Visas to Costa Rica for Indians

Citizens of India are included in what Costa Rica Immigration calls the Third Group, which means that they require a Consular Costa Rica Visa to enter Costa Rica.

1. Application directed to CR Consul. GLC will prepare this document, in
order to prepare it we require the following information from each
applicant:
Complete name:
Nationality:
Passport number:
Exact Address:
Purpose of the trip:
Estimated stay in CR:
Place of entry to CR:
Estimated dates of arrival and departure:
Occupation:
Exact Address in CR:
Place and date of birth:
Fax to receive notifications in CR: GLC will provide that.
Date and Signature:

2. Copy of the first page of the passport, the document must be valid for
at least 6 months.

3. Ticket
4. Proof of economic means while in CR.
5. Payment of the established government fees.
6. Other requirements established by the Consul.

Procedure: We receive all your personal details, prepare the application
and in 2-3 business days send it via email to so that you can print it and
take it to the CR Consulate, GLC coordinates with the CR Consul to fix an
appointment for you.

Please provide the necessary details and we will gladly assist you.

Costa Rica Visa: Restricted Visas to enter Costa Rica Procedure

Below you will find the Procedure for Costa Rica Restricted Visas:

Chinese are on the restricted Costa Rica visa list, however there are exceptions to this rule, specifically in cases in which chinese already have residence or visa to enter countries like: EU, Canada and the USA among others.

If they are not in that situation they will need the following:
1. Application:

A written application in Spanish in the CR Consulate in Beijing, with the following info:
a) Full name
b) Nationality
c) Profession or occupation
d) number of passport
e) Full name and nationality of parents
f) Place of residence
g) Date and place of birth
h) Reason for travel (i.e., tourism, business, study)
i) Estimated time of stay
j) Location and approximate date of arrival and departure
k) Exact address of where you reside or stay
l) Fax of in CR
m) Date of request
n) Signature

2. Documents:

All documents are original and derived from the PRC or any other country must be certified and legalized by the Consular Dept. of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China before being submitted to the Consulate of CR.

Also document in a language other than Spanish must be accompanied by the official translation.

The documents are:

a) Passport, must be at least 6 months of validity.

b) Copy of the biographic page of passport,with its official translation.

c) Confirmation of the air ticket reservation.
The reservation must include a definite date of departure from the
territory or to continue the journey. Since not all the visas are
approved, it is not necessary to present the physical ticket itself.

d) Proof of economic means with which the applicant will have to survive
in the country during his tenure, duly legalized and translated if
appropriate.
Checking is done by means of the following documents:
- Letter or labor certification, indicating the position held, salary and
time worked
- Bank Statement of last 3 months
It is important that the documents submitted demonstrate not only the
applicant's financial solvency. Also be used to verify that it has ties
rooted in their country of origin.
To this end, the consulate may also request the concerned to present:
- Certification issued by a cpa, issued in the 6 months
prior to their presentation, legalized and translated into Spanish.
- travelers checks
- Credit cards or debit International

e) Legalized Criminal Record, issued by the authorities of their country or where they had their habitual residence during the 3 years preceding
the date of application.

In exceptional cases where it is totally impossible to obtain the certification of criminal record, the applicant may request in
writing that you are exempt from submitting such a requirement.

f) 2 color photos passport size.

3. Pay the cost of the visa:
Once approved you must cancel the amount applicable customs cost of the costa rica visa.

Let us know when you are ready and GLC will coordinate all details.

Costa Rica Immigration: Residency Regimes and Work Permits

Costa Rica Residencies and Work Permits:

Investor: Requires a minimum investment in a CR business of US$200,000 in a company that will contribute with the growth of the economy.
Duration: 6 months-1 year approx.

Rentist: Requires a minimum deposit of US$60,000 per applicant in a recognized international bank, which will reimburse the applicant a minimum monthly amount of US$1000.
Duration: 4 -6 months.

Pensioner: Requires a minimum certified lifetime income from a national institution of US$600.
Duration: 4 -6 months.

