Cadastral Plan (National Cadastre)

The cadastral plan is the technical document that physically delineates a piece of land or property, registered in the Catastro Nacional (part of the Registro Nacional). It is a requirement for registering property transfers (see property transfer record) and for any procedure that depends on verifying the exact boundaries of a piece of land.

Who can request it: the registered owner, the possessor, a concessionaire, or someone requesting a concession, or their legal representatives.

Requirements:

• Official document that demonstrates ownership of the land linked to the plan (generally the property title).
• Geographic coordinates or physical address of the land.

Process: the first time a cadastral plan is requested, the survey is performed exclusively by an Ingeniero Topografo or Agrimensor, who takes measurements and field data on the land boundaries, along with property documentation, and submits it to the Cadastre Unit of the Registro Nacional.

Digital platform: the CFIA (Colegio Federado de Ingenieros y de Arquitectos) has the APT (Administrador de Proyectos de Topografia) platform, which allows plans to be submitted digitally without the need to deliver printed plans.

Certification costs: obtaining a certification of an already registered cadastral plan costs approximately between ₡3,500 and ₡5,600 (2026), available online via RNPDigital with digital signature, on authorized certification platforms, or in person at the Registro Nacional.

Note: this procedure requires a topography professional (Ingeniero Topografo or Agrimensor) licensed with the CFIA — it is not something the owner can do directly on their own.