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Guatemala: Government

Key Figures

Chief of State:
President Bernardo Arevalo de Leon
Head of Government:
President Bernardo Arevalo de Leon

Overview

Government Name:
Republic of Guatemala
Constitution:
Adopted: 1985; Outlines the separation of powers among executive, legislative and judicial branches, establishes unicameral congress.
Government Type:
Presidential Republic
Republic of Guatemala Flag
Coat of Arms of Republic of Guatemala

Index of Economic Freedom

Grades each country on a scale of 0 to 100, based on ten freedoms, with 100 representing the greatest amount of economic autonomy from government intervention. Source: Heritage Foundation (2023)

Country Risk Rating

C
A very uncertain political and economic outlook and a business environment with many troublesome weaknesses can have a significant impact on corporate payment behavior. Corporate default probability is high. Source: Coface (2022)

Government Branches

Main Powers Election Process Election Cycle 1
Executive

Head of government and state and in charge of executive tasks.

Elected by majority vote through a two-round system.

4 years
Judicial

The constitutional court interprets the law when the constitution is affected. The supreme court is the highest court of the land.

Supreme court magistrates are elected by the congress of the republic from candidates proposed by the postulation committee, representatives of the country's law associations, and representatives of the court of appeal and other tribunals. The constitutional court judges include 1 elected by the congress of the republic, 1 by the supreme court, 1 by the president of the republic, 1 by the University of San Carlos, and 1 by a lawyers bar association.

5 years
Legislative

In charge of forming the legislature.

160 members are elected through 22 departmental lists with another 32 national level representatives selected in one nationwide district.

4 years

Regional Trade Blocs

No Regional Trade Blocs

International Organization Participation [2]

Environmental Agreements [3]

Tax Information [2]

Tax Authority:
The Tax Administration Superintendence
Tax Name:
VAT

Sources:

  1. ElectionGuide http://www.electionguide.org/
  2. EY, http://www.ey.com
  3. CIA World Factbook, https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/
  4. U.S. Bilateral Relations Fact Sheets http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/