In short: Guatemala charges two taxes on every import. DAI (Derechos Arancelarios de Importación) is set by tariff line: 0-15% for the goods in our table (phones, laptops and cameras 0%; TVs, game consoles, clothing, shoes, furniture and packaged food 15%). IVA is 12% on the CIF value plus DAI — you pay tax on top of tax. Calculations use CIF (Cost + Insurance + Freight), not just product price. Shipped goods are not IVA-exempt by category — not books, not medicine, not baby formula: the Ley del IVA has no such exemption. What is tax-free is your own baggage, other goods up to US$500 when you travel (RECAUCA art. 582 lets each country limit that to once every six months, and the traveller’s declaration SAT uses asks whether you have used a tax exemption in the last six months), and a non-commercial family parcel up to US$500 once every six months. Phones, laptops and cameras pay 12% IVA only. Vehicles work differently: duty on cars and motorcycles is 0%, but a vehicle also pays IPRIMA, the first-registration tax — 20% for a car seating up to five, 15% for 6-9 seats or a true low-range 4x4, 10% for a motorcycle, 5% for hybrid/electric. IVA and IPRIMA sit on the same base and are not charged on each other, and for a used import that base is your foreign invoice, not CIF (Decreto 10-2012, arts. 113-116). A $15,000 used sedan owes about 32%, not 22%. Residentes pensionados and rentistas can import household goods without import duty under menaje de casa — the 12% IVA still applies. USD/GTQ today: Q7.6425 (Banguat reference, 2026-10-07).
How Guatemala Customs Works
Every item entering Guatemala – whether shipped by courier, brought in luggage, or arriving by sea freight – is subject to customs processing by SAT (Superintendencia de Administracion Tributaria). Understanding the system before you ship saves money and avoids delays.
Two Taxes on Every Import (Three, If It Has Wheels)
Guatemala applies two taxes to most imports. The first is the DAI (Derechos Arancelarios de Importacion), a customs duty set by tariff line in the Central American tariff. For the goods in our table it runs 0% to 15%: phones, laptops, cameras, computer parts, medical equipment and most tools 0%; medicines and contact lenses 5%; TVs, game consoles, clothing, shoes, furniture, packaged food and school supplies 15% (SIECA tariff, read 22 Sep 2026).
The second is IVA (Impuesto al Valor Agregado), Guatemala’s 12% value-added tax. IVA is applied to the CIF value plus the duty amount, which means you pay tax on top of tax. The Ley del IVA exempts imports only for travelers’ baggage, temporary imports, returning Guatemalan diplomats, cooperatives’ capital goods, diplomatic missions and international bodies (Decreto 27-92 art. 7) — so a shipped book, medicine or tin of baby formula pays 12% IVA like anything else.
Vehicles do not work this way, and treating them as if they did is the most expensive mistake on this page. Duty on cars and motorcycles is 0%. But a vehicle owes a third tax the parcel rules never mention: IPRIMA, the tax on first registration in the Registro Fiscal de Vehículos. It is set by vehicle type, never by model year — 20% for a car carrying up to five people including the driver, 15% for 6-9 seats or for four-wheel drive with a two-range transfer case, 10% for a motorcycle of any displacement, 5% for hybrid, electric and hydrogen vehicles.
IVA and IPRIMA are not charged on each other. Both sit on the same base, and for a used import that base is the original invoice from the foreign seller — not CIF. CIF applies to new vehicles. If SAT cannot verify your invoice, or you cannot produce the foreign title and a documented bank payment, the base becomes SAT’s annual valuation table instead. Model year affects that table, and so your bill, but it never changes the rate. Source: Decreto 10-2012 (Ley de Actualización Tributaria), Libro II, articles 113-116.
There is no ten-year import ban. The model-year prohibitions in article 109 were struck down by the Corte de Constitucionalidad in 2013 (Expediente 2959-2012). What survives is the ban on importing vehicles that arrive collided or damaged such that they cannot circulate, from the seventh model year, and a permanent ban on anything declared unrebuildable where it was exported.
CIF Valuation: What You Actually Pay Tax On
A common mistake is calculating taxes only on the item price. Guatemala uses CIF valuation – Cost, Insurance, and Freight. This means your $500 item with $80 shipping has a taxable base of $580, not $500. Always include shipping costs when estimating your tax liability.
SAT maintains reference price databases for common items. If your declared value seems too low, customs officers can override it with their reference price. Under-declaring is risky and can lead to fines or confiscation.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Shipping multiple identical items is the fastest way to trigger commercial classification. Three of the same phone or ten identical t-shirts will be treated as a commercial import: the duty rate is the same, but the paperwork grows and the traveler and family-parcel exemptions no longer apply (they require non-commercial quantities).
Forgetting to include receipts forces customs to estimate the value themselves. Always include invoices or screenshots of your purchase confirmation.
Menaje de Casa: The Resident’s Exemption
If you are relocating to Guatemala as a residente pensionado or rentista, SAT’s menaje de casa procedure exempts your household goods — new or used, in quantities for domestic use — from import duty (DAI). It does not exempt them from the 12% IVA: only returning Guatemalan diplomats get that. Guatemalans coming home after 24 months abroad can have 25-70% of the duty waived by resolution.
You need a detailed list of the goods with estimated values (RECAUCA art. 584), invoices for anything new (used goods need none), and an electronic customs declaration; ask a customs broker (agente aduanero) whether you need one to file it. Menaje never covers vehicles, or machinery and equipment for offices, workshops or labs (RECAUCA art. 585). We found no deadline or one-time limit in the primary sources — confirm with SAT or your broker before you ship. Read our shipping guide for a step-by-step walkthrough of the menaje de casa process.
Tips for First-Time Importers
- Know what counts as baggage – one phone, one portable computer and one camera for your own use travel tax-free as baggage; other new goods are covered up to US$500 (RECAUCA art. 582 lets each country limit it to once every six months, and the traveller’s declaration SAT uses asks whether you have used a tax exemption in the last six months)
- Use a customs broker above US$1,000 of customs value – that is where a courier parcel leaves the simplified declaration for the general customs process
- Check the exchange rate before calculating – duties are assessed in GTQ
- Plan your cost of living budget to include import taxes on items you regularly buy from abroad
- Keep all documentation for at least one year in case SAT requests an audit