Countries › Costa Rica › Guide › 16. What is normal abroad but not here › Accepted electronic invoices are enforceable titles and can be traded; payers have ten business days to object

Accepted electronic invoices are enforceable titles and can be traded; payers have ten business days to object

Last verified: 2026-10-30 · Status: Stable

Abroad, an unpaid invoice is usually just evidence in an ordinary lawsuit. In Costa Rica commercial and service invoices are executive titles that can be endorsed, and accepted electronic invoices can be recorded at an authorised securities depository and traded on the securities market. When the depository asks the payer to confirm an invoice, silence for ten business days counts as acceptance.

USD figures use the Banco Central de Costa Rica reference selling rate of ₡454.82 per US dollar published for 29 October 2026 (indicator 318 on bccr.fi.cr), rounded to the cent; conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Payer's period to confirm or reject an invoice sent for book entry	10 business days (silence is acceptance) textCódigo de Comercio art. 460 ter (Ley 10039), as of 2026-10-30 · in force

The rule

1. Commercial and service invoices are executive titles and can be validly transferred by endorsement under the rules for order instruments; this extends to electronic invoices, whose acceptance may be given through electronic receipts or messages signed with digital signature.Código de Comercio art. 460 bis, as reformed by Ley 10039, art. 1 (Código de Comercio art. 460 bis), 2021-09-30 official text · verified 2026-10-30 · changed: Ley 10039 (2021) confirmed the executive title status of electronic invoices and made them negotiable.

2. An electronic invoice accepted under the Dirección General de Tributación procedure or by automatic acceptance is an executive title and may be recorded by book entry at an authorised securities depository, giving the right to trade it on secondary markets.Código de Comercio art. 460 ter, added by Ley 10039, art. 2 (Código de Comercio art. 460 ter), 2021-09-30 official text · verified 2026-10-30

3. The payer has ten business days from receiving the depository's confirmation request to accept or reject the invoice on listed grounds (wrong data, goods or services not received, claims, prior assignment or lien, or an unfounded amount); no answer within that time is acceptance. After recording, credit notes or changes need the new holder's consent and the payer cannot withhold payment from third parties for hidden defects, keeping its claims against the issuer.
Example: ₡20,000,000 invoice recorded for sale: the buyer must object within ten business days or it is deemed accepted. / About US$43,973.44.Código de Comercio art. 460 ter, added by Ley 10039, art. 2 (Código de Comercio art. 460 ter), 2021-09-30 official text · verified 2026-10-30

Worked example

A supplier sells a ₡20,000,000 accepted electronic invoice through a securities depository. Once recorded, the buyer must pay the new holder on the due date even if it later finds a defect, and pursue the supplier separately.

Step by step

Assign someone to answer depository confirmation requests within ten business days.
Reject with a listed ground when goods or services were not received or are disputed.
Before factoring, check the invoice is not already pledged in the movable collateral system.

Common traps

Ignoring a confirmation request makes the invoice accepted and negotiable.
Credit notes issued after book entry are ineffective without the holder's consent.
Public sector payers will pay a recorded invoice to the new holder only if that holder is current with the CCSS.

Sources

Ley 10039, executive title and negotiability of electronic invoices (SINALEVI)

← An implied warranty, a 30 day claim window and eight days to cancel off premises and online sales

Get rule changes weekly

Free. One email a week from The LatAm Thread.

One more step after you press the button: we take you to Substack, where your email is already filled in. Confirm there to start. No spam, unsubscribe anytime, we never share your address. By subscribing you agree to the privacy policy.