Category Archives: Blog

BLP advises Huntsman Corporation on the sale of its operation in Guatemala

BLP has advised Huntsman Corporation, a publicly traded global manufacturer and marketer of specialty and differentiated chemical products with revenues of approximately $8 billion annually, on selling its textile operations in Guatemala as part of a global transaction.   Huntsman Corporation sold its division to Archroma, an SK Capital Partners portfolio company, for S593 million in…

New Regulations for the Issuance of Labor Misdemeanors Reports

It is essential for companies that submit quotations and bids for products and services to the State and its agencies to be informed that, as of Monday, March 6, new Regulations issued by the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare will come into effect, with the following characteristics: 1. In the Registry of Absences from…

Regulation of Law for the Attraction of Investors, Rentiers and Pensioners to Costa Rica: Golden Visa

Costa Rica is an ideal country to visit, retire to, and invest in, thanks to its excellent reputation for environmental protection, globally recognized ecotourism schemes, political and social stability, legal security, and health system.  Under Executive Decree 43926-MGP-H-TUR, the regulations to the LAW FOR THE ATTRACTION OF INVESTORS, RENTHOLDERS AND PENSIONERS went into effect on…

New Law lays the foundation to promote Health Tourism in Costa Rica 

Costa Rica has positioned itself as a leading country in medical tourism, having received more than $437 million a year for this activity. With the recent Law for the Promotion and Development of Health Tourism Services in Costa Rica, the country now has a regulatory basis to enhance the development of such foreign visits.   The…

DUA is now required to exempt from VAT the transport of goods for export

On February 23, 2023, Resolution MH-DGT-RES-0001-2023 modifying subparagraph e) of article 1 of Resolution DGT-R-36-2001, Reform of exempt operations related to exports established in article 11 of the Regulation of the Value Added Tax Law, was published.  Consequently, effective as of February 23, 2023, for the transport services of goods destined for export to enjoy…

Hope for the Best, Plan for the Worst: Regulatory Changes in Guatemalan Social Security

 The phrase, “Hope for the best, plan for the worst,” is one I heard in a spy movie, and searching for a title for this article, it occurred to me that we could use that phrase to identify the role played by labor consultants.  There are many anecdotes. The companies that granted payments, bonuses, commissions,…

New Court will hear cases on disobedience for failure to comply with reinstatement and orders of the Labor and Social Security Courts

Through Agreement 33-2022, the Supreme Court of Justice created the “Pluripersonal Criminal Peace Court to hear the crime of disobedience of labor and social security resolutions”. The Agreement published on February 9, 2023, delimits the competence of the Court to hear the Crimes of Disobedience (Articles 414 and 420 of the Penal Code, depending on…

Avianca is LatinFinance’s Deal of the Year recipient for whom BLP advised restructuring more than $1 billion in debt

LatinFinance announced the winners of its annual Deal of the Year awards, for which our client Avianca’s transaction was recognized with the Corporate Restructuring award, restructuring more than $1 billion in debt.   Through its offices in Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and Costa Rica, BLP advised Latin American airline Avianca during its restructuring process.    Colombian airline,…

Guatemala repeals regulations for the prevention of COVID-19 in workplaces

The Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare published Governmental Agreement No. 19-2023, which repeals the regulations contained in Governmental Agreement 179-2022 of the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare for the prevention of COVID-19 in work centers. Therefore, the following provisions are no longer in effect and are no longer applicable to any work center….