Expats on the move: Establishing residency in Costa Rica
While health care debates, social security reform and higher taxes take center stage in Washington, D.C., more and more Americans seem to be seeking residency elsewhere in the world and the number one destination appears to be Costa Rica.
While health care debates, social security reform and higher taxes take center stage in Washington, D.C., more and more Americans seem to be seeking residency elsewhere in the world and the number one destination appears to be Costa Rica.“We’ve seen a lot of passive inquiries about moving to Costa Rica and establishing residency there since starting our project,” commented Hacienda Matapalo Executive Vice President Brian Albury, whose company is building a 665-acre master planned gated community on the country’s South Pacific Coast. “But lately we’ve seen a dramatic upswing in serious interest – more so than any other time during this phase of our development.”
According to Christopher Howard, an authoritarian on Costa Rica and author of the recently released book "The New Golden Door To Retirement and Living in Costa Rica," there are more Americans living in Costa Rica per capita than any other country in the world. In an article on the Web site Costa Rica Outdoors, Howard wrote that Americans tend to feel more at home in Costa Rica than other Latin American country citing several reasons including health care, business opportunities, high yielding investments, tax breaks, real estate costs and security concerns.
There is much to know about establishing residency in Costa Rica. “For example, just like in the U.S. where there are several types of residency statuses, the same holds true for Costa Rica and whether we’re talking about a pensionado (retiree), rentista (legal resident), inversionista (investor), vinculo (relation to citizen) or any other classification, each has its own set of criteria.”
For this reason we recommend a good attorney to guide you through the process. We have used and recommended the same attorney for real estate and residency in Costa Rica for over 10 years, Gonzalo Viqyez {everyone knows him as Junior} and in all my years of doing business here I have not found anyone close to his efficiency, knowledge and attention to detail. You can reach him by phone at 506 8816 1681 or e mail at costaricanlegaladvice@gmail.com
