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Tax audits and disputes in Uruguay: DGI powers, five and ten year limitation, late payment and fraud penalties, binding rulings and appeals to the TCA

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Last verified: 2026-10-27 · Status: Stable

The DGI can review taxes for five years after the end of the calendar year of the taxable event (ten years with fraud or failure to register or file), with broad powers to inspect books, seize records for 30 business days and assess on a presumptive basis when records are missing or unreliable. Late payment costs a fine of 5, 10 or 20 percent plus daily surcharges; formal breaches are fined between UYU 680 and UYU 13,220 in 2026; fraud is fined one to fifteen times the tax and tax fraud is a crime punishable by six months to six years. Taxpayers can obtain binding rulings answered within 90 days, and challenge assessments with revocation and hierarchical appeals within 10 days, then before the Tribunal de lo Contencioso Administrativo within 90 days of exhausting the administrative route.

USD figures use UYU 40.214 per US dollar, the BCU quotation for DLS. USA BILLETE on 26 October 2026; UI amounts use UYU 6.6780 per Unidad Indexada, the BCU quotation for 26 October 2026. Both were retrieved from the BCU quotations service on the verification date; conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Limitation period for tax collection	5 yearsCódigo Tributario art. 38, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Extended limitation period (fraud, no registration or no returns)	10 yearsCódigo Tributario art. 38, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Maximum late payment fine (after 90 days), plus surcharges	20 %Código Tributario art. 94, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Maximum contravention fine for 2026	13220 UYUDecreto Nº 344/025 art. 1, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Maximum fraud fine as multiple of the tax	15 timesCódigo Tributario art. 96, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Deadline for the tax administration to answer a binding query	90 daysCódigo Tributario art. 73, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Deadline for revocation and hierarchical appeals	10 daysConstitution art. 317, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Deadline to file the annulment action before the TCA	90 calendar daysCódigo de lo Contencioso Administrativo art. 55, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
UYU per US dollar used for conversions (BCU, DLS. USA BILLETE, 26 October 2026)	40.214 UYUBCU quotations service, as of 2026-10-27 · in force

The rule

1. The right to collect taxes prescribes in five years from the end of the calendar year in which the taxable event occurred; for annual income taxes the event occurs at the fiscal year close. The term is ten years when the taxpayer committed fraud, failed to register, to report the taxable event or to file returns. Sanctions and interest follow the tax's term, except contravention penalties, which prescribe in five years.
Cost to do it: Keep records at least five years, ten if any return was not filed.
Example: IRAE for fiscal year 2026 can be assessed until 31 December 2031, or 31 December 2036 if no return was filed. / A US$1,000,000 liability for 2026 stays open five years, ten with non filing.Código Tributario (Decreto Ley Nº 14.306), Art. 38, 1974-11-29 official text · verified 2026-10-27

2. The tax administration has the broadest powers of investigation: it can require books, documents and correspondence, intervene and seize them for up to 30 business days (longer only by court order), inspect property held by taxpayers (homes only with a court warrant), require information from third parties, and ask for guarantees for assessed debts.
Cost to do it: Professional support during audits; no fee.
Example: An inspector can retain a company's accounting records for 30 business days. / Seizure beyond 30 business days needs a judge.Código Tributario, Art. 68 (literal C as worded by Ley Nº 18.083 art. 61), 2006-12-27 official text · verified 2026-10-27

3. When the facts cannot be known directly because records are missing, not exhibited, contrary to accounting standards or inconsistent with reality, the DGI assesses on a presumptive basis using coefficients on purchases, sales, wages, energy or other inputs, comparable businesses or other indices; samples are representative when they reach at least 10 percent of the universe.
Cost to do it: Presumptive assessment can exceed the real liability; rebuttal needs direct proof.
Example: With missing invoices, the DGI may apply an industry margin to UYU 402,140,000 of purchases. / Poor records shift the burden to the taxpayer to prove the real figures.Código Tributario, Art. 66, 1974-11-29 official text · verified 2026-10-27

4. Infraction procedure: the facts are documented by an authorised official; the taxpayer gets 15 days to answer and offer evidence, which must be produced within 30 days, before the administration resolves. This procedure does not apply to late payment.
Cost to do it: Response within 15 days of notice.
Example: A company notified of a contravention on 1 March has 15 days to file its defence. / Short deadlines: plan for immediate advice when notified.Código Tributario, Art. 46, 1974-11-29 official text · verified 2026-10-27

5. Penalties: late payment (mora) is fined 5 percent if paid within five business days of the due date, 10 percent if paid up to 90 calendar days late and 20 percent after that, plus a monthly surcharge computed day by day and set by the Executive Branch; contravention of formal duties is fined within amounts updated yearly, set for 2026 at UYU 680 minimum and UYU 13,220 maximum; fraud (defraudación) is fined one to fifteen times the tax evaded or attempted.
Cost to do it: Fines of 5 to 20 percent of late tax plus surcharges; up to 15 times the tax for fraud.
Example: IRAE of UYU 40,214,000 paid four months late carries a 20 percent fine of UYU 8,042,800 plus surcharges. / On US$1,000,000 paid more than 90 days late, the fine is US$200,000 plus surcharges; fraud could cost up to US$15,000,000 in fines.Código Tributario; Decreto Nº 344/025, Art. 94 (text of Ley Nº 17.930 art. 470), art. 95, art. 96 and art. 99; Decreto Nº 344/025 art. 1, 2025-12-30 official text · verified 2026-10-27

