Costa Rica

Categoría Pensionado. A renewable two-year residence for anyone with a lifetime pension of at least $1,000 a month.

Free, with the law behind every answer

Categoría Pensionado

Renewable 2-year temporary residence, plus Law 9996 tax and import incentives (one-time duty exemption on household goods and a vehicle).

Who qualifies

Verifiable lifetime pension income of at least $1,000 a month.
Ley 9996, Reglamento (Decreto Ejecutivo 43926-MGP-H-TUR), Categoría Pensionado
Cannot do paid work in Costa Rica while holding this status.
EY Costa Rica, alert on the Reglamento to Ley 9996
Unmarried dependent children under 25 can be included.
EY Costa Rica, alert on the Reglamento to Ley 9996

You keep your U.S. citizenship.

Does it fit your family?

2 questions, from the program’s own rules.

Steady monthly income, from any source?

Not legal advice.

What it takes.

Income: At least $1,000 a month, steady and documented.
Time: 3–6 months to process with the Dirección General de Migración y Extranjería.
Cost: About $250–500 in government fees, plus $1,000–2,000 in typical attorney fees.
The hard part: The pension must be certified as a genuine lifetime payment, apostilled, from the paying institution; lump sums and temporary annuities do not qualify.

Dollar figures are converted from the local currency at the rate the program’s research used; the official figure is in the local currency.

Citizens by 2036.

If your first permit is issued in 2027 and you keep living there, this is the road.

2027
First residence permit
2 years, renewable for 2 years at a time.
2029
Renew the permit
Filed before the old one lapses; renews for 2 years.
2030
Permanent residence
Three years in a row on temporary residence. Student and special categories do not qualify. Permanent residents must keep up their national health-insurance (CCSS) payments to renew the card.
2034
Apply for citizenship
With a language test and a civics test.
2036
Citizenship
The decision usually takes 12–14 months.

Language: Speak, read and write Spanish, shown by passing the Education Ministry’s naturalisation Spanish exam or by Costa Rican schooling.
Civics: The Education Ministry’s Estudios Sociales exam on Costa Rican history and values; pass mark 70. Older adults are exempt.
Time away: Seven (or five) years of official, continuous residence. The TSE requires two witnesses who can attest to residence throughout and accepts social-security or medical records as additional proof.
Two passports: Yes. You keep your U.S. citizenship.

Temporary residence for up to two years at a time; permanent residence after three years in a row. The permit is cancelled after more than two consecutive years away.

The law behind these dates

Living there.

Time you must spend there: Must enter Costa Rica at least once a year to keep the status active.
Tax: Costa Rica taxes territorial-source income only; the foreign pension itself is not taxed there.

We never file a tax return. We tell you what applies and brief the professional who does.

Start today.

File under Law 9996’s Pensionado category with Costa Rica’s Dirección General de Migración y Extranjería.Open ecija.com ↗
Gather these documents.
- Proof of steady income: at least $1,000 a month
- Request your FBI Identity History Summary
- Health cover for the move

Postern can run this for you.

$900for your first year as a founding member. Then $399 a year, automatically.One membership, the whole family. Bank accounts and help putting your plan into action are included.

Postern runs it for Pensionado temporary residence.

19 steps, from the first paper to the passport. You do 4 of them: send what we ask for, sign, and show up. We run the rest, and keep every permit renewed on time. Opening your bank accounts there is included, whether you move now or keep the plan ready. Government fees, record fees and other costs you approve are extra.

Run it for my family →

ISSUED TO

YOUR FAMILY

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