Work Permit: The employee has to find a CR company that will sponsor the specialized worker, only qualified applicants with a desired combination of academic qualifications, skills and experience will qualify for this regime. If the sponsoring company is an Immigration Recognized company, the process is faster and improves the opportunity of an approval.
Duration: 6-12 months. (for an employee of a non recognized company)

Duration: 1-2 months. (for an employee of a recognized company)

Company Recognition: A CR Corporation that can demonstrate that it requires a steady influx of foreign labor and that the business activity will contribute with added value processes to the CR economy.

Contact GLC to determine if you are eligible and for speedy processing.

Costa Rica Visas: Different Visa Groups

GLC has more than 10 years of experience with Costa Rica attorneys specialized in Costa Rica Immigration Law. Because of the strategic geographic location, political and economical stability and attractive business environment we firmly believe that Costa Rica is one of the best options available.

Visas to enter Costa Rica:

Costa Rica Visas has 4 Groups:

First: DO NOT REQUIRE COSTA RICA VISA, CAN STAY FOR UP TO 90 DAYS.
MAINLY CITIZENS OF NORTH AND SOUTH AMERICA AND THE EU.

Second: DO NOT REQUIRE COSTA RICA VISA, CAN STAY FOR UP TO 30 DAYS.
MAINLY CITIZENS OF CENTRAL AMERICA, CARIBBEAN AND SOME ASIAN COUNTRIES.

Third: REQUIRE A CONSULAR COSTA RICA VISA, CAN STAY FOR UP TO 30 DAYS.
MAINLY CITIZENS OF EAST EUROPE, AFRICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST.

Fourth: REQUIRE A RESTRICTED COSTA RICA VISA, CAN STAY FOR UP TO 90 DAYS. CITIZENS OF: AFGHANISTAN, BANGLADESH, CUBA, HAITI, IRAN, IRAK,
MYANMAR ORBIRMANIA, PALESTINAN TERRITORY, SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC, PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA, DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF KOREA, SOMALIA, SRI LANKA

GLC will coordinate every aspect of the Costa Rica entry Visa in the respective CR Consulate and prepare all the applications to secure the Visa.

Duration: 10 days-30 days

Contact us to find out with our expert Costa Rica attorneys if you are eligible.

Costa Rican Incorporation: Details of the Incorporation Process

GLC is the main Costa Rican Incorporator for clients located around the world.

Costa Rican Corporations are used to conduct business as they are cost effective and have advantages for specific activities like Costa Rica gaming, and ecommerce in general.

GLC offers two types of Costa Rica limited liability Corporations:

1.Costa Rica Corporations: for business in general and contain:

Articles of Incorporation
Legal Books
Share Certificates
Corporate Certification
Official translation to English

2.Costa Rica Gaming Corporations: legal gaming and online entertainment activities.

Articles of Incorporation
Legal Books
Share Certificates
Corporate Certification
Official translation to English

Both include in the fees: the first year of resident agent and the registered address.

You can visit and select our stock of ready made companies at:
http://www.glccr.com/Shelf_Corporations.html

Please determine if you want to incorporate a new or ready made Costa Rica corporation and we will send you our Incorporation Application Form, let us know if you have any doubts.

Costa Rica Immigration: Costa Rica entry Visas, Costa Rica Residency for Rentist and as Executive

As you possibly know, Costa Rica is among the favorite destinations for retirement or investment in the world. Because of that our firm devotes its efforts towards facilitating legal & business procedures that are essential to safely obtain this goals.

The following are the most important regimes that exist to get a Residency in Costa Rica:

1. Costa Rica Visas are based on the country of origin, in that sense countries are distributed in 4 groups, and depending on that clasification the requirements vary. For example India used to be in the list as requiring restricted but it was recently changed to consular visa. Our firm has processed succesfully visas for citizens of Nepal, India, Pakistan and other countries in that region with success.
Legal Fees: US$500.00 per individual
Duration:1 month

2. Residency as Rentist: Possibly the most effective way to obtain legal status, however requires a deposit of US$60,000.00 in a recognized world bank in a Certificate of Deposit for at least 5 years that will guarantee a minimum monthly payment to the applicant of US$1000.00.
Legal Fees:US$1000.00
Duration:4-6months.