6. Tax fraud (defraudación tributaria) as a crime: whoever acts with deceit to obtain an undue benefit at the expense of the State's right to collect taxes is punished with six months of prison to six years of penitentiary; prosecution requires a reasoned complaint by the tax administration.
Cost to do it: Criminal exposure for directors and managers involved.
Example: A scheme of false invoices to cut IVA can lead to a criminal complaint by the DGI. / Criminal risk is separate from the 1 to 15 times fine.Código Tributario, Art. 110 (text of Decreto Ley Nº 15.294 art. 23), 1982-06-23 official text · verified 2026-10-27

7. Binding rulings: anyone with a personal and direct interest can ask the tax administration how the law applies to a real and current situation. The administration must answer within 90 days and apply the answer to the requester until it notifies a change, which only affects later facts. If it does not answer in time and the taxpayer applies its reasoned opinion, any resulting liability bears only interest, provided the query was filed at least 90 days before the deadline. A query does not suspend deadlines.
Cost to do it: Preparation of the query; no fee stated in the Code.
Example: A company that asks about the 48 percent deduction rule 120 days before its IRAE deadline and gets no answer avoids penalties if it follows its stated view. / Protection from fines, not from interest, when the DGI is silent.Código Tributario, Art. 71 to art. 74, 1974-11-29 official text · verified 2026-10-27

8. Appeals: administrative acts can be challenged with a revocation appeal before the authority that issued them within ten days of notification, together with a subsidiary hierarchical appeal where the authority is subordinate; the administration has 120 days to decide, after which the appeal is deemed rejected. The annulment action before the Tribunal de lo Contencioso Administrativo (TCA) requires exhausting the administrative route and must be filed within 90 calendar days of notification of the act that ends it, or of the deemed rejection, under the Código de lo Contencioso Administrativo.
Cost to do it: Legal fees; the 90 day term is counted in calendar days and suspended during court holidays and Tourism Week.
Example: An assessment must be appealed within ten days of its notification, and then taken to the TCA within 90 calendar days of the final administrative decision. / Missing the ten day window usually ends the challenge.Constitución de la República; Código de lo Contencioso Administrativo (Ley Nº 20.333), Constitution art. 317, art. 318 and art. 319; Código de lo Contencioso Administrativo art. 55 and following, 2024-09-11 official text · verified 2026-10-27

Item	Rule	Amount or term
Late payment within 5 business days	CT art. 94	5 percent plus surcharge
Late payment up to 90 days	CT art. 94	10 percent plus surcharge
Late payment after 90 days	CT art. 94	20 percent plus surcharge
Contravention (formal duties)	CT art. 95; Decreto Nº 344/025	UYU 680 to UYU 13,220
Fraud	CT art. 96	1 to 15 times the tax
Tax fraud crime	CT art. 110	6 months to 6 years
Answer to infraction notice	CT art. 46	15 days
Binding ruling answer	CT art. 73	90 days
Revocation and hierarchical appeal	Constitution art. 317	10 days
Administration decides appeal	Constitution art. 318	120 days, then deemed rejected
Annulment action before the TCA	Código de lo Contencioso Administrativo art. 55	90 calendar days

Penalties and deadlines in tax disputes (Código Tributario; Constitution; Código de lo Contencioso Administrativo; 2026 amounts per Decreto Nº 344/025).

Worked example

The DGI audits a Uruguayan SAS's 2023 transfer prices in 2026 and proposes US$1,000,000 (UYU 40,214,000) of additional IRAE. Fiscal year 2023 can be assessed until 31 December 2028 (CT art. 38).
The SAS has 15 days to answer the notice and produce evidence within 30 days (CT art. 46). If the DGI confirms the assessment, the SAS files revocation and hierarchical appeals within ten days (Constitution art. 317).
If the tax is paid more than 90 days after the original due date, the late payment fine is 20 percent, US$200,000 (UYU 8,042,800), plus surcharges (CT art. 94). If the appeals are rejected, expressly or by silence after 120 days, the SAS has 90 calendar days to go to the TCA (Código de lo Contencioso Administrativo art. 55).

Step by step

Keep complete books and supporting documents for at least five years, ten if any filing was missed.
Use binding rulings for uncertain positions and file them at least 90 days before the relevant deadline.
On receiving an infraction notice, respond within 15 days and gather evidence quickly.
Calendar the ten day appeal window from each notification.
Track the 120 day decision period and the 90 day court deadline after the administrative route ends.

Common traps

The ten day appeal deadline is very short and counts from notification (Constitution art. 317).
Filing a query does not suspend payment or filing deadlines (CT art. 72).
Failing to file returns doubles the limitation period to ten years (CT art. 38).
Fraud is presumed in listed cases such as contradictions between returns and records or failure to remit withheld taxes, shifting the burden to the taxpayer (CT art. 96).

Sources

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