Costa Rica

Categoría Rentista. A renewable two-year residence for anyone with steady unearned income who is not a retiree.

Free, with the law behind every answer

Categoría Rentista

Renewable 2-year temporary residence, with the same Law 9996 tax and import incentives as Pensionado.

Who qualifies

Verifiable stable income of at least $2,500 a month for at least 2 years.
Dentons, Costa Rica Law 9996 to Attract Investors, Foreign Income Earners and Retirees
Or deposit $60,000 in a Costa Rican bank instead.
Dentons, Costa Rica Law 9996
Cannot do paid work in Costa Rica while holding this status.
Dentons, Costa Rica Law 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 $2,500 a month, steady and documented.
Savings: About $60,000.
Time: 3–6 months.
Cost: About $250–500 in government fees, plus $1,000–2,000 legal.
The hard part: Proving 2 years of continuous, verifiable income, not a one-off transfer, is the main documentary hurdle.

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.

Same road as Pensionado: two-year temporary permits, permanence after three years, citizenship after seven (five for Latin Americans and Spaniards).

The law behind these dates

Living there.

Time you must spend there: Must enter at least once a year.
Tax: Territorial tax system; the foreign income used to qualify is not taxed by Costa Rica.

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

Start today.

File a Rentista application with Costa Rica’s Dirección General de Migración y Extranjería.Open dentons.com ↗
Gather these documents.
- Proof of steady income: at least $2,500 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 Rentista 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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POSTERN