayer → you enter the Marangatu system
• Bank Account: you receive your income → you create a local financial history
• SRL Creation (€1,500, 1 week): if structured activity → complete accounting obligations
• Accounting (€30/month): monthly and annual declarations → total compliance and proof of tax residency

Each step reinforces the others. Residency without declarations is fragile. Declarations without a bank account are incomplete. The whole forms an integrated ecosystem that protects your tax status and maximizes your benefits.

Conclusion: Declaring is Protecting

Declaring your income in Paraguay is not a chore—it's an act of protection. Protection against DNIT penalties. Protection of your tax residency in case of an audit from your country of origin. Protection of your business through an active RUC and a valid timbrado. Every declaration submitted on time is an additional brick in the wall of your tax security.

And with our service at €30 per month, you have nothing to do. No Marangatu to understand, no forms to fill out, no deadlines to remember. Our accountant handles everything—you focus on your life and business in Paraguay.

Do you want to be tax compliant in Paraguay without having to think about it? Contact our team to activate your accounting support and never miss a declaration again.