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Exiting Paraguay: dividends out, selling your shares and closing the company

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Last verified: 2026-10-28 · Status: Stable

Getting money and ownership out of Paraguay is simple and cheap by regional standards: there is no exchange control, profits paid to a foreign shareholder bear a single 15 percent dividend tax (IDU) withheld by the company, and a foreign seller of Paraguayan shares pays 15 percent nonresident tax (INR) on a deemed gain capped at 30 percent of the price, so never more than 4.5 percent of the price. The catch in a share sale is that the Paraguayan company itself is liable for the seller's tax and must report every share transfer to the Ministry within five business days. Closing an EAS ends only when the closing balance is registered with tax, labor and similar clearance certificates, and a closure must be notified in writing to the labor authority or every worker is owed the statutory severance.

USD figures use PYG 5,847.90 per US dollar, the Banco Central del Paraguay reference quotation for 27 October 2026, the latest daily sheet published on the verification date (bcp.gov.py cotización referencial). Minimum wage figures use Resolución MTESS 670/2026 (monthly PYG 3,044,000, daily for monthly paid workers PYG 101,467, daily wage for day laborers PYG 117,077, from 1 July 2026). Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Dividend tax (IDU) on distributions to nonresidents	15 %Ley 6380/2019 art. 43 num. 2, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Dividend tax (IDU) on distributions to residents	8 %Ley 6380/2019 art. 43 num. 1, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Nonresident tax (INR) on sale of Paraguayan shares	15 %Ley 6380/2019 art. 76, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Deemed taxable gain on share sale (lower of price less par value or this share of price)	30 %Ley 6380/2019 art. 75 num. 5, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Maximum effective INR on share sale price (15% x 30%)	4.5 %Ley 6380/2019 art. 75 num. 5 and 76, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Share transfer notice: buyer to company, then company to Abogacía del Tesoro	5 + 5 business daysLey 5895/2017 art. 5, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Period to remove a dissolution cause and avoid dissolving an EAS	6 monthsLey 6480/2020 art. 37, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Severance for unjustified dismissal (daily wages per year or fraction over six months)	15 daysCódigo del Trabajo art. 91 (Ley 496/1995), as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Severance multiplier on closure for workers with 10+ years (stability)	2 xCódigo del Trabajo art. 94 and 99, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Access to FX for dividend and capital repatriation	Free exchange market, no prior approval Ley 489/95 art. 61 as rewritten by Ley 6104/2018, as of 2026-10-28 · in force

The rule

1. Dividends to a foreign shareholder: 15 percent IDU, withheld at source and final. Profits, dividends or returns made available or paid by Paraguayan S.A., S.R.L., one person firms and similar entities, and by permanent establishments of foreign entities to their head office, are subject to the Impuesto a los Dividendos y a las Utilidades (IDU). The rate is 8 percent for resident recipients and 15 percent for nonresident individuals or entities, including a foreign head office. The paying entity must withhold and is jointly liable; for a nonresident the tax is a single, final payment. Distribution covers cash or in kind, and also the excess of legal or voluntary reserves and capital reductions of capitalised profits or reserves; on a capital return, the law presumes without contrary proof that reserves (including revaluation), then undistributed profits, then contributed capital are withdrawn in that order. Loans to shareholders (outside financial intermediaries within 2 percent of their loan book), cash shortfalls above 10 percent of the cash account and unpaid personal use of company assets are presumed distributions. Profits sent to legal reserve, voluntary reserves or capitalisation are not taxed until capital is redeemed. Timing: for an S.A. the tax arises when the shareholders meeting resolves the distribution, whatever the payment date; for an S.R.L. on the date in the bylaws or, failing that, in the fourth month after the financial year end; capitalisation decided by a meeting must be formalised within twelve months.
Cost to do it: Tax only: 15 percent of the gross distribution. No exchange control fee or central bank registration is needed to remit (see the FX rule below); the bank transfer itself carries ordinary bank charges, market priced.
Example: A Paraguayan S.A. owned by a foreign parent declares a PYG 584,790,000 dividend: IDU withheld PYG 87,718,500, net remitted PYG 497,071,500. / Same dividend: US$100,000 gross, US$15,000 IDU, US$85,000 net to the parent. A resident shareholder would bear 8 percent (US$8,000) instead.Ley Nº 6380/2019 De modernización y simplificación del sistema tributario nacional, Art. 40, 41, 42, 43 and 44, 2019-09-25 official text · verified 2026-10-28

