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Costa Rica
Visa Information
and Working in Costa Rica !
Important:
Because of 911, many changes have been put into place,
here in
Costa Rica,
with agreements between the United States: Foreigners, seeking to work for a Costa Rican Company must enter Costa Rica with a tourist visa, if they require
one, because Consulates of Costa Rica, do not issue business visas.
Required
Entry Documents
U.S. Citizens Do Not Need a Visa,
to Travel to Costa Rica
U.S. citizens may enter Costa Rica without a tourist visa
and can stay up to
90 days.
U.S. citizens, regardless of their age, need the following
documents,
to enter Costa Rica:
1. A passport, valid for at least ninety days.
2.
A pre-paid airline ticket, to exit
Costa Rica, (round trip ticket), or proof of financial
resources ($400.00 US to $1,000.00 US in cash, traveler checks
and
/ or
ticket (either to return to your home country, or to go to another country).
3. If you
are under the age of 18, coming from the United
States and do not
have your own passport, you
must have
a joint passport with one of your
parents
or legal guardian,
or the person traveling with you.
4. Check the date on your passport,
make sure the expiration
date, is good for
90 days. In other words, don't let your
passport expire.
Note:
The government of Costa Rica, decreed that after
November 17, 2003, the practice of accepting U.S. driver
licenses / IDs and U.S. birth certificates, as
entry documents is discontinued on a
permanent basis.
(Due to 911 and the United States
Homeland Security Act).
Tourist Visa
If Costa Rica requires you to acquire a tourist visa, you will
be allowed
to enter Costa Rica and stay
either for 30, 60
or 90 days. Once you enter
Costa Rica as a tourist, you have two choices.
Conduct your business,
until your tourist permitted stay expires: Business
people who want to enter Costa
Rica to do business, for a short period
of
time (less than 90 days), usually enter Costa Rica with a tourist visa and
conduct business,
without getting a temporary
residency permit, due to
time constraints.
If your business will require you to
stay in Costa Rica,
a bit longer than your permitted
stay, you can cross the
border,
into one of Costa Rica's
neighboring
countries, (ensuring that the port of exit official, stamps your passport, with the
exit seal) and come back into Costa Rica.
When you re-enter Costa
Rica,
you
will be
granted
another 90 days to stay as a tourist.
If you are a business person, who requires visa
issuance authorization, to get
a visa, to enter Costa Rica and want to stay longer, to finish your course or
study...
of more
than 30 days, you file for an
extension of stay, at the
Immigration Department of Costa Rica.
File for an Employment Temporary Residence Permit (TRP).
The employment
TRP, is granted to upper management executives, business people, board members, of a foreign
international company, ESL
(English as
a Second
Language) teachers, technicians, scientist, professionals
or people who
intend
to work for a Costa Rican
company or an
International company with offices
in Costa Rica.
You will be required to leave Costa Rica, upon
labor contract expiration, so
you must keep renewing your contract in a
timely manner.
The company must be accredited
by the Immigration
Department of Costa
Rica. The company will be 100%
responsible for your stay, as well as for your
departure. It takes between 90 and 180 days to process your
temporary resident permit request.
Business Temporary Residence Permit
(TRP) Required Documents:
Passport, valid for at least six
months. Academic
Degrees or equivalent. Original Birth certificate. Police Record from home
country.
Personal letter, addressed to the Director
of the Department of Temporary Permits & Extension of Stays, at the Immigration Department, stating your
name, last names, nationality, passport number,
current address, area of work specialization, name of
your
employer (person or company), your job
description,
your expected salary.
The letter must be notarized by an attorney or you
must
sign it in front of the person, receiving your application at the Immigration
Department.A recent passport
sized photograph. (Enclose four
original photographs, Costa Rican passport size photographs are 4.5 cm high X
3.5 cm wide (1.77
in. high X 1.37 in. wide).
Get your finger prints taken, at the Archivo Policial del Ministerio de
Seguridad Publica. (Police Department
at the Ministry of National Security).
They are open from 8:00a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and
are located at the Centro Comercial del Sur
(Sur Shopping Center). You must bring your
passport
and two passport size photographs.
Labor
contract, according to the Labor Code Article 24.
An employer letter, stating the reasons, why they
want
to hire you.
Copy of the Employer
Tax ID.
Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social
(Social Security Administration) certification, stating that
the employer is registered with them and it
is current with their dues.
Once your temporary
residency permit is approved, you will be required
to make a guarantee deposit,
equaled to $100.00 US, then take the receipt, to the Immigration Department to pick up your temporary residency permit. If you are a professional, you will be required to register with the proper professional association, in Costa Rica.
Document must be authenticated, by a Consulate of
Costa Rica, prior to coming to
Costa Rica, translated into Spanish, (either in your home
country, by a
Registered translator, by a Costa Rican translator,
certified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Costa
Rica, or by a Costa Rican Notary Public, who speaks
the language and certifies the translation),
issued thirty
days, prior to your arrival in Costa Rica
and be no
more than
six months old, after its
issuance date.
