General Immigration and Foreigners Law – Migration Categories and Length of Stay

The Ley General de Migracion y Extranjeria (Ley N.º 8764, of 19 August 2009, in force since March 2010, with later reforms including Ley N.º 10493 of 2024) regulates the entry, stay, and migration categories of foreign persons in Costa Rica. It is administered by the Direccion General de Migracion y Extranjeria (DGME).

Length of stay as a tourist (non‑resident): depends on the passport‑nationality group.

• Group 1 (the majority of countries with agreements, including the US, Canada, EU): up to 180 calendar days (6 months) of stay.
• Group 2: initial stay of up to 30 days, extendable to a maximum of 90 days through a procedure at the DGME (USD 100 fee, passport‑size photo, proof of financial solvency, and a copy of all passport pages).

Passport validity requirement: for Group 1, the passport may have even a single day of validity at the time of entry (but the authorized stay can never exceed the passport’s expiration date). For Group 2, a minimum of 90 days’ validity is required at the time of entry.

Most common temporary residence categories for foreigners who want to live in Costa Rica (not just visit):

• Rentista: verifiable monthly income of at least USD 2,500 guaranteed for 24 months, or a deposit of USD 60,000 in a Costa Rican bank. The income must originate outside Costa Rica.
• Pensionado: verifiable monthly pension of at least USD 1,000, with an official letter from the issuing entity, apostilled and translated into Spanish.
• Inversionista: minimum investment of USD 150,000 in real estate, businesses, securities, or projects declared of national interest.

Path to permanent residence: temporary residence is initially granted for 2 years, renewable. After 3 consecutive years of legal temporary residence, one may apply for permanent residence. After 7 years of legal residence (permanent), one may apply for Costa Rican naturalization.

Note: the amounts, timelines, and requirements for each migration category are updated by regulation fairly often — verify the current requirements directly on migracion.go.cr before starting any procedure, as these figures change most frequently.