Residency In Costa Rica

Casa Canada can advise you on all aspects of the residency process, and can have the process completed for you more quickly than some others at a very reasonable cost. Contact Casa Canada for personal attention and for more information.

 

RESIDENCY AND CITIZENSHIP IN COSTA RICA

 

Some incentives of the law of 1996

1. Duty free and all import taxes present for a single time, for the importation of household items.
2. Beneficiaries may import up to two land, air and / or sea transportation vehicles, for personal or family use, free of all import, tariff and value-added taxes. In case of loss of the vehicle due to theft, total destruction by fire, flood, collision or accident during the term of the benefits, you can import another vehicle free of the indicated taxes.
3. The amounts declared as income to qualify for the benefits of this law will be exempt from income tax.
4. Exoneration of twenty percent (20%) of the total transfer tax, in those real estate that they acquire within the term of this law.
5. Exemption of import taxes for instruments or materials for professional or scientific practice, carried out by the person with the migratory category of investment, pensioner resident or rentista resident. The person must demonstrate, before the Tax Ministry, that what is imported corresponds to his economic activity and has criteria of proportionality and reasonableness.

Pensionado

• The applicant must prove they have an income of US $1000 per month from permanent pension source or retirement fund.
• A pensionado must a visit to Costa Rica at least once a year and be in the country for a total of 4 .
• A spouse and dependents under 18 years of age can be included with the applicant.
• A pensionado cannot work as an employee in Costa Rica.
• A pensionado can own a company and receive dividends from the company.

Rentista Residency in Costa Rica

• The applicant must prove they have an income of US$ 2,500 per month for at least two years, guaranteed by a banking institution, OR make a US$60,000 deposit in an approved Costa Rican One amount covers the entire family.
• A rentista must visit Costa Rica at least once a year and be in the country for at least 4 months.
• The spouse and dependents under 18 years of age can be included with the applicant.
• A rentista cannot work as an employee in Costa Rica.
• A rentista can own a company and receive dividends from the company.

 

Inversionista (Investor)

• The applicant must make an investment of US$150,000 in real estate, registerable assets, shares in Costa Rican comapnies, Costa Rican securities, productive projects or projects of national interest.
• Investors, rentistas or pernsionados who opted for these benefits during the first five years of the law will keep them for a period of ten years from the date they were granted.
• It requires certification by a CPA of the applicant's economic solvency and stating that the financial goals of the project or company are within the required parameters.
• Reliable proof that the project is fully financed is required.
• An inversionista must visit Costa Rica at least once a year for a total of 6 months in residence.
• The spouse and dependents under 18 years of age can be included with the applicant.
• An inversionista can take income from the investment business or property.
• An inversionista can own a company and receive dividends from the company.

 

Representante Residency Program – Costa Rica

• The applicant must be a director of a company meeting certain requirements, such as employing a minimum number of local workers as established by the labor law. Financial statements must be certified by a Public Accountant.
• A representante must visit Costa Rica at least once a year.
• The spouse and dependents under 18 years of age can be included with the applicant.
• A representante can earn an income from the company.
• A representante can own a company and receive income.

 

Permanent Resident of Costa Rica

• Applicants who have held some form of temporary residence may apply after 3 years.
• A person married to a Costa Rican citizen
• There must be a first degree relative status between the applicant and a Costa Rican Citizen (through marriage to a citizen or by having a Costa Rican child) OR the applicant may apply after three years of marriage or with a Costa Rican child for another status. A resident with a temporary residency status can apply for permanent residency after three years.
• A permanent resident must visit Costa Rica at least once a year.
• The spouse and dependents under 18 years of age can be included with the applicant.
• A permanent resident can work for a salary.
• A permanent resident can own a company and receive income.

 

Costa Rican by Naturalization Citizenship

• A person married to a Costa Rican citizen for not less than 2 years and had been in the country for this period.
• A child born in Costa Rica living outside the country can apply at the age of 25 years.
• A person having legal Costa Rican residency for at least 5 years who is Spanish or from another Central American country, or 7 years of legal residency for others.
• A person who has lived in Costa Rica for a minimum of 20 years.
• If the applicant is over 65 years old and meets the requirements above proof of fluency in Spanish is not required.

