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.
If you are granted CPRS you can file for PRS 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 4 and 8 months
depending on the complexity of your case. You can stay in Costa Rica with a
valid tourist visa (See
Visa Resource Center for visa information) while your case is being
reviewed.
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
- able to live in Costa Rica subject to conditions set by
your filing status* for a restricted period of time equaled or greater than
the length of your labor contract, your studies, your family aid, or wiring
of overseas monies
* Note: When you file for PRS through investment,
retirement, or annuities you will not be able to work in Costa Rica if you are
granted conditional permanent resident status.
To become a permanent resident of Costa Rica you must:
- file for permanent resident status (PRS)
- make a non-refundable deportation security deposit
equaled 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
- pay permanent resident application stamp fees at 15
colones (0.03 cents of a U.S. dollar rate exchange at 384.78 February 27,
2003) per page
- pay resident card issuance fee at 3,000 colones ($6.00
U.S. dollar rate exchange at 384.78 February 27, 2003); resident card
renewal fee at 3,000 colones ($8.00 U.S. dollar rate exchange at 384.78
February 27, 2003)
- live in Costa Rica with CPRS for a specific period of
time, and file for PRS on the date that your CPRS expires. Or,
- live in Costa Rica without conditions.
You have two choices to apply for permanent resident status
(PRS)
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.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:
- Legally appoint a person who lives in your country to
submit your application in case you can not submit it in person
*
- Legally appoint a person or an attorney who lives in
downtown San Jose, Costa Rica to act as your legal representative
- Obtain all the required documents to apply for permanent
resident status (See
Permanent Residence Application Required Documents).
- Translate them into Spanish - if they are not issued in
Spanish.
- Authenticate the documents at the nearest Consulate of
Costa Rica.
- 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:
- review your application and its required documents (See
Permanent Residence Application Required Documents).
- request a personal interview with you or your attorney in
fact- if they deem necessary
- 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
- bind and stamp the notification with your application and
its required documents.
- 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.
- 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.
Once the Immigration Department of Costa Rica receives your
application, it will
- 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.
- will mail its decision about your application to your
legal representative in Costa Rica within four to six months
- 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.