3. Temporary Residency as an Executive of a Recognized Company: This procedure started only in May19th, 2008 as an effort of the government to facilitate Costa Rica immigration matters. It requires first to register a CR Corporation as a Recognized company that will start operations in the country that are considered important for the economic growth of the country. Once the company has been recognized it is authorized to hire foreign employees that qualify based on education and/or experience.
Legal Fees: US$1500.00 For Company Recognition
Legal Fees:US$1000.00 Per Executive
Duration:2 months for entire process, once the company is recognized the residence for executives could be obtained in 1 month.


Common Requirements for all applications:
-Birth Certificate
-Police Record
-Certified Copy of Passport
-Fingerprints
-4 passport size pictures
-deposits to the CR Government
-Application

Note: All foreign documents have to be authenticated in the CR Consulate for the specific region and then translated to Spanish.Our office coordinates all the necessary details so that the client can have the best possible result.

Contact our team for further details.

Costa Rica Relocation: Main Aspects to Consider

The concept of relocation to Costa Rica means moving from your country of origin or residence to Costa Rica, to establish in a new location and in most of the cases, implicates the change of residency. All this involves a sometimes complicated process. Due to this, relocation services in Costa Rica have been growing in the past years, with the purpose of making the move as easy as possible.

Each person has particular interests when settling in a new life. The idea is to fulfill their particular needs, attending the following considerations when relocating to Costa Rica:

Arrival Assistance
Traveling and transporting every belonging can turn into a stressful situation. To guarantee a trouble-free arrival, Costa Rican movers offer an international service, to provide safe transportation in every step of the moving process:
 Customized packing and unpacking services: which involve wrapping, labeling and packing of every belonging, as well as unpacking and reassembling everything that was disarmed. This attention applies for both household belongings and office equipment.
 Storage services: for documents, furniture and any other stuff, all taken care in warehouse facilities.
 Coordinating the shipment of belongings, whether on air, sea, or land means.
Home Search and removals

Our Moving service is done directly through our in house Costa Rican moving company Mudanzas Economicas Arpo, a recognized moving company with more than 30 years of experience.

According to the clients requirements and the budget available, residential areas and properties are identified and suggested to the client, until one of them fits their purposes, whether if he wants to buy or lease.

As part of the accommodation, guidance is also provided in matter of education (schools), supermarkets, sport facilities, medical centers, religious centers, leisure, entertainment, work, and transport.
Advice is also provided in the case of market prices.

Costa Rican Legal Advice
After the client has made his mind on the options available, paperwork comes next:
 Drafting, checking and closing rental or purchase contracts, as well as their translation.

 Application of Costa Rican residencies, Costa Rican visas, Costa Rican work permits, car registration.
 Dealing with insurance policies (house, car, medical...), opening Costa Rican bank accounts.

Departure assistance
Whenever the client decides to leave definitely Costa Rica, advice is also facilitated for terminating contracts, registrations and coordinating the shipment of personal belongings (with the help of international moving companies).

GLC is the first mover in Costa Rica Relocation since 1999 and is the only company that has all the different Relocation Services under one roof.

Costa Rica Business Start Up, is it really that complicated?

Because Costa Rica is still a developing economy, we believe that small and medium enterprises are fundamental for the short and long term growth of our economy. Having that in mind we express in a few lines the simple version of how to start up a Costa Rican business.

In order to conduct business in Costa Rica, foreigners can do it through the incorporation of Costa Rican Companies, according to our Commerce Code. The procedure for establishing an enterprise in Costa Rica is the following:

STEP 1
To determine what type of corporation will be used. There are two options:
 Sociedad Anónima (S.A.) operates with four members called the Board of Directors, which are the President, Secretary, Treasurer and Auditor. Commonly used in complex business, requires more formalities than an S.R.L.
 Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada (S.R.L.): applies for smaller business, requiring a minimum of two members when incorporating, afterwards, it can be managed by only one person.