 

Documents reqired to apply for citizenship

• A lletter requesting citizenship
• A certified copy of a valid identification document.
• Email address for notification
• A duly legalized or apostatized official birth certificate issued by the country of birth. If the certificate is not in Spanish it must be translated by an official translator.
• a judicial and police certification from the country of origin issued by the Federal or National authority dully legalized or apostatized. If the document is not in Spanish it must by translated by an official translator. ( this document is required for certain citizenship categories).
• Have approved the Spanish and Social Studies exams ( this requirement applies to certain citizenship categories)
• A formal declaration by two witnesses that the requirements are met.
• Demonstrate source and amount of income either by a salary certification provided by a private or public company. If a private company the signature must be authenticated by a lawyer notary,            A CCSS slip must be provided or it must be certified by a Certified Public Accountant.
• If the applicant is reliant on another person for financial support
• marriage must be recognized judicially.
• The person providing support must prove their income by way of an affidavit before an official in the civil registry, or before a notary.
• Five passport sized photos must be provided plus a tax stamp in the amount of 20 colones for citizens of Central American countries, or 200 colones for other nationalities
• File an affidavit to the effect that the applicant has not had repeated contraventions of current residency

Once all documents and the application is presented the citizenship should be granted in 10 months ( or 200 working days).

 

REQUIRED COSTA RICA RESIDENCY DOCUMENTS

Since 2012 documents from countries participating in the Hague Convention on Apostilles can be apostilled (verified, or authenticated) for use in Costa Rica.  Canada is not a signatory to the convention, however the US is, so documents from the US no longer have to be sent to the Costa Rican Consulate or the Foreign Relations ministry in Costa Rica for authentication.

The first three documents are required for all types of residency in Costa Rica, and are only valid for 6 months from the issue date.  If immigration does not receive the documents and residency application within 3 months of the date of issue of these documents, the whole process of issuing and authenticating must begin again.

1. A Police Certificate of Good Conduct from your last place of residency. It is required for the applicant, the spouse, and any children aged 15 to 25.
2. A Birth Certificate is required for the applicant, spouse, and all dependent children (up to 18 years old or up to 25 if a university student, in which case proof of enrollment is required.
3. A Marriage Certificate (if the spouse wishes residency). Proof of divorce is not needed.
4. A document certifying income is required for Pensionado and Rentista Residency, only for the applicant. It is only valid for 6 months from the issue date.

 

Pensionados require proof of a pension of at least US$1000 per month, stating that it is for life, and that it will be paid in Costa Rica. For pensions from the U.S. Social Security or Canada Pension Plan, it is easier to obtain the certification at the U.S. or Canadian Embassy in Costa Rica.

 

You must provide them with proof of your pension from other government agencies (all countries) must have a letter stating that the pension is being paid by the government. Pensions from other institutions must have a statement verifying the type of institution paying the pension and confirming it is being paid. For Rentista Residency Casa Canada lawyers can provide the wording for the documents.

 

All the above documents obtained outside of Costa Rica MUST BE:

 

40. a) Notarized by a local notary public, or have an official government seal. If there is any doubt about the need to have it notarized, check with Casa Canada or the local Costa Rican consulate.         Canadians must have the documents certified by the provincial or federal government, and then      by the Costa Rica consul.  They currently charge a fee of $40.
41. b) For most countries the documents must be sent to the office of the Secretary of State to get the “Apostille”.
42. c) If “Apostille” is not available in your country, the documents must be authenticated by the Costa Rican consulate in the country where the document was issued.

 

The applicant's signature must NOT appear in the notarized section of the document. Authentication and certification costs vary from country to country, as does the authority of who issues them.  A Costa Rican consulate will charge US$40 for authentication of each document. They must affix stamps worth that amount to collect the money. If they do not have the stamps, Casa Canada can buy them in Costa Rica on your behalf.

There is a $250 application fee payable to the government in Costa Rica which will be included in a quote on costs from Casa Canada.

All applicants for residency will require an interview with a police official where personal data will be requested.  You will be required to have your fingerprints recorded.

All temporary or permanent residents must join the government health insurance plan administered by Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS). To apply it is necessary to present a utility bill showing the address and two copies of the passport of the applicant to the local clinic.  They will then request a health insurance number.  Once the insurance is paid for a voucher is issued and this voucher must be taken to immigration.

It is also necessary to register with the embassy or consulate of your country.  If there is no embassy or consulate, this requirement does not apply.  It is usually necessary to fill out a form and pay a fee.  Proof of registration must be taken to immigration.

  

*What is an Apostille?

The Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents, the Apostille Convention, or the Apostille Treaty is an international treaty drafted by the Hague Conference on Private International Law. It specifies the modalities through which a document issued in one of the signatory countries can be certified for legal purposes in all the other signatory states. Such a certification is called an apostille (French: certification). It is an international certification comparable to a notarization in domestic law, and normally supplements a local notarization of the document.

