Shopify Costa Rica: Unpacking High Transaction Costs & Tilopay Tax Retentions

Hey everyone, your friendly Shopify migration expert here, diving into a crucial discussion that's been bubbling up in our community. I recently came across a thread started by a Costa Rican merchant, cuaderno_azul, highlighting unique challenges faced by store owners in Costa Rica with payment processing. This situation truly underscores the importance of understanding your local e-commerce landscape, especially concerning fees and taxes.

Let's unpack what's happening, what it means for your bottom line, and how we can collectively navigate these waters.

The Costa Rica Payment Puzzle: Why It's Different

For many outside Costa Rica, the convenience of Shopify Payments is a given – seamlessly integrated, competitive rates, simplified processing. But as cuaderno_azul highlighted, Shopify Payments isn't available there, forcing local merchants to rely solely on external gateways.

Tilopay has become a primary solution, integrating with Shopify's checkout and processing in Colones (CRC), the local currency. While this offers a crucial connection for local sales, the details of this integration are causing serious headaches for merchants.

Unpacking the Tilopay Tax Retention Dilemma

The core issue, highlighted by cuaderno_azul, involves unexpected and significant tax retentions applied by Tilopay:

• The Retentions: Tilopay is reportedly applying 5.31% for IVA (Value Added Tax) and 1.76% for Renta (Income Tax) on every card sale – a total of 7.07% per transaction.
• The Conflict: cuaderno_azul operates under Costa Rica's Régimen de Tributación Simplificada. Hacienda (the tax authority) officially confirmed a 0% retention factor for both IVA and Renta for this regime, directly contradicting Tilopay's policy.
• Tilopay's Stance: Tilopay claims these retentions follow Dirección General de Tributación (DGT) guidelines since May 27, 2026 (likely a typo, but as reported). They state they can't modify individual retention factors and haven't cited a specific official resolution. This lack of concrete DGT documentation is a major concern.

This creates a real bind: businesses are told by Hacienda they shouldn't have these retentions, yet their payment processor applies them anyway.

The Staggering Cost Impact

Adding up the fees, the numbers are shocking:

• Tilopay's Published Fee: 4.25% + US$0.35 per transaction.
• Shopify's External Gateway Fee: On a Shopify Basic plan, an additional 2% transaction fee applies for external gateways (this lowers on higher plans).
• The Tilopay Retentions: The extra 7.07% for IVA and Renta.

As cuaderno_azul calculated, the total cost can easily hit around 13% of each sale on the Basic plan. Imagine losing $13 from every $100 sale before product costs! This massive chunk of revenue puts Costa Rican businesses at a considerable disadvantage compared to, for example, a US merchant paying ~2.9% + US$0.30 with Shopify Payments.

Your Next Steps: Making Your Voice Heard

This isn't just a tax issue; it's a critical operational challenge impacting the viability of online businesses in Costa Rica. cuaderno_azul rightly brought this to the community and contacted Shopify directly.

Shopify's recommendation is clear and actionable:

1. Contact Shopify Support: If you're a merchant in Costa Rica experiencing these retentions, log into your Shopify account and contact their support team via chat.
2. Provide Your Feedback: Clearly explain your situation, referencing the Tilopay retentions, your Simplified Taxation Regime status, and the discrepancy with Hacienda's official resolution.

Why is this important? Every piece of feedback helps. Shopify needs to understand the full scope and number of affected merchants. More data points better equip them to advocate for solutions – be it engaging with Tilopay, exploring other payment options, or pushing for clearer guidelines with local authorities. Your individual experience, combined with others, creates a powerful collective voice.

Beyond contacting Shopify, I strongly encourage you to engage with other Costa Rican merchants. Sharing experiences helps everyone find a path forward. Running an online store, especially in a dynamic market like Costa Rica, has unique challenges. But Shopify remains a powerful platform for entrepreneurs looking to start or grow their online store, and collective action on issues like this can lead to positive change.

Let's keep this conversation going. If you're a Costa Rican merchant, please share your insights. The more we talk, the better we understand, and the stronger our position becomes to push for solutions that support all online businesses in the region. Your voice truly matters here.