Garbage and water bills can be paid together; Pay property tax early, get a 10% discount; Measles and rubella are eliminated; Tourists get a tax break

Feliz Año Nuevo a todos y espero que el año empazó con bendiciones para todos ustedes.

Curious? –
(From El Mercurio del miércoles, 31/12/2025) Ultiman tasa en pago de agua (Rate finalized in water bill) – La Empresa Municipal de Aseo de Cuenca (EMAC EP – the city garbage company) is advancing with the process of collecting garbage collection fees at different points in the city. Many people showed up EMAC’s office on calles 3 de Noviembre y Juan Pablo I, next to the Clínica Latina. EMAC announced that as of enero, the garbage bill will be generated along with the water bill from ETAPA EP. So you can pay your garbage bill however you currently are paying your water bill.

Property owners who pay their taxes early get a 10% break. (El Mercurio)

The 2nd physical location to pay is at BIOEMAC on av. 24 de Mayo, and on-line payments can be made using the payment button on EMAC’s web site at www.emac.gob.ec. For discounts for people with disabilities, present your cedula or disabled card at EMAC’s office. There is no discount for seniors. In properties with multiple meters or for rent, the owner and renter need to agree on who makes the payment. However, the obligation falls on whoever’s name is on the meter. <So if you rent a house, and stiff the owner on the garbage bill, the owner is still responsible. Although they can ignore the bill, too, and your garbage will start to pile up where you have to live with it.>

(From El Mercurio del miércoles, 31/12/2025) Con un 10% de descuento inicia cobro de predios (Property tax collection begins with a 10% discount) – The property tax on urban and rural properties will not increase in 2026, and any variation in the bill will be minor – barely a few cents. Councilperson Rocío Juca explained that the City worked for several months with a technical team to avoid increasing the tax. If you pay the tax between el 1/1 y 15/1, you will get a 10% discount for prompt payment. There will still be a tax for public improvement projects. <Such as new street lighting, bike lanes, repaving, etc.> The city has 5 payment locations for paying property taxes and other obligations to the city: City Treasury (Bursar’s offices?) (Sucre y Benigno Malo), Treasury in the Mayor’s Office (Bolívar y Borrero), Treasury in the Control Municipal (Las Herrerías) and the Treasuries in the Parque de la Libertad and at the Airport.

There are also 200 more payment locations in affiliated institutions such as ETAPA, Farmasol EP, the Registro de Propiedad, banks, cooperatives, and service networks such as Servipagos, Red Facilito, and Western Union. On-line payments can be made with the botón de pagos at PlaceToPay, the Sipy municipal treasury site, and bank transfers to the GAD Municipal account at Banco Pichincha. <And no, the paper didn’t print account numbers. You and/or your facilitator are on your own for that.>

Confirman eliminación del sarampión y rubeola (Elimination of measles and rubella confirmed) – The Monitoring and Reverifying Regional Commission of the Pan American Health Organization announced that Ecuador has stayed in the category of Sustained Elimination of Measles and Rubella. The Ministerio de Salud said the country stayed in that category due to the efficacy of epidemic monitoring systems and the strength of immunization programs. The government has a strategic reserve of vaccinations for measles, rubella, and mumps to prevent outbreaks stemming from possible imported cases. <Like your family and friends visiting you from hotspots in Texas.>

(From El Mercurio del viernes, 2/1/2026) IVA del 8% para servicios turísticos durante feriado (8% VAT on tourist services during holidays) – Pres. Noboa issued Executive Decree 271 which reduces the IVA from 15% to 8% on services defined as tourist activities. The lower IVA will apply from el jueves 1/1 to el domingo 4/1/2026 on lodging, food, events, theme parks, attractions, spas <If you can tolerate the crowds, this would be a cheaper time to go soak in hot water in Baños.>, and recreation centers which are entered in the Registro de Turismo and have an operating license. Essential public services such as potable water, electricity, health services, emergency response, and air, land and water transportation as well as banking services will be guaranteed during the holiday.
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Information in this column, including dates, times and locations, is courtesy of the El Mercurio newspaper. Comments between the carrots, or guillemets (< … >), are the personal opinions of the author and not part of the news translation.