* List of countries signatories of the Apostille convention:

 

Albania	Costa Rica	Italy	Nicaragua	Suriname
Andorra	Croatia	Japan	Niue	Swaziland
Antigua and Barbuda	Cyprus	Kazakhstan	Norway	Sweden
Argentina	Czech Republic	Korea, Republic of	Oman	Switzerland
Armenia	Denmark	Kyrgyzstan	Panama	Tajikistan
Australia	Dominica	Latvia	Paraguay	The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
Austria	Dominican Republic	Lesotho	Peru	Tonga
Azerbaijan	Ecuador	Liberia	Poland	Trinidad and Tobago
Bahamas	El Salvador	Liechtenstein	Portugal	Turkey
Bahrain	Estonia	Lithuania	Romania	Ukraine
Barbados	Fiji	Luxembourg	Russian Federation	United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Belarus	Finland	Malawi	Saint Kitts and Nevis	Uruguay
Belgium	France	Malta	Saint Lucia	Uzbekistan
Belize	Georgia	Marshall Islands	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Vanuatu
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Germany	Mauritius	Samoa	Venezuela
Botswana	Greece	Mexico	San Marino
Brunei Darussalam	Grenada	Moldova, Republic of	Sao Tome and Principe
Bulgaria	Honduras	Monaco	Serbia
Burundi	Hungary	Mongolia	Seychelles
Cape Verde	Iceland	Montenegro	Slovakia
China, People´s Republic of (Hong Kong & Macao Only)	India	Namibia	Slovenia
Colombia	Ireland	Netherlands	South Africa
Cook Islands	Israel	New Zealand	Spain

 

Other requirements for both Pensionado and Rentista Residency

1) Income must be proven at each renewal of residency.  US$12,000 per year for pensionados and             US$30,000 per year for rentistas.

2) The resident must be in Costa Rica for a minimum of 4 months each year

3) The residency identification card (carnet) must be renewed every two years. The government of        Costa Rica charges a US$123+ tax for each renewed identification card.  Permanent residency             can be applied for after 3 years, and then the renewal is necessary every 5 years.

4) You and your dependents cannot earn a salary or replace a Costa Rican as an employee. You can own             and operate a business and pay yourself, and/or make investments.All pensionados and rentistas must submit proof of 1 and 2 above to the Costa Rican government each           year.  Casa Canada can assist with all of these procedures.

 

nversionista Residency Status

1). Invest at least US$150,000 in an operating business, or an approved amount in a government             approved investment such as company ownership, property &/or vehicles, stocks, etc.

2). Be present in Costa Rica at least six months per year.

 

Translations of Documents for Residency

Translations from other languages to Spanish have to be done either by the Costa Rican consulate in the country where the document was issued or in Costa Rica by an “official” translator for the specific language to Spanish. Casa Canada can arrange for the services of am approved translator.  Costs can vary.  Translation from the original language to English is not accepted by the Costa Rica government.

 

Total Cost

The cost to process residency vary depending upon the type of residency and can vary depending upon government requirement.  Please contact Casa Canada to go over your exact requirements and to receive the price for your needs.  Casa Canada residency prices are very reasonable, and the service is much faster than many law firms.  Complaints hear from many prospective residents is that the processing by their lawyer has taken so long that their documents have expired and then have to be reissued by their government.

Casa Canada will also advise the applicant of all the various steps, and some time saving advice on how to assemble required information.  The price quoted will include all attorney and other fees, including translation from English to Spanish. If you have documents translated in the country of origin, the only official translator accepted by the Costa Rican government is the Costa Rican consul for that country.

 

Residency Renewals

Other than permanent residency, renewals are usually every two years. General conditions for renewal are: 4-6 months residence in Costa Rica, the required amount of monthly income was received in Costa Rica or that the terms of the investor residency are met. Renewal cost in January of 2021 was $123

PLEASE NOTE THAT RULES FOR RESIDENCY ARE OFTEN CHANGING AS MIGRACION MAKES ADJUSTMENTS TO DEAL WITH THE CONTINUING REALITIES OF FOREIGNERS IN THE COUNTRY.  BE SURE TO GET THE LATEST INFORMATION FROM CASA CANADA BEFORE STARTING THE PROCESS OF COLLECTING NECESSARY DOCUMENTATION.

 

Foreign residents are protected by the constitution of Costa Rica, and have most of the rights of citizens. The record of the government historically has been excellent in honoring these rights. They do not have the right to:

• Vote or participate in political activities
• Work for wages without a permit
• Own land close to national borders

 

Pets can be brought to Costa Rica. A veterinary certificate is required.  Ask Casa Canada for details and assistance.

 

Relocation

With over 30 years experience in assisting people who are relocating to Costa Rica, Casa Canada is prepared to answer your questions.  We can help you directly with many relocation procedures, and also works with many relocation experts who can assist you with more complex issues, such as bringing in your household goods or vehicle.

Banking services, mail services, drivers license, internet & telephone needs, medical attention, moving companies, education issues, Costa Rican holding company… the list of relocation issues can go on and on depending on your specific needs. Casa Canada staff can help guide you in your choice of services.