Authentication & Certifications
Authentication Services, rendered by Consulates of Costa
Rica, in the
U.S. The Consulate
General in Washington,
D.C. and the other Consulates of Costa Rica, in the U.S.
can only authenticate documents, issued in the United
States of America.
Honorary Consulates of Costa Rica, may not authenticate
powers of attorneys. If you have a document, issued in
another country, you need to contact the nearest Embassy
or Consulate, that is in charge of the area, in which the document was issued.
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Emergency Phone Numbers:
| Emergencies |
911 |
Fire Department |
118 |
| Police Department |
117 |
Red Cross |
128 |
| Rural Police Department |
127 |
Traffic Police |
222-9330 |
Hospitals:
|
Hospital |
Phone |
| |
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Hospital Nacional De Niños:
Ave. 8, C. 18/20 |
222-0122
223-1601
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San Juan De Dios:
Ave. Central, C. 14 |
222-0166
222-0986
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Clinica Americana:
Ave. 14, C. Central/1
|
222-1010 |
Clinica Biblica:
Ave. 14, C. Central/1
|
223-6422 |
Clinica Catolica
(24 hrs):
Barrio Esquivel Bonilla, Guadalupe
|
225-5055 |
Clinica Santa Rita:
Ave. 8, C. 15/17
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221-6433
255-1618 |
Hospital Dr.
Blanco Cervantes:
Ave. 6/8, C. 16
|
221-3506 |
Hospital Dr. Rafael Angel
Calderón Guardia:
Ave. 3, C. 15/17
|
222-4133
233-8963 |
Hospital Mexico:
On highway to Alajuela
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232-6122
232-0299 |
Airports:
Aeropuerto Internacional Juan
Santamaría
Main International Airport
|
443-2942
443-2622 |
Tobias Bolaños
Pavas Airport
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232-2820
232-8049 |
Aeropuerto
Internacional, Limon
Limon International Airport
|
758-1379 |
Aeropuerto
Internacional Tomas Guardia, Liberia
Liberia International Airport
|
666-0695 |
Embassies:
Argentina:
Ave. 6, C. 21/25
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Tel: 221-3438
Fax: 223-8742 |
Brasil:
Ave. 2, C. 20/22
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Tel: 223-1544
Fax: 223-4325 |
Canada:
Ave. 1, C. 3
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Tel: 255-3522
Fax: 223-2395 |
China (People's Republic
of):
Zapote
|
Tel: 224-8180
Fax: 253-8333 |
France:
San Pedro
|
Tel: 225-0733
Fax: 253-7027 |
Germany:
Rohrmoser
|
Tel: 232-5533
Fax: 231-6403 |
Guatemala:
Sabana Oeste
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Tel: 231-6654
Fax: 231-6645 |
Italy:
Ave. 10, C. 33/35, Los Yoses |
Tel: 234-2326
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Japan:
Rohrmoser
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Tel: 232-1255
Fax: 231-3140 |
Mexico:
Los Yoses
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Tel: 234-9613
Fax: 222-6080 |
Peru:
Los Yoses
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Tel: 225-9145
Fax: 253-0457 |
Russia (Federation of):
Curridabat
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Tel: 272-1021
Fax: 225-6222 |
Spain:
Centro Colón
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Tel: 222-1933
Fax: 222-4180 |
Switzerland:
Paseo Colón, C. 32
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Tel: 221-4829
Fax: 255-2831 |
United Kingdom:
Paseo Colón, C. 32
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Tel: 221-5566
Fax: 233-9938 |
United States:
Rohrmoser
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Tel: 220-3939
Fax: 220-2305 |
Links
Passports And Visas.com
Private company expedites U.S. passport service.
Costa Rica Law
A Guide to Legal Research in Costa Rica
U.S. Customs
Leaving
/ Arriving in U.S.
Know Before You Go
Top 10 U.S. Custom Tips
Air Travel
U.S. Transportation Security Administration
Records FAQ
Finding Old Records
Vaccinations for Travelers
Visa Resource Center
Airport tax is $ 26 per person.
Entry Requirements for Americans
Safety Tips
From the Costa Rica Tourism Board
Consular Information Sheet for Costa Rica
Currency
The Costa Rican monetary
unit is the Costa Rican Colon (CRC)
(Plural is colones). The
symbol is ¢. One colon is 100 centimos.
U.S. dollars are
widely
accepted, as are most major credit cards.
There is a 13% sales tax on all purchases and an additional 3% tourism
tax
on hotel rooms. Restaurants add a 10% gratuity,
to the check, along
with the sales tax.
Coins
Bills
Today's Exchange Rate
International Currency Conversion
Send money fast to Costa Rica
with Western Union
Continue to Residency in Costa Rica
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