Servicios Personales vs Industria y Comercio: how your BPS contribution changes

When you register, BPS places you in a contribution category by your activity: Servicios Personales (personal services) or Industria y Comercio (industry and commerce). It's not a minor detail — it changes how your health contribution (FONASA) is computed. Here's the difference, simply, with the official source.

Two ways to contribute

In both categories, the owner's pension contribution is made on a category of fictos (fixed amounts by bracket). The big difference shows up in FONASA, the contribution that gives you health coverage (mutualista).

Servicios Personales

This is the category for someone providing a personal service (their work is what they sell). Here FONASA is computed on what you invoice. BPS puts it this way:

Per BPS:

«Con aportación de Servicios Personales: realizan aportes por el titular o socio sobre la categoría de fictos correspondiente. Tienen cobertura médica dentro del Sistema Nacional Integrado de Salud, realizando los aportes al Fonasa sobre los ingresos derivados de la facturación.»

In English: With Servicios Personales contribution: the owner or partner contributes on the corresponding category of fictos. They have medical coverage within the National Integrated Health System, making FONASA contributions on income derived from invoicing.

Industria y Comercio

This is the category for commercial or industrial activity (buying and selling, production, premises). Here FONASA is computed on a fixed ficto of 6.5 BPC, regardless of how much you bill. BPS puts it this way:

Per BPS:

«Con aportación de Industria y Comercio: realizan aportes por el titular o socio sobre la categoría de fictos correspondiente. Tienen cobertura médica, dentro del Sistema Nacional Integrado de Salud, el titular de unipersonal y los socios de monotributo Mides que realicen esta opción, realizando los aportes a Fonasa sobre 6,5 BPC.»

In English: With Industria y Comercio contribution: the owner or partner contributes on the corresponding category of fictos. The unipersonal owner and Mides monotributo partners who choose this option have medical coverage within the National Integrated Health System, making FONASA contributions on 6.5 BPC.

Which one applies? It depends on the activity

You don't choose freely: it depends on the nature of your activity. If what you sell is essentially your personal work, you go to Servicios Personales; if it's a commercial or industrial activity, to Industria y Comercio. Note: the CIIU code on your constancia is statistical and doesn't by itself define this category — the type of activity does.

The key difference (FONASA)

In short: both categories contribute via fictos, but FONASA changes — on invoiced income (Servicios Personales) or on 6.5 BPC (Industria y Comercio). Which one applies depends on your activity. Verify your case with BPS and, when in doubt, ask your accountant.