Permanent Residency- Overview

Overview:

A Costa Rican Permanent Resident is a foreign national who is granted the privilege of living and working permanently without conditions in Costa Rica.

A Costa Rican Conditional Permanent Resident is a foreign national who is granted the privilege of living in Costa Rica for a restricted period of time subject to specific conditions set by their filing status.

When you file for permanent resident status (PRS), you are granted either permanent resident status (PRS) or conditional permanent resident status (CPRS). The Immigration Department of Costa Rica will make this determination based on how you or your attorney presented your case.

To Become a Permanent Resident of Costa Rica you Must:

   1.     File for permanent resident status (PRS).

   2.     Make a non-refundable deportation security deposit equal to or greater than the current market price of a one-way airline ticket from Costa Rica to the country of your origin once your resident application is approved.

   3.     Pay permanent resident application stamp fees of 15 colones per page.

   4.     Pay resident card issuance fee at 3,000 colones and pay resident card renewal fee at 3,000 colones.

   5.     Live in Costa Rica under the conditional permanent residency status for a specific period of time, and file for Permanent Residency Status on the date that your CPRS expires.        

Because of a reciprocal perpetual friendship treaty between Spain and Costa Rica, citizens of Spain are always granted PRS regardless of the immigration path they undertake to become permanent residents.

The process of filing for PRS takes between four and eight months, depending on the complexity of your case. You can stay in Costa Rica with a valid tourist visa and or passport (See Visa Resource Center for visa information) while your case is being reviewed.

You have two choices to apply for Permanent Resident Status (PRS):

1) The On-Site Choice: Apply for Permanent Resident Status (PRS) while in Costa Rica

If you are immigrating to Costa Rica through a family member, religious organizations, or as a refugee, you may file for PRS at your nearest Consulate of Costa Rica or at the Immigration Department of Costa Rica in San Jose, Costa Rica.

Once the Immigration Department of Costa Rica receives your application, it will: 

   1.     Fax your legal representative in Costa Rica a receipt notification stating whether or not your application is complete. If it is not complete, it will grant you ten business day for documents issued in Costa Rica or 30 business days for documents issued overseas from the notification issuance date for you to submit the missing documents. If missing documents are not received during that period of time your application will be denied. Once it receives all the missing documents it will issue another notification stating that your application is complete.

   2.     Mail its decision about your application to your legal representative in Costa Rica within four to six months.

   3.     Issue your permanent resident identification card. This process is in person and you must sign the resident identification card at the Immigration Department of Costa Rica

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2) The Off-Site Choice: Apply for Permanent Resident Status (PRS) at the nearest Consulate of Costa Rica

You must file for PRS at a Consulate of Costa Rica - except if you are immigrating to Costa Rica through family members, religious organizations, or as a refugee. Use our Commercial Directory to search for the nearest Costa Rican Consulate to your residence. (Click "search" in our Commercial Directory and type in the keyword "consulate" to view a list of Costa Rican Consulates worldwide).


The Consulate of Costa Rica where you file must be located:

    *     in your native country

    *     in your country of permanent residency, or

    *     in another country close to your country if there are no Consulates of Costa Rica where you live.

The Off-Site Choice is a multi-step process:

   1.     Legally appoint a person who lives in your country to submit your application in case you can not submit it in person. ^*

   2.     Legally appoint a person or an attorney who lives in downtown San Jose, Costa Rica to act as your legal representative.

   3.     Obtain all the required documents to apply for permanent resident status (Required Documents).

   4.     Translate them into Spanish - if they are not issued in Spanish.

   5.     Authenticate the documents at the nearest Consulate of Costa Rica.

   6.     Submit your application ^** for permanent resident status at your nearest Consulate of Costa Rica.

* If you can not go to the Consulate of Costa Rica in person, you may appoint a person or an attorney who lives in your country of residence to submit your permanent residence application on your behalf.

**You must be outside of Costa Rica the day that you or your representative submits your application to the Consulate of Costa Rica. After your application submission date you can enter and exit Costa Rica with a tourist visa - if you require one - while your permanent residence application is reviewed.

You or your attorney in fact (person to whom you gave the power of attorney) must submit your permanent resident application in person to the nearest Consulate of Costa Rica. Consulates of Costa Rica will:

   1.     Review your application and its required documents. (See Required Documents).

   2.     Request a personal interview with you or your attorney in fact- if they deem necessary.

   3.     Issue a notification for the Immigration Department in Costa Rica stating the name of the person who submitted your application and a detailed list of all the submitted documents.

   4.     Bind and stamp the notification with your application and its required documents.

   5.     Issue, sign, and stamp a payment receipt stating your name, a list of submitted documents, and the total amount of money paid for authenticating all documents included in your application.

   6.     File your application by mailing it (at your own expense) via private courier (i.e. FEDEX, DHL, UPS) to the Immigration Department of Costa Rica.

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Once the Immigration Department of Costa Rica receives your application, it will:

   1.    Fax your legal representative in Costa Rica a receipt notification stating whether or not your application is complete. If it is not complete, it will grant you 10 business day for documents issued in Costa Rica or 30 business days for documents issued overseas from the notification issuance date for you to submit the missing documents. If missing documents are not received during that period of time your application will be denied. Once it receives the missing documents it will issue another notification stating that your application is complete.

   2.     Mail its decision about your application to your legal representative in Costa Rica within four to six months.

   3.     Issue your permanent resident identification card.

If you want to know the status of your application you must make inquiries directly to the Immigration Department of Costa Rica in San Jose, Costa Rica via your legal representative. Consulates of Costa Rica will not provide information about the status of permanent residence application.

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When you apply for Permanent Resident Status and you are granted PRS you will:

    *     Get a permanent resident identification card (Cedula de Residencia) issued by Immigration of Costa Rica, renewable every year for a period of ten years, and then after every five years.

    *     Be able to live and work in Costa Rica without conditions.

When you apply for Permanent Resident Status and you are granted CPRS you will:

    *     Get a permanent resident identification card (Cedula de Residencia) issued by Immigration of Costa Rica, renewable every year for a period of ten years, and then after every five years.

Eligibility

Required Documents

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