Immigration

Immigration Services

We offer the following services to assist you in the process of obtaining residency in Costa Rica. Immigration laws in Costa Rica offer numerous options for people to relocate to the country. There are opportunities for retirees, people on fixed incomes, investors, spouses or parents of a Costa Rican, self-employed persons or entrepreneurs, and employees of a company.

**Residency for Retired People (Pensionados)**

This option is available to people who are currently retired and receive retirement income of at least $1,000 per month.

**Residency for People on a Fixed Income (Rentistas)**

Under this option, it is required to demonstrate that you receive at least $2,500 per month.

Residency for Investors

This category is available for people who invest at least $200,000 USD in Costa Rica. The investment can be in a business, or in assets such as real estate.

Residency under Marriage

The marriage category is available to foreign nationals who marry a Costa Rican. After two years of being married and residing in Costa Rica, it is possible to obtain citizenship.

Residency for Parents

Foreign nationals who have children born in Costa Rica are eligible for residency.

Residency for Self-employed People or Entrepreneurs

This category is available for people who desire to work for themselves or to open their own business in Costa Rica. There is no minimum amount of money required, only to have a business.

Residency for Foreign Workers

Foreign workers unavailable in Costa Rica who are hired by a company doing business in Costa Rica, whether the company is foreign or domestic, are eligible for residency.

General Immigration Requirements

The following list outlines the general requirements for any application for residency.

Verification of the main requirement. Depending on the category you will be applying for, documentation will be required to confirm eligibility under that category. For instance, people applying under the retirement category must produce a letter providing confirmation of the retirement income; people applying under the investment category must provide certifications of the investment regardless of whether the investment is in real estate or in a business; people applying for residency through marriage must produce a marriage certificate from Costa Rica.
Background check. This document should be issued by a national authority. In the case of US nationals, for instance, it should be from the FBI. In the case of Canadian nationals, it should be issued by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. In the case of UK nationals, it should be issued by the Association of Chief Police Officers.
Birth certificate. A new copy of your birth certificate is required, not over six months old.
Application form. We complete this for our clients.
Cover letter. We complete this for our clients as well. It contains certain information about you.
Fingerprints. Obtained at a police department. We will coordinate with you in order to receive these, assisting in San José or Liberia by driving you from our office to the location concerned and handling the corresponding forms.
Certified passport copy. We certify your passport copy.
Consular registration. Registration with your country’s consulate is required, we also complete this for our clients.
Passport-size photographs.
Government fees. Initially, it is required to pay $251 USD in application fees. At the end of the process, it is required to pay an additional $433 USD in government fees.

Important Notes About The Documents.

All documents in a foreign language must be translated into Spanish. The costs for the translations will vary depending on the original language.
All documents from abroad must be authenticated for its use in Costa Rica. Documents from certain countries require an apostille.
Documents from other countries require a legalization. To learn more about apostilles please click here.
The birth certificates and the background checks (and any other documents from abroad) must be issued within six months prior to filing the application. Therefore, the original birth certificate issued when you were born will not be valid for immigration purposes in Costa Rica.
Background checks must be from the countries where you lived legally in the past three years. Living legally excludes people who were living as tourists, it is only applicable to people who were legally residing in a foreign country.

Processing Time

The application process for temporary residency has three stages. Namely, document procurement, Government Analysis and Decision, and Registration. Please review below the description of these three stages as well as the corresponding timeline applicable to each stage.

Stage	Timeline	Description
Document Procurement	8 weeks	We will dedicate this period of time to make sure that you get the documents you will need to bring to Costa Rica, as well as preparing the rest of the documents required for the application. Generally, it takes about two months to obtain all the required documents.
Analysis & Decision by the DGME	9 months	Once the required documents have been obtained, we will file the application with the Immigration Department (DGME) By law, the DGME should process the application within 90 days. However, based on recent processing times, the DGME is currently taking about 12 months for processing an application.
Registration	4 weeks	Once the application has been approved, We will proceed with your mandatory registration with the CCSS for the Social Security system (also known as CAJA). In addition, we will obtain the ID for foreigners (DIMEX aka cédula). This last step completes the process.

Important Notes About The Processing Times.

Once the application is filed, the DGME will issue a Receipt Notice, which demonstrates that there is an application pending. This document in conjunction with your passport will function as a valid ID.
As noted, the DGME takes about 9 months for reviewing the application. The law allows you to remain in the country while the application is pending. Thus, the applicant is not required to leave the country to renew the 90-day visa.
A Costa Rican driver’s license cannot be obtained until your residency is fully approved and your DIMEX is on hand. Applicants who want to use a foreign driver’s license during the waiting period are required to leave the country every three months to obtain a renewed 90-day visa stamp in their passport. This seems to conflict with the note above but it is the result of different government departments having different rules.
If you leave the country during the application waiting period, you may be required to produce a return ticket when trying to reenter the country at a border or airport. Whether a bus ticket or a plane ticket is required will depend on whether you are arriving at an airport or through a border crossing.