2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE THIRTEEN - Taxation and Finance (§§ 1 — 33423) › Subtitle 17 - Internal Revenue Code of 2011 (§§ 30001 — 33423) › PART VII - Administrative Provisions, Procedures, Interests, Penalties, and Additions to Taxes (§§ 33001 — 33423) › Chapter 1065 - Powers of the Secretary (§§ 33201 — 33244) › Subchapter A - General Provisions (§§ 33201 — 33217) › § 33213 - Public nature of taxpayers’ tax returns and documents

(a) Public document and inspection. —
(1) Tax returns filed under this Code with respect to which taxes have been determined by the Secretary or any other document concerning a taxpayer, shall constitute public documents; however, except as provided further, these shall be subject to inspection only by order of the Governor of Puerto Rico, after just cause therefor has been shown, and under the rules and regulations promulgated by the Secretary.
(2) Furthermore, all tax returns filed under this Code shall constitute public documents and shall be subject to public inspection and examination to the extent authorized in the rules and regulations promulgated by the Secretary.
(3) Insofar as the tax returns, statements, and other documents related to a taxpayer are subject to inspection by any person, a regular or a certified copy of any such documents shall be issued by request of said person under the rules and regulations promulgated by the Secretary. The Secretary may issue a certification of the tax information included in the tax return in lieu of the copy of the tax return. The Secretary shall establish reasonable fees for providing such copy.
(b) Inspection by stockholders and partners. — All bonafide holders of registered stock or shares in partnerships who hold one percent (1%) or more of the stock issued by any corporation or the total interest in a partnership, shall be allowed, by request to the Secretary, to examine the annual income tax return of said corporation or partnership and its subsidiaries. For purposes of this subsection, the terms “corporation” and “partnership” shall include a corporation of individuals and a special partnership, respectively.
(c) Inspection by Legislative Assembly Committees. —
(1) Committees on Ways and Means and Special Committees. —
(A) By request of the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Ways and Means of the Senate, a Committee selected by the Senate or by the House to investigate tax returns by virtue of a Senate or House Resolution, or by a Joint Committee so authorized by means of a Concurrent Resolution, the Secretary shall furnish such Committee convened in executive session any information of any nature contained or stated in any tax return.
(B) Any of such Committees acting directly as a Committee, or through such examiners or agents as it may designate or appoint, shall have the right to inspect any and all tax returns at such time and in such way as it may so determine.
(C) Any information thus obtained by the Committee may be submitted to the Senate or the House, as the case may be.
(d) Inspection by Municipal Treasurers or Finance Directors. — By request of Municipal Treasurers or Finance Directors, the Secretary shall furnish them any such information in tax returns filed under this Code as necessary to determine the municipal license tax that applies to a merchant, as authorized to be imposed and collected under the Municipal License Tax Act, §§ 651 et seq. of Title 21.
(e) Penalties for disclosing information. — For the penalties that apply to unlawful disclosure of information, see § 33084 of this title.
History —Jan. 31, 2011, No. 1, § 6051.13, retroactive to Jan. 1, 2011.