The investment of a lesser amount in tourism is no longer available.
Mandatory
Membership in “La Caja”
The new law made it mandatory for all applicants to become members
in Costa Rica’s medical system, La Caja Costarricense del
Seguro Social, known simply as “La Caja.” The applicant
must show proof of membership in La Caja at the time the residency
identification card is issued.
Location where applications can be filed
Applications can now be filed abroad, in the applicant’s country
of origin, or directly at the Department of Migración y Extranjería
in San Jose, Costa Rica.
Residency applications under the Vinculo Program can only be filed
in Costa Rica.
Applications for Vinculo Status by Spouses
The application of the spouse of a Costa Rican citizen, filed under
the Vinculo Program, will no longer be automatically granted as
a permanent resident. Under the new guidelines, spouses who have
been married for less than 2 years to the Costa Rican spouse are
granted temporary residencies for the first three years. At the
end of the third year the spouse can apply for permanent residency.
Spouses married to the Costa Rican citizen longer than 2 years
are not affected by these guidelines and receive permanent residency.
Consular Registration
While not part of the new law, Migración issued an internal
memorandum requiring that all prospective residents must register
their intention of moving to Costa Rica with the embassies of their
corresponding countries in San José. Please note that the
consular registration is waived if the country of origin does not
have a consulate or embassy in Costa Rica
Higher fees
The new law codifies the increase of the fees charged by Migracíon
for the filing of the application, the review of the application,
for a change in status from temporary to permanent residency, and
for many other services.
List of Felonies that automatically disqualify a residency application
The list of criminal convictions for crimes that automatically disqualify
a person from applying for Costa Rican residency now includes the
following major crimes (felony convictions – partial list):
Murder; trafficking in illegal drugs/narcotics; trafficking in
human beings; trafficking in weapons or explosives; sexual crimes
against minors, the elderly or the disabled; domestic violence;
membership in certain designated gangs or in organized crime; etc.
Am I required to have an attorney in Costa Rica to process my application?
No. You are not required to have an attorney in Costa Rica to process
your application. However, you do need to have an official representative –called
an “apoderado”– to act on your behalf, as your
representative with the Departmento de Migración y Extranjería
(Migración, for short). We, at Residency in Costa Rica,
act as your apoderado as part of our services.
What
is an “apoderado”?
An apoderado is an individual, an attorney or a non-attorney, who
meets certain legal requirements established by the government
of Costa Rica and to whom you grant a limited power of attorney
to act on your behalf for the sole purpose of processing your application
for residency. Residency in Costa Rica uses a very narrow and specific
limited power of attorney valid exclusively for our representative
in San José. The power of attorney allows us to communicate
and correspond about your residency application with Migración
in Costa Rica.
Can my apoderado gain access, or obtain information about my checking,
savings or other accounts in Costa Rica?
No. The limited power of attorney is very specific and narrow in
scope. It can only be used to communicate and correspond about your
residency application with Migración in Costa Rica. It is
not valid for any other purposes in Costa Rica and it is not valid
for any purpose whatsoever outside of Costa Rica.
What is the expiration date for my birth certificate and police
letter?
On
July 28, 2008 Migracíon ordered that your key documents,
birth certificate, marriage certificate, police letter and income
letter to be valid for only six (6) months from the date the document
is issued. For example, if the police letter was issued on March
1, 2010, the letter would be valid until August 31, 2010. That means
that there is only a six month window to have the document authenticated
and filed with Mígracíon.
Does that mean if my application is not approved within six month
that I will need to get new copies of my key documents?
No. Once a document is timely filed as part of the application the
six month expiration date is no longer applicable. So, as in the
prior example, assuming your documents were issued on March 1, 2010
and the application with the key documents was filed on June 12,
2010, that stops the 6 months period and you do not have to get new
copies again, even if the application is not approved until December
2010.
I have my original birth certificate issued in 1940 (for example)
can I have that birth certificate authenticated and used for my application?