2. Selling Paraguayan shares as a nonresident: INR at 15 percent on a deemed gain, with the target company liable. Gains from selling shares or quotas of companies constituted in Paraguay are Paraguayan source income of the nonresident seller, subject to the Impuesto a la Renta de No Residentes (INR) at 15 percent. The taxable net income is fixed by law, without contrary proof, as the lower of (a) the sale price less the par value of the shares or (b) 30 percent of the sale price, so the tax never exceeds 4.5 percent of the price. Where both buyer and seller are nonresidents, the Paraguayan issuing company is responsible for paying the seller's tax, and the obligation arises on the date of the operation or contract. INR paid is a single and final payment, and the INR itself cannot be deducted in computing the withholding. Gains on securities traded through regulated stock exchanges and on Paraguayan government debt are exempt.
Cost to do it: Tax: 15 percent of the deemed gain, at most 4.5 percent of the price. Share purchase agreement, notary and adviser fees are market priced.
Example: A foreign holding sells shares with a par value of PYG 1,000,000,000 for PYG 5,847,900,000. Price less par is PYG 4,847,900,000; 30 percent of price is PYG 1,754,370,000, the lower amount, so INR is PYG 263,155,500. If par value were PYG 5,000,000,000, the deemed gain would be PYG 847,900,000 and INR PYG 127,185,000. / Same deal: a US$1,000,000 price bears US$45,000 of INR (4.5 percent) in the first case and about US$21,749 in the second, whatever the seller's actual cost.Ley Nº 6380/2019 De modernización y simplificación del sistema tributario nacional, Art. 71, 72, 73 num. 4, 74, 75 num. 5, 76, 77 and 79 num. 1 and 4, 2019-09-25 official text · verified 2026-10-28

3. Every share transfer must be reported. The buyer must notify the company of any share transfer within five business days, giving at least its name, identity card or RUC number and domicile (the seller may also notify). The company must then report the transfer to the Abogacía del Tesoro of the Ministry of Finance (now Ministry of Economy and Finance) within five business days of that notice. Companies that breach the law face direct fines of 50 to 500 daily minimum wages for unspecified activities. Shares must be registered (nominativas); listed public offering issuers report through their supervisor instead.
Cost to do it: Filing has no stated fee in the law. Fine range: 50 to 500 daily minimum wages.
Example: At PYG 117,077 per daily minimum wage, a late or missing transfer report risks a fine of PYG 5,853,850 to PYG 58,538,500. / About US$1,001 to US$10,010.Ley Nº 5895/2017 Que establece reglas de transparencia en el régimen de las sociedades constituidas por acciones, Art. 5, 6 and 8, 2017-10-05 official text · verified 2026-10-28

4. Dissolving and liquidating an EAS. An EAS dissolves on expiry of its term, impossibility of carrying out its purpose, the start of judicial liquidation, causes in the bylaws, a decision of its governing body (or of the sole member of a one person EAS), an order of a competent authority, or losses that make it economically impossible to pursue its purpose. Except on expiry of the term (automatic), dissolution takes effect from registration of the private or public document with the Ministry of Finance office in charge of the registry. Dissolution can be avoided if the cause is removed within six months. Liquidation follows the Civil Code procedure for companies in general; the legal representative, or a person appointed by the governing body, acts as liquidator. The liquidation is not complete until the closing balance is registered with that office, which requires certificates showing that no tax, labor and similar obligations are owed. Members have a five business day inspection right before meetings that approve dissolution or liquidation.
Cost to do it: The law sets no registry fee for the dissolution or closing balance filing. The real costs are clearing all tax and labor debts to obtain the certificates, plus accounting, notary and legal fees, market priced.
Example: A one person EAS whose foreign owner decides to close: the sole member signs the dissolution decision, registers it, the legal representative liquidates, settles debts, obtains tax and labor clearance certificates and registers the closing balance. Any surplus paid out beyond contributed capital is a distribution subject to IDU at 15 percent. / A PYG 584,790,000 (US$100,000) liquidation surplus made up of capitalised reserves is treated as a distribution: US$15,000 IDU under the capital withdrawal order in Ley 6380 art. 40.Ley Nº 6480/2020 Que crea la Empresa por Acciones Simplificadas (EAS), Art. 2, 22, 36, 37 and 38, 2020-01-08 official text · verified 2026-10-28

5. Closing down with employees. Total closure of the company or definitive reduction of operations ends employment contracts only after written notice to the labor administrative authority, which hears the workers summarily before ruling. If the notice is omitted, the employer must pay every worker the severance of art. 91 whatever the seniority. If the employer opens a similar business within one year, directly or through another person, it must rehire the same workers or pay them art. 91 severance. Art. 91 severance is fifteen daily wages for each year of service or fraction over six months. Workers with ten uninterrupted years with the same employer have job stability, and on a total closure or definitive reduction verified by the labor authority they are entitled to double the severance for unjustified dismissal. Bankruptcy or judicial liquidation and exhaustion of an extractive industry give workers the indemnity of art. 79 (one month of wages up to five years of seniority, two months over five to ten years, three months over ten years). A company union is extinguished by the dissolution and definitive closure of the company.
Cost to do it: Severance per worker as described; notice filing with the Ministry of Labor has no fee stated in the Code.
Example: Closure without the written notice: a minimum wage worker with four years of service is owed 60 daily wages, 60 x PYG 101,467 = PYG 6,088,020. A stable minimum wage worker with twelve years on a verified closure is owed double severance: 2 x 180 daily wages = 360 x PYG 101,467 = PYG 36,528,120. / About US$1,041 and US$6,246 respectively, at minimum wage; real severance is computed on the worker's actual wage.Ley Nº 213/93 Código del Trabajo, art. 91 as amended by Ley Nº 496/1995, Art. 78 h), g) and i), 79, 80, 91, 94, 99 and 310, 1995-08-22 official text · verified 2026-10-28

