On 7 July 2026, Decree No. 5,381 was published in Official Gazette No. 7,052 Extraordinary, enacting the Regulations of the Organic Law on Hydrocarbons (“OLH Regulations”)1. The OLH Regulations govern the main aspects of the integrated hydrocarbons tax established in Article 55 of the Organic Law on Hydrocarbons (OLH)2, as well as the payment of royalties, established in Article 51 thereof.
Additionally, on the same date, the Ministry of the People’s Power for Hydrocarbons (“Ministry”) published Administrative Ruling No. 002/2026, which established the rules for the assessment, filing, and payment of the integrated hydrocarbons tax for public or private legal entities engaged in upgrading, refining, industrial processing, and marketing activities, as well as specialized oil services (“Administrative Ruling 002”)3; and Administrative Ruling No. 024/2026, which established the rules for the assessment, filing, and payment of royalties and the integrated hydrocarbons tax, applicable to public or private legal entities engaged in primary activities within the scope of the OLH (“Administrative Ruling 024”)4 (jointly, “Administrative Rulings”).
Finally, the OLH Regulations entered into force on 7 July 2026, as provided in their second final provision. Similarly, Administrative Ruling 002 and Administrative Ruling 024 entered into force on the same date, in accordance with Articles 30 and 42, respectively.
1 Decree No. 5,381, enacting the Regulations of the Organic Law on Hydrocarbons, published in the Official Gazette No. 7,052 Extaordinary, of 7 July 2026.
2 Law Amending the Organic Law on Hydrocarbons, published in the Official Gazette No. 6,978 Extraordinary of 29 January 2026.
3 Administrative Ruling No. 002/2026, which establishes the rules for the assessment, filing, and payment of the Integrated Hydrocarbons Tax, applicable to upgrading, refining, industrial processing, and marketing activities, as well as to specialized petroleum services, published in the Official Gazette No. 43,410 of 7 July 2026.
4 Administrative Ruling No. 024/2026, which establishes the rules for the assessment, filing, and payment of the Royalty and the Integrated Hydrocarbons Tax, applicable to public or private legal entities engaged in primary activities within the scope of the Organic Law on Hydrocarbons, published in the Official Gazette No. 43,410 of 7 July 2026.
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