El Salvador
Ley Orgánica de Administración Financiera del Estado (AFI, Decreto 516/1995) y Ley Corte de Cuentas (Decreto 438/1995)
Decreto 516/1995 AFI; Decreto 438/1995 CCR; Decreto 868/2000 LACAP; Decreto 534/2011 LAIP; Decreto 533/2016 RF; Const. 1983 Arts. 195-199, 226-231
El Salvador's national fiscal transparency framework is anchored by the Ley Orgánica de Administración Financiera del Estado (AFI, Decreto 516/1995) and the constitutional Corte de Cuentas de la República (Const. 1983 Arts. 195-199). The AFI creates SAFI — an integrated financial management system unifying budget, treasury, accounting, and public credit. Corte de Cuentas magistrates are elected by a two-thirds Asamblea Legislativa majority. The LAIP (Decreto 534/2011) mandates salary disclosure for all public servants. El Salvador is fully dollarized since 2001. FACTS 500 scores the statutory framework at 69/100; however, OBS 2023 transparency has collapsed to 24/100 (from 53/100 in 2015) due to the Bukele administration's non-compliance with fiscal transparency statutes.
Transparency Requirements
Budget Publicationmax 12 pts
| Budget publication required | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Budget published online | ✓ Yes |
| Budget publication timeline | 92 days before fiscal year |
| Machine-readable budget format | No |
| Draft budget required before adoption | ✓ Yes |
Expenditure Disclosuremax 12 pts
| Expenditure disclosure required | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Expenditure granularity | department |
| Public expenditure portal required | ✓ Yes |
| Expenditure reporting frequency | quarterly |
Independent Auditmax 12 pts
| Audit required | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Auditor independent of entity | ✓ Yes |
| Auditor selection method | elected |
| Audit frequency | annual |
| Audit reports public | ✓ Yes |
| Audit scope | financial performance |
Contract & Procurementmax 10 pts
| Public bidding required | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Contract publication required | ✓ Yes |
| Bid award disclosure | ✓ Yes |
| Beneficial ownership disclosure | No |
Debt & Liability Disclosuremax 10 pts
| Debt disclosure required | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Pension liability disclosure | No |
| Contingent liability disclosure | ✓ Yes |
| Voter approval required for new debt | No |
Fiscal Reporting Frequencymax 10 pts
| Interim reporting required | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Interim reporting frequency | quarterly |
| Year-end report deadline | 90 days after fiscal year |
| Citizens budget required | No |
Enforcement & Oversightmax 10 pts
| Non-compliance penalties | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Fiscal oversight body | No |
| Whistleblower protections | No |
| Legislative budget office | No |
Revenue & Tax Transparencymax 8 pts
| Tax expenditure reporting | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Revenue forecasting required | ✓ Yes |
| Tax rate publication | ✓ Yes |
| Fee schedule publication | ✓ Yes |
Compensation & Payrollmax 8 pts
| Salary disclosure required | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Salary disclosure scope | all |
| Pension benefit disclosure | No |
| Overtime reporting | No |
Capital & Asset Disclosuremax 8 pts
| Capital plan required | ✓ Yes |
|---|---|
| Asset inventory required | No |
| Surplus asset disposal transparency | No |