6. Getting the cash out: no exchange control. Paraguay has a free exchange market: the central bank charter, as rewritten in 2018, states that the international reserves of the Banco Central del Paraguay exist to keep normal transactions in the free exchange market (mercado libre de cambio), overcome temporary balance of payments difficulties and preserve the external value of the guaraní. There is no central bank authorisation, registration or waiting period to buy US dollars and remit dividends, sale proceeds or liquidation surpluses; the constraints are tax (IDU or INR withheld first) and bank anti money laundering checks.
Cost to do it: Bank spread and transfer charges only, market priced. The BCP publishes a daily reference rate from spot operations of US$50,000 or more (Resolución 3, Acta 31, 13 July 2026).
Example: A net dividend of PYG 497,071,500 is converted at the bank's rate near the BCP reference of PYG 5,847.90 per dollar. / About US$85,000 leaves the country with no exchange approval.Ley Nº 6104/2018 que modifica la Ley Nº 489/95 Orgánica del Banco Central del Paraguay, Art. 61 of Ley 489/95 as rewritten, 2018-07-03 official text · verified 2026-10-28

Route	Tax in Paraguay	Who pays or withholds	Filing or deadline
Dividend to foreign parent	IDU 15% of the distribution, final	Paying company withholds, jointly liable	Arises on the meeting resolution (S.A.) or bylaw date / fourth month after year end (S.R.L.)
Sale of shares by nonresident to nonresident	INR 15% on lower of price less par or 30% of price (max 4.5% of price)	Paraguayan issuing company	Arises on the date of the contract; transfer reported 5 + 5 business days
Sale of exchange traded securities	Exempt from INR	Not applicable	Market rules
Liquidation surplus from reserves or retained profits	IDU 15% under the reserves first order	Liquidating company	Closing balance registered with tax and labor clearance certificates

Exit routes for a foreign owner at a glance (Ley 6380/2019, Ley 5895/2017, Ley 6480/2020)

Worked example

US$100,000 of profits out of Paraguay as a dividend: IDU 15 percent, US$15,000 withheld, US$85,000 net; no exchange approval needed to buy and send dollars.
US$1,000,000 sale of a Paraguayan company by a foreign holding with low par value shares: deemed gain US$300,000, INR US$45,000 payable through the target company; net to seller US$955,000 before deal costs.
Reference: PYG 5,847.90 per US dollar (BCP, 27 October 2026).

Step by step

Decide the route: dividend before sale, sale of shares, or liquidation. Distributing retained profits before a sale costs 15 percent IDU; selling instead costs at most 4.5 percent of the price in INR, which often favours leaving profits in and selling.
Dividend: approve the accounts and the distribution at the shareholders meeting (S.A.) or under the bylaws (S.R.L.), withhold 15 percent IDU, pay it to the tax authority, then remit the net through a bank at the market rate.
Share sale between nonresidents: compute INR on the lower of price less par value or 30 percent of price; build the tax and the target's payment mechanism into the purchase agreement (escrow or price holdback), since the target company is liable.
Within five business days of the transfer, the buyer notifies the company; within five more business days the company reports to the Abogacía del Tesoro. Update the beneficial owner filing with the Ministry.
Liquidation of an EAS: governing body or sole member decides dissolution, register it with the Ministry office in charge of the EAS registry, appoint the liquidator, notify the Ministry of Labor in writing before ending employment, pay severance where due, settle taxes, obtain tax and labor clearance certificates and register the closing balance.
Remit the surplus after IDU through the free exchange market.

Common traps

The target company, not just the seller, is liable for INR when shares change hands between nonresidents; buyers who ignore it inherit the seller's tax debt inside the company they bought.
Capital returns are not tax free by default: Ley 6380 art. 40 presumes, without contrary proof, that reserves and retained profits come out before contributed capital, so a capital reduction can be a taxable distribution.
Shareholder loans, cash shortfalls above 10 percent of the cash account and unpaid personal use of company assets are presumed dividends and bear IDU.
For an S.R.L. without a payout date in the bylaws, profits are deemed distributed in the fourth month after year end; changing the destination requires a notarised decision.
Closing without written notice to the labor authority converts every termination into art. 91 severance regardless of seniority, and reopening a similar business within a year triggers rehiring or severance.
An EAS liquidation never formally ends until the closing balance is registered with tax and labor clearance certificates; unfinished closures leave the entity and its obligations alive.
The IDU article still refers to the old maquila law Ley 1064/1997 for the maquila exclusion; check the current maquila regime before relying on it.
Paraguay has no comprehensive double tax treaty with Argentina (DNIT treaty list); dividends and sale gains from Paraguay to an Argentine holder bear full IDU and INR, with any relief only on the Argentine side.

Sources

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