A project that will lower the minimum required investment to obtain Costa Rica residency has been signed into law by President Carlos Alvarado.
Project 22.156 will reduce the minimum capital investment for Costa Rica residency from $200,000 to $150,000.
In addition, the law includes incentives such as the tax-free importation of vehicles for personal or family use and a one-time tax exemption for importing household goods.
People who qualify can import “up to two land, air or sea transportation vehicles, for personal or family use, free of all import, customs and value added taxes,” the text reads.
Money earned abroad (e.g. a U.S. pension) would not be taxed by Costa Rica.
“What this law achieves is to create the conditions so that these rentiers can come to the country, bring their investments and we can generate employment. It is one more step in the direction of recovery, which we all must continue to push in the country,” said President Alvarado.
Outlier Legal translated a draft of the bill to English. You can read that here; note that some details have changed since their publication. The final version of the bill (in Spanish) can be found here.
While the law will produce changes to the Costa Rica residency process, “we must also wait for the ruling that will come to dictate how the law is actually applied to be prepared and published,” Outlier notes.