Good news for travelers: Costa Rica’s airport exit tax (finally) will be added to ticket prices

Costa Rican officials are moving to eliminate an extra bureaucratic step for travelers who depart Costa Rica by air. Beginning Dec. 3, the country’s $29 airport exit tax will be rolled into the price of airline tickets, Vice President Ana Helena Chacón said on Tuesday.

The tax, which has been in place since 2003, currently is paid at a special counter at the airport, at Bancrédito bank branches, or at travel agencies. A passenger must pay it before checking in for a flight. But a recent agreement to include the tax in ticket prices was reached between the bank, the airlines, the Immigration Administration, airport administrators, the Finance Ministry and the National Tourism Board, Chacón said.

“We were unable to implement this system before because we had difficulties in applying the exemption for diplomat officials, but the Foreign Ministry and the Immigration Administration are now sharing a database of all people who are tax exempt,” she said.

Revenue from the exit tax is used by the Civil Aviation Authority exclusively for the expansion and modernization of the country’s airports.