Quick summary: A donación entre vivos (gift made during the donor’s lifetime) transfers ownership without consideration (Código Civil, Art. 1855). For movable property, a private document is sufficient; it must be written if the value exceeds Q300 (Art. 1575). For real estate, the donation must be granted and accepted in an escritura pública (public deed) (Art. 1862). The Ley del IVA lists inter vivos donations as a taxable event; its general rate is 12%. Confirm the applicable exemption with SAT before signing. A donation can be revoked for ingratitude, subject to short deadlines. Decreto 6-2026, Art. 4, which amends the IVA exemptions (Ley del IVA, Art. 7, item 3(b)), exempts inter vivos donations up to the second degree of consanguinity and first degree of affinity.
This is a template, not legal advice. A movable-property donation can be signed as a private document. For real estate, the law requires a public deed before a notary; the Word file serves as a data sheet.
Download the Donation Contract (Word)
The private contract for movable property includes identification of the donante (donor) and donatario (recipient), a description and valuation of the property (Art. 1863), acceptance at signing (Art. 1857), an option for an onerous donation or donation with an obligation (Art. 1856), the donor’s declaration about meeting obligations to creditors and maintenance beneficiaries (Art. 1864), a relationship field, and a minuta (draft instructions) for real estate with property details and retained usufruct for the notary.
Contract Form by Type of Property
| Property donated | Form | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|
| Movable property worth up to Q300 | May be verbal | Art. 1575 |
| Movable property worth more than Q300 | Written private document | Art. 1575 |
| Real estate | Granting and acceptance in a public deed | Art. 1862 |
| Donation through an apoderado (authorized representative) | The power must name the recipient and specify the property and conditions | Art. 1860 |
| Recipient is a minor, legally incapacitated or absent | Legal representatives accept; conditional and onerous donations require prior judicial authorization | Art. 1861 |
“Toda donación será estimada” [Every donation must be valued] (Art. 1863): the contract must state the value. If it includes all or most of the donor’s assets, or the most productive ones, they must be itemized in the instrument.
For foreign grantors: For a public instrument, when the notary does not know the grantors, Art. 29 of the Código de Notariado provides for identification by cédula de vecindad or passport, two witnesses known to the notary, or both methods when the notary considers it appropriate. A party who does not know Spanish appoints an interpreter, preferably a traductor jurado (sworn translator). If the interpreter cannot or does not know how to sign, a witness signs for them. This provision concerns public instruments, rather than every private contract.
Between Spouses: Donation Rather Than Sale
Art. 1792 of the Código Civil prohibits a husband from buying from his wife and a wife from buying from her husband, even under a separation-of-property arrangement. The prohibition excludes transfers in payment between spouses resulting from liquidation of their marital property. For the question of IVA exemptions between spouses, see the relationship-degree explanation below.
Types of Donation
- Gratuita (gratuitous): transfers ownership without consideration (Art. 1855).
- Remuneratoria (remuneratory): permitted by Art. 1856; not revocable for ingratitude (Art. 1872).
- Onerosa (subject to obligations or charges): only the value exceeding those charges is a donation (Art. 1856). If the recipient fails to perform, or suspends or interrupts performance without just cause, the donor may rescind. If the obligation was to pay a pension or debt and half or more has been paid, the donor or heirs may only reduce the actual gift by the assets needed to complete payment (Art. 1875).
- Con reserva de usufructo (with retained usufruct): the donor retains use and the fruits of the property and need not provide security as usufructuary (Art. 721). See the usufruct contract.
Taxes: IVA and Questions to Confirm
| Provision | What it says |
|---|---|
| Ley del IVA, Art. 3, item 9 | Inter vivos donations of movable and immovable property are a taxable event for IVA |
| Ley del IVA, Art. 10 | General rate of 12% of the taxable base |
| Ley del IVA, Art. 3, final paragraph | For donations, the taxable base cannot be lower than the property’s acquisition price or manufacturing cost |
| Decreto 6-2026, Art. 4 (amends Ley del IVA, Art. 7, item 3(b)) | Exempts inheritances, legacies and donations on death, and inter vivos donations up to the second degree of consanguinity and first degree of affinity |
| Decreto 6-2026, Arts. 1 and 6 | Repeals Decreto 431 in full; takes effect thirty days after publication in the Diario Oficial |
Confirm the applicable exemption for your donation with SAT or the notary.
How relationship degrees are counted under the Código Civil: each generation is a degree (Art. 193); in a direct line there are as many degrees as generations (Art. 196); in a collateral line, count up to the common ancestor and down to the other relative (Art. 197). Afinidad (relationship by marriage) is counted in the same way and ends when the marriage is dissolved (Art. 198). Under these rules, parents and children are in the first degree; grandparents, grandchildren and siblings are in the second; a spouse’s parents are in the first degree of affinity. For spouses, Art. 190 says they are relatives but do not form a degree, while Art. 192 defines affinity as the relationship joining spouses to each other and to their respective blood relatives. Whether an IVA exemption covers a donation between spouses is unresolved here: confirm it with SAT.
ISR (income tax), unresolved. This page does not determine whether an inter vivos donation creates ISR liability for the recipient. It also does not analyze impuesto de timbres (stamp tax). Consult the notary or SAT about both.
Decreto 6-2026, Art. 5, rewrites Art. 8, item 4, of the Ley de Actualización Tributaria (Decreto 10-2012) as “Las herencias, legados y donaciones por causa de muerte.” That wording does not mention inter vivos donations.
Revocation and Reduction
| Mechanism | Rule | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Revocation for ingratitude | Cases under Art. 1866, items 1 and 3 (item 2 was declared unconstitutional, case 5009-2013); the donor’s power is personal and cannot be waived | 6 months from when the donor learns of the event (Art. 1874) |
| Notification of revocation | Art. 1869 states that revocation has no effect unless the recipient or heirs are notified within 60 days after execution of the public deed of revocation | 60 days (Art. 1869) |
| Recipient’s opposition | The recipient or heirs may dispute the grounds for a judge to decide; if they do not challenge within 60 days after notification, revocation becomes final | 60 days (Arts. 1870-1871) |
| Reduction for maintenance | A donor whose financial circumstances deteriorate may reduce the gift as needed for maintenance; gifts to different people are reduced starting with the latest, then earlier gifts; gifts on the same date are reduced proportionally | 6 months from when the reason arose (Arts. 1876 and 1879) |
| Donor’s death intentionally caused by the recipient | The donation is invalidated by that fact | Art. 1868 |
The CENADOJ commentary on Art. 1869 discusses delays in notification not attributable to the applicant. The statutory deadline alone does not determine the outcome of every case; seek legal advice promptly if notification is delayed.
If the property cannot be returned, the recipient must return its value at the time of the donation, or the applicable portion of that value (Art. 1877). The fruits and products belong to the recipient until notification of revocation, rescission or reduction (Art. 1878). For real estate, revocation affects third parties from presentation of the deed to the Registro (Property Registry); for other property, from notification to third parties or publication of the revocation (Art. 1873).
Related Procedures
- Usufruct contract — for a donation with retained usufruct
- Inheritance and succession
- Property registration
- Property certification
- Comodato (loan-for-use) contract
- Motorcycle transfer costs
- Notary fees
General guidance, not legal advice. Legal references: the Organismo Judicial’s Código Civil Comentado del CENADOJ, the Ley del IVA text published by SAT, and the Código de Notariado. Consult a Guatemalan lawyer and notary before signing.