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Expat Living

Chinese Influence in Costa Rica Grows from Business to Education

Don Mateo - August 3, 2025

Expat Living

Costa Rica in the 90s From Mushrooms and Hammocks to a New Beginning

Expat Living

A Costa Rica Expat and the Devil on His Shoulder

Expat Living

Costa Rica Food Culture: From Bar Bocas to Fast Food Chains

Expat Living

An Expat’s Take: 5 Burning Questions About Life in Costa Rica Right Now

Don Mateo -

Have you been keeping up with the various events taking place in Costa Rica? There is always something interesting going down, and here are...

Expat Living

A Costa Rica Love Story: From Rustic Cabina to Separate Dreams

Don Mateo -

My Tica wife and I have been together for over a quarter century. When we met, I was living a simple life here. Three...

Expat Living

Why Costa Rica Feels Like a Safe Haven for This Longtime Expat

Don Mateo -

If someone asked me to sum up why I live in Costa Rica in 5 words or less, my answer could well be: “It...

Expat Living

U.S. Embassy in Costa Rica Mandates Public Social Media for Student Visas

Tico Times -

The U.S. Embassy in Costa Rica announced a new rule for anyone applying for F, M, or J nonimmigrant visas, which cover academic students,...

Expat Living

The Hidden Costs of Living in Costa Rica: Tariffs, Monopolies, and More

Don Mateo -

‘Tariffs’ is one of the buzzwords of 2025. Defined as taxes imposed by one country on goods imported from another country, tariffs are essentially...

Expat Living

Costa Rica Expat’s Bus Journey to the Border: A Ride Like No Other

Don Mateo -

I can’t say what compelled me to buy a ticket to the border on a collectivo bus. I got to the station too early....

Expat Living

Costa Rica Law Now Requires Corporations to Register an Email for Legal Notices

Jorge Montero -

Costa Rica has recently approved a very important law which establishes a new obligation for commercial corporations, and that obligation is that they must...

Expat Living

True Stories from Costa Rica’s Tourism Frontlines

Don Mateo -

Tourists—can’t live with them, can’t live without them. They, and the money they spend here, account for close to 10% of the GDP in...

Expat Living

Learning Spanish in Costa Rica: Lessons Beyond the Textbook

Don Mateo -

Learning a new language later in life requires patience, perseverance, and the understanding that, no matter how fluent you become, you'll probably never reach...

Expat Living

Protecting Your Interests in Costa Rica’s Anonymous Societies

Jorge Montero -

Under Costa Rican law, several types of corporations exist, with the most formal and widely used being the Sociedad Anónima (S.A.), or “Anonymous Society.”...