Construction Permit (CFIA and Municipality)

To build in Costa Rica (housing or any other work) you need two distinct things, in a certain order: the technical endorsement from the Colegio Federado de Ingenieros y Arquitectos (CFIA) and the construction permit itself, which can only be granted by the Municipality of the canton where the land is located — no other entity is authorized to issue that final permit.

Recommended order of the procedure: 1. Check the land’s zoning with the Municipality to verify that the canton’s land‑use plan allows the type of construction you intend to carry out. 2. Meet the preliminary requirements on the APC (Administrador de Proyectos de Construcción) platform of the CFIA: water availability, alignments (public road, river, etc.), and other requirements according to the project. 3. Submit construction drawings sealed by the responsible professional (engineer or architect who is a CFIA member) through the APC system, together with the seals of the institutions that apply to the project. 4. Obtain a Work‑Related Risk Insurance policy from the INS for the construction (see separate “Poliza de Riesgos del Trabajo” entry). 5. Present the construction‑permit application to the Municipality, which issues the final permit.

Documents commonly requested:

Uso de suelo.
Certificación de disponibilidad de agua.
Plano catastrado inscrito en el Registro Nacional (see separate entry).
Planos sellados por el CFIA.
Poliza de Riesgos del Trabajo del INS.
Certificaciones de instalaciones eléctricas y de tratamiento de aguas residuales, según el tipo de obra.

Role of the CFIA: the CFIA is the professional association that supervises and technically endorses the project — its approval is a prerequisite, but the actual construction permit is issued by the Municipality, not the CFIA.

Note: Exact requirements vary by canton (each Municipality may request additional documents specific to its land‑use plan) and by type of work (new housing, addition, remodel, commercial construction). Verify the precise list on infoapc.cfia.or.cr and with the corresponding Municipality before starting the process.