Residency in Costa Rica

The Costa Rican Government has identified deforestation as a major problem in Costa Rica. Pristine forests were destroyed to make way for cattle pastures and other industries. The result of this destruction was that top soil, the very essence of life in Costa Rica, ran to the rivers and floated out to the oceans only to be lost forever. In order to reverse this trend of destruction Forestry Law 7575 Article #70 was introduced. The Government here has very little money for preventative measures so special incentives were given to individuals who invested in reforestation on a large scale.

These incentives include:

*the right to live in Costa Rica.

*the right to work in Costa Rica (if desired) Resident Investor status is the only status that allows a person to work legally in Costa Rica. Holders of all the other status’s and even a tourist can own property here but they cannot work. A perfect example is when a person(s) purchases a house here. They put the house in a corporate name, call it a bed & breakfast and think that now they can work in their own Corporation running the B&B. Just not so. Make 1 reservation, serve 1 breakfast or make 1 bed. You have broken the law.

*freedom from the requirement to prove annual income All that is required it your 1 time investment. Pensionados must prove a pension (for life) of a minimum of US$600.00. Rentistas must prove an interest income from investments of US$1,000 per month per adult and US$500.00 per month per child. This gets expensive.The Permanent Resident Investor does not have to do this.

*freedom from the requirement to convert a set amount of funds annually from dollars to colonés. Both Pensionados and Rentistas must annually show that they have converted the proven funds from dollars to colones. For example the Pensionado will present to the Government proof that he or she has converted 12 x $600.00 or $7,200 into colones. The Permanent Resident Investor does not have to do this.

*freedom from the time restrictions of other status. Both Pensionados and Rentistas must be physically in the country for a minimum of 3 months a year. The also cannot be out of the country more than 6 consecutive months. Failing to meet these requirements will cause the loss of their status. Permanent Resident Investor status requires the individual to be here 1 day a year for the first 5 years, 1 day every 2 years until year 10 and then are required to be here 1 day every 5 years. These days are required to renew their status’s.

*ability to make application for status from within Costa Rica. At this time only Permanent Resident Investors can make their application to Immigration while here in Costa Rica.

The fact is that the individual and family receives all the rights of a natural born Costa Rican with the 1 exception. Cannot get politically involved.

What you need to file for residency in Costa Rica

First thing you need are the documents required by the Costa Rican government. And they are as follows:

• Birth certificates for every family member, no more than 90 days old at the time you file in Costa Rica. Must be authenticated by the Costa Rican Consulate in the state where they were issued.
• Marriage certificate, notarized and sealed by the Secretary of State, then authenticated by the Costa Rican Consulate in the state where it was issued. (No more than 90 days old from the date it was issued)
• Police report for anyone over 18. This must be notarized, sealed by the Secretary of State then authenticated by the Costa Rican Consulate. (No more than 90 days old from the time it was issued)
• You will also need several passport photos to file.
• Certified copies of your passport which you can get done here in Costa Rica

Bring all of this documentation with you to Costa Rica and you can file for residency here. It is much easier and faster if you do this in Costa Rica than trying to do it in the states.

We work with the largest and most well respected lawfirm in Costa Rica and they, with the proper documents, can get your residency completed in as little as 4 months. Email us for more information.

Rentista status

As mentioned before on this blog Rentista status and Pensinado status are the most popular common types of residency that people apply for when entering Costa Rica.

While there are several new proposals to change the immigration laws in the oven, nothing has been proposed for Rentista status. It as of August 12, 2006 has gotten very expensive and cost prohibitive for some people.

Before August 12 the cost of filing for Rentista status was $60,000 per family. Unknown to many people this law changed drastically and now the cost for filing has doubled for a couple. Under the current law, the cost is $60,000 per adult and $30,000 per child to file under this status. That would mean that the financial requirement for a family of 4 to be $180,000 proving that you have an income of $3,000 per month over a 5 year period of time.

Under Rentista status, you are not allowed to work. You can own your own business but must hire a Costa Rican to manage and work in the business. This is true with any business including a B&B. You can own the B&B but you can’t run it, work in it, cook, clean, anything considered work in your own B&B.

Many people think that you can come to Costa Rica, buy a house and qualify for residency status. This is not true. Foreigners can own property but it does not go towards your residency status. So a family of 4 would need to put up $180k to file for residency and they can’t work then put up another 150k + to buy a house to live in.

There is another type of residency which I have not mentioned here but will give more details on it at another time and that is Resident Investor status. It does not require the huge outlay of cash and you have all the same rights as a Costa Rican(with the exception of politics) including being able to work. More on that later.

If you need a good immigration attorney, we work with the best in Costa Rica and they can get your residency in a matter of months.

For more information about residency and how it might affect your family email us at info@relocationcr.com.