STEP 2
Once the decision is made, the company has to be registered before the Mercantile Section at the National Registry, and to acquire the corporate identification number. In order for this, the notary public has to elaborate the corporation charter after verifying the proposed name isn´t already registered for another company. He also has to publish an edict in the official daily newspaper, "The Gazette", consisting on a brief mention of the creation of the company, to let the public now. However, there´s no need to wait for the publication, presenting the paid receipt is enough. The corresponding stamps have to be cancelled too.
Moreover, after the registration in the Mercantile Registry, the company has to be registered also as contributor in the General Income Tax Office, since the entity will perform an economic activity.
In some cases, when the entrepreneur is eager to start his business, or for any urgent purposes, there are already made corporations, which have already completed this registration process.

STEP 3
To get a Work Risk Insurance for the company´s employees before the local insurance agency, as well as registering the company before the social security institution.

Step 4
Once the previous requirements are fulfilled and the company is duly registered, the ideal is to have an open office, or a place where the business will be located. Before choosing the place, the person has to respect of the zoning regulation, since not all areas allow commercial activity. In the case of those areas where it is allowed, a Zoning Permit is issued.

STEP 4
The company has to apply for a Health Permit, an operation certificate issued by the Ministry of Public Health.

Step 5
After the Health Permit is granted, the company has to apply for a Municipal Business License, issued by the corresponding city hall.

Step 6
Finally, an account processing and the registration of trademarks under the company´s name before the Industrial Property Registry proceeds.

As you can see the procedure is fairly simple, however it requires experience with the local bureaucracy.

Is it realistic to obtain a Work Permit in Costa Rica?

In the current Costa Rica Immigration Law, Work Permits are not established as such. This does not mean foreigners are not able to work in Costa Rica, because the category of temporary residencies does contain the possibility of bringing foreigners to work in certain activities. These temporary residencies apply for: scientists, professionals, technical specialists, correspondents, athletes, executives, representatives, managers, technical employees, and dependants of registered companies.

The basic requirements are the following:

STEP 1

To address a letter to the General Director of Costa Rica Immigration, signed by the legal representative of the company requiring the services of the foreigner. It has to be legalized by a consul, notary public or a respective Costa Rica immigration functionary. In the case of religious applications, they are allowed to apply directly without the assistance of a Costa Rica attorney. Either way, the letter has to explain the reasons of the application of the residency, the activities the person will carry on in Costa Rica, the personal information of both the applicant and his legal representative when required, a place for receiving notifications, the possible direction of the applicant, a document that certifies the type of work that he or she will be making and the proposed salary.

STEP 2

Present the corporate certification of the company or entity that is requiring the services here in Costa Rica, in the case of athletes, the sports organization or National Sports Council, as well as a labor contracts with the organizations, it is also needed in the case of executives, representatives, managers, technical employees, and dependants, authenticated by a Costa Rica lawyer.
To present a certification from a chartered public accountant that certifies the economic capacity of the company, as well as the certification of the Social Security Institution/ Insurance Institution to confirm goodstanding.

STEP 3

ID copies and the original document of the foreigner that intends to work here in Costa Rica. The applicants must be fingerprinted at the Ministry of Public Security.

STEP 4

To present a report from the Ministry of Social Security and Labor, previously requested, that demonstrates that the national work force won´t be affected or displaced, as the Immigration policies intend to avoid.

STEP 5

Present his/ her Birth certificate where the name of the applicants parents appear, it must be legalized by the respective Consul, and once in Costa Rica, sealed in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Also a certified copy of the applicant’s passport is necessary.

STEP 6

To present the certification of criminal record, this confirms there were no crimes or felonies committed by the applicant in the past three years. It must be legalized first by the consul, then by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs here en Costa Rica.

STEP 7

Attach photographs, stamps, and translation to Spanish if the documents where written in any other language.

As you can see it is not impossible to obtain a Costa Rica Work Permit, however just like similar laws around the world, the applicant has to demonstrate considerable qualifications that can contribute with the development of a specific Costa Rican Corporation which will have to sponsor the petition.