Expert: Beatrice Blake - 1/2/2012

Question
I'm planning to move to Costa Rica, it could be a long stay. I am an American citizen and need to know the requirements for getting a job there.

Answer
Dear Jim,

Unfortunately, it is illegal for foreigners to work in Costa Rica. You can only do jobs for which the employer gets you a work permit. For instance, if a bilingual school needs native speaking English teachers, they can get you a work permit. Or if a multinational company sends you to supervise their factory in Costa Rica, the company would get you a work permit. Costa Rica is very small, and they don't want foreigners taking jobs that could be done by Costa Ricans.

You can get your official residency if you invest a certain amount of money in property or in having your own business. The Costa Rica Residents Association (arcr.net) is a good source of information about legal requirements for residency.

You get an automatic visa to CR as a US citizen, and can extend it for another three months if you leave the country for 72 hours by going to Nicaragua or Panamá. After that, the CR government wants you to apply for residency.

Best wishes,

Beatrice Blake
keytocostarica.com