Eligibility quiz
Do you have a permanent, stable pension from outside Costa Rica of at least US$1,000 a month or its equivalent?
Benefits
Benefits for youBenefits for you
Live in Costa Rica
You can live in Costa Rica for more than 90 days and up to two years, with the possibility of renewal for an equal period.
You can also obtain a foreign resident identity document, called a DIMEX.
Leave and return
You can leave and enter Costa Rica using the required immigration documents and procedures.
You must leave through an authorized border post, and a minor resident needs the required departure authorization.
Use public healthcare
Once enrolled in public social insurance, you can use the Costa Rican Social Security Fund, known as CCSS, under its usual rules.
Residence alone does not make the care free.
How to apply
Applying at a local officeApplying at a local office
Find an immigration office
Find a Costa Rican immigration office where you can submit your temporary residence application.
Searches DuckDuckGo for “Which Costa Rica immigration office near your city accepts pensionado or rentista temporary residence applications?”
Gather your documents
Prepare the required documents for your temporary residence application.
See required documentsPrepare your application
Prepare your application for permission to stay. Sign it in front of an immigration officer at your appointment, or have a lawyer certify your signature beforehand.
Find application instructionsSearches DuckDuckGo for “How do I prepare and sign a Costa Rica pensionado or rentista temporary residence application?”
Pay the fiscal charges
Get the fiscal charges assessed first, then pay them by deposit to account 242476-2 at Banco de Costa Rica. Keep the receipt for your application.
Find payment instructionsSearches DuckDuckGo for “How do I get the fiscal charges assessed and pay them for a Costa Rica pensionado or rentista temporary residence application?”
Book an appointment
Call 1311 to book an appointment to submit your application at a participating immigration office.
Find appointment instructionsSearches DuckDuckGo for “How do I book an appointment by calling 1311 for Costa Rica pensionado or rentista temporary residence?”
Go to your appointment
Bring your application, payment receipt, documents, originals and copies to the immigration office. Sign the application there if you have not had your signature certified by a lawyer.
Find submission instructionsSearches DuckDuckGo for “How do I submit a Costa Rica pensionado or rentista temporary residence application at an immigration office?”
Wait for the decision
Check your application using the office where you applied and your case number. If immigration asks for more information, send it as instructed and by the date in the notice.
Check your applicationGet your residence card
Once approved, pay the applicable charges and obtain your DIMEX residence card as immigration instructs. Your card documents your temporary residence in Costa Rica.
Find card instructionsSearches DuckDuckGo for “How do I pay the charges and get my DIMEX after approval for Costa Rica pensionado or rentista temporary residence?”
Renew your residence
Apply to renew your temporary residence before it expires and provide the requested evidence that you still meet its conditions. Renewal lets you continue living in Costa Rica under that status.
Find renewal instructionsSearches DuckDuckGo for “How do I renew Costa Rica pensionado or rentista temporary residence and DIMEX?”
Documents needed
Required to applyRequired to apply
Birth certificate
Get your birth certificate from the country where you were born.
Proof of income
For pensionado, provide pension receipts or a certificate showing the amount and how long you have been retired; your pension must be permanent, stable, from outside Costa Rica and at least US$1,000 a month or its equivalent. For rentista, provide proof of permanent, stable monthly income of at least US$2,500 or its equivalent, from outside Costa Rica or from banks in Costa Rica's national banking system; this can include a certified public accountant's statement of your income and expenses or a company's audited financial statements for the last financial year. Exceptionally, if you cannot provide any of these financial documents, you may provide a sworn statement explaining why, confirming you have enough resources and giving the source of your income; savings alone do not automatically qualify you.
Copy of your passport
Copy the pages with your personal details and Costa Rica entry stamp, and your entry visa if your nationality requires one. Have a notary certify the copy or bring the original so the receiving office can check it against the copy.
Passport photos
Provide two recent passport-sized photos of yourself. They must show you facing forward.
Police certificate
Get a police certificate from your country of origin or from the country where you lived legally for the past three years. If you use a certificate from the latter, also provide proof that you lived there legally.
Application form
Prepare your application for legal residence with your personal details, the residence category you are requesting, your current address and a way to contact you. At a Costa Rican immigration office, sign it in front of the official or have a lawyer certify your signature. If a representative applies for you at a consulate, include a special power of attorney.
Consular registration proof
Provide proof that you registered with your consulate. Ask your consulate what it requires for registration.
Proof of legal residence *
Provide a document showing that you lived legally in the country that issued your police certificate for the past three years.
* Only if you use a police certificate from the country where you lived legally for the past three years instead of your country of origin.
May need translationConsiderations
Things to think aboutThings to think about
Income and renewal
You must maintain your qualifying income and renew your documents/Renovacion-DIMEX.aspx) on time, meeting the requirements and paying the charges.
For residence based on a pension, that means a permanent, stable monthly pension from abroad of at least US$1,000 or its equivalent.
For residence based on independent income, it means permanent, stable monthly income of at least US$2,500 from abroad or the Costa Rican national banking system.
Limits on paid work
You may do paid work or run a business for profit only if immigration specifically authorizes it, whether you work for an employer or yourself.
Your residence alone does not authorize ordinary local employment or a Costa Rican business.
Social insurance contributions
To renew, you generally must show continuous CCSS coverage from the grant of residence through renewal of your identity document.
Residents without salaried or self-employed work must join and contribute to health insurance and insurance for disability, old age and death.
Time in Costa Rica
You must spend at least four months in Costa Rica each year, all at once or in separate stays.
If you cannot, you must request permission and provide evidence explaining your absence.
Exceptions can include qualifying medical treatment unavailable in Costa Rica, events beyond your control, or a specifically supported investment situation.
Tax exemption obligations
If you received a tax exemption, you must show you are current on the resulting tax obligations before your status is cancelled or you give it up.
Residence can end
Your status can end or be cancelled if it expires, you give it up, or you no longer meet its conditions.
It may also be cancelled if you fail to meet the minimum stay and do not request permission and provide evidence for your absence.
Discuss
Online communitiesOnline communities
Living in Costa Rica: Expat Community
English Facebook group for people living in Costa Rica interested in Costa Rican visas
Join on FacebookExpats moving to Costa Rica
English Facebook group for people living in Costa Rica interested in Costa Rican visas
Join on FacebookMove to Costa Rica – Everything You Need to Know
English Facebook group for people living in Costa Rica interested in Costa Rican visas
Join on FacebookConsultation
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