No.
The birth certificate is older than sx months and Migración
will reject it based on the issued date. Additionally, many state
governments (if in the U.S.) will not authenticate a document if
the document is older than five years, or because the document may
have been issued on non-tamper proof paper, or because it may printed
on black and white and can be easily altered. If the document is
older than or it would be older than six months on the date the application
and document are filed, a new certified copy of the document needs
to be obtained and filed with Mígracion.
Is it true that I have to be fingerprinted in Costa Rica?
Yes. All applicants over the age of 13 must be fingerprinted in Costa
Rica by the Costa Rican police. The Costa Rican police will then
run the fingerprints through INTERPOL and it will send the results
of the search directly to Migración.
Can I have my fingerprints taken in my own country and then take
the fingerprinted cards to Costa Rica?
No.
Migración
will only accept the fingerprints taken in Costa Rica by the
Costa Rican
police.
I am part of a same gender/sex marriage or legally recognized union/domestic
partnership; can my partner and I apply for residency as a married
couple?
No. At this time Costa Rica does not recognize same gender marriages,
unions or domestic partnerships even when legally married in the
country of origin. Each member of the same gender relationship must
apply for residency independently from the partner and each partner
must meet the income and other requirements on his/her own individually.
Once I am approved
as pensionado or rentista resident, can I legally work in Costa
Rica?
No. Neither
pensionado nor rentista residencies have a built-in work permit,
as both residencies are temporary and the assumption is
that you do not need to work to make a living.
However, you can manage your own business and financial affairs,
including being self-employed as a consultant or managing your own
business or corporation.
Thus, you cannot be an employee of another person or company or
receive wages or a salary but you can be self-employed.
I’m confused. What is a “cédula” and what
is a “carnet’?
Actually,
both words, cédula and carnet, are interchangeable
and are both used to refer to the same document: your legal residency
identification card. The only difference is that carnet tends to
indicate the older version of the ID card, which until 3 years ago
was a little booklet made out of paper. A cédula is the new
high tech version of the carnet. Cédulas contain digital information
and are made out of plastic. All Costa Rican citizens carry a cédula
and now legal residents do, too.
Can I still invest
only $50,000 in a tourist-type activity to allow me to apply as
an inversionista?
No.
That program is no longer being offered by Mígracion.
Under current guidelines, the minimum amount of the investment
is US$200,000.
Do I need to
travel to Costa Rica to file my application for residency?
No and Yes. Confused? Let us explain. All applications under the
Pensionado, Rentista and Inversionista programs can now be filed
in Costa Rica or in your country of origin or at a designated Costa
Rican consulate if none is available in your country. However,
all adults applying for residency must be fingerprinted by Migración
in Costa Rica. Clearly, in order to meet the fingerprinting requirement
you must be in Costa Rica to be fingerprinted.
Important: Please note that applications filed without proof of
fingerprinting are automatically denied as a matter of law.
Why should I use Residency in Costa Rica to help me with the application
process?
RCR has the experience, knowledge, and contacts to properly handle
your application. We are familiar with the intricacies of the application
process, the types of supporting documents required by law, and will
answer on your behalf any concerns on the part of the consular and
Migración officials reviewing your application.
Our ability to
assist with the collection and authentication of your documents
has proven
to be a key resource to most clients, and
it is one of the main functions we provide. You, in return, get peace
of mind and the knowledge that your documents are being processed
according to current Migración requirements and standards.
All supporting documents are required to be translated into Spanish
by a certified translator. As part of our service, we coordinate
the translation of all supporting documentation on your behalf and
make sure the translations are accurate and acceptable to the Costa
Rica authorities.
For most clients, an additional benefit of using our services is
our ability to easily and fluently communicate in English or Spanish
and thus decreasing the possibility of miscommunication, and allowing
us to provide answers to your questions in a more efficient and timely
manner.
