The professional stamp (timbre): what it is and who pays it

Many professionals know their monthly contributions to the Caja de Profesionales, but they're surprised when another obligation shows up: the timbre profesional (professional stamp). It's not another tax, and it's not your pension contribution: it's a levy paid on certain professional documents and acts, and what it collects funds the Caja de Jubilaciones y Pensiones de Profesionales Universitarios (CJPPU) — the professionals' pension fund. Here's what it is, who owes it, what it applies to, and how it's paid today, in plain language.

What is the timbre profesional?

The timbre profesional is one of the levies created by the charter law of the Caja de Profesionales (Law 17.738) as a resource to fund the pension fund of university-degree professionals. In short: whenever a professional issues certain writs, records or documents in the exercise of their profession, those documents carry a stamp. The law puts it this way:

Article 71 of Law 17.738 (resources of the Caja):

«Cada escrito o acta otorgado por un profesional en el ejercicio de su profesión que se presente o formule ante órganos públicos estatales o no, y tribunales arbitrales, estará gravado con una prestación de $ 38 (pesos uruguayos treinta y ocho).»

In English: Every writ or record issued by a professional in the exercise of their profession that is presented or filed before state or non-state public bodies, and arbitral tribunals, shall be levied with a contribution of $38 (thirty-eight Uruguayan pesos).

Watch the amounts: the figures set by the law (for example $38) are nominal values updated twice a year — in January and July — by the Consumer Price Index, and there are different values depending on the type of document and profession. So there's no point memorizing a number: check the current value with the Caja or in DGI's official stamp table.

Who pays it?

In principle it's owed by the university-degree professional who issues the document in the exercise of their profession: lawyers, accountants, architects, doctors, engineers and other professions covered by the Caja. Notaries (escribanos) are a separate case: they have their own Caja Notarial, so notarial acts follow that regime and not the CJPPU stamp. On top of that, because some documents filed before public offices or financial institutions also carry a stamp, in practice many companies and non-professionals end up paying it when they file those procedures.

Which documents does it apply to?

The law lists several cases. Besides the writs or records issued by professionals, there are specific stamps on medical prescriptions and clinical-analysis results, and on filings before public offices or financial institutions, such as sworn declarations and financial statements:

The same article 71 adds, among other cases:

«Cada solicitud de inspección contable, de avaluación o de certificado referente a tributos, y cada presentación de estados contables, estados de responsabilidad o declaraciones juradas ante oficinas públicas o instituciones de intermediación financiera generará una prestación de $ 38 (pesos uruguayos treinta y ocho).»

In English: Each request for an accounting inspection, appraisal or tax-related certificate, and each filing of financial statements, statements of liability or sworn declarations before public offices or financial-intermediation institutions, shall generate a contribution of $38 (thirty-eight Uruguayan pesos).

In short, the stamp doesn't depend on how much you earn, but on the document or act that is issued or filed. The full, up-to-date list of taxed documents and their values is kept by the Caja itself.

Don't confuse it with your personal contributions (montepío)

This is the key thing so you don't get lost: the timbre profesional is not the same as the montepío. The montepío is the personal contribution you make to the Caja on your professional activity, based on your category, and it's what builds your future pension. The stamp, by contrast, is an indirect resource of the Caja paid on documents and acts, not on your income. Both feed the same Caja, but they're separate obligations: paying the montepío doesn't exempt you from the stamp, and vice versa.

How is it paid today?

Historically the stamp was a physical sticker affixed to the document. The Caja modernized the system, and today a digital (electronic) stamp is used, managed and attached to the document electronically through the Caja's channels. Since the procedure and the values change, the safest move is to confirm with the CJPPU how to buy and apply the stamp in your specific case.

• Caja de Profesionales vs. BPS: where you contribute
• Social contributions in Uruguay: how they work

Frequently asked questions

• Is the stamp the same as my monthly contribution? No. The montepío is on your activity; the stamp is on certain documents and acts.
• Who has to pay it? The professional who issues the document, and whoever files certain procedures (sworn declarations, financial statements) before public offices or financial institutions.
• How much is it? The law sets figures updated in January and July; check the current value with the Caja or in DGI's table.
• Which documents does it apply to? Writs and records before public bodies and arbitral tribunals, prescriptions, clinical-analysis results, sworn declarations and financial statements before public offices or financial institutions, among others.
• Do notaries pay it too? Notaries have their own Caja Notarial, so their acts follow that regime, not the CJPPU stamp.
• Where do I pay it? Through the Caja de Profesionales, today via the digital-stamp system.

In short: the timbre profesional is a levy paid on certain professional documents and acts that helps fund the Caja de Profesionales — separate from your personal contribution (montepío). The amounts update twice a year and today it's paid in digital form. When in doubt, confirm the taxed document, the current value and the procedure with the CJPPU.