Next?

by Esteban Zeledon

Do you know what to do after receiving the immigration office resolution approving your residency in Costa Rica?

Once you have received your legal temporary resident approval resolution from the immigration department, you must read it carefully to complete any pending requirements established in the resolution. You must also proceed with the following steps:

1. Enrollment with CCSS: You must go to the Costa Rican Social Security (CCSS) to obtain a social security number in the CR health care system. The mandatory monthly amounts are approximately US $400 for the investor or fixed annuity category, and approximately US $115 per month for the pensioner or retiree resident category. These amounts are payable at the exchange rate in colones at the CCSS branch on the day of registration and after that monthly at any of the CCSS offices or through online banking with a CR bank.

Afterward, all dependents must submit the required documents before the assigned EBAIS (Basic Team for Comprehensive Health Care) to register and obtain the "carne" confirming registration or the social security dependent number.

2. Scheduling appointment: Call 1311 to schedule an appointment at Correos de Costa Rica (Costa Rica Post Office) or the nearest immigration offices. Ensure you have your resolution handy; they will ask for detailed information. You will receive the appointment confirmation by email. Please check to make sure everything is accurate, and note the date and time to avoid losing the appointment.

Twenty-four hours before the scheduled appointment date, you must proceed with the payments of the guarantee deposit, the amounts indicated in the residence approval resolution, and any other amount indicated by the immigration representative during the appointment call. Bring proof of those payments on the day of your appointment.

3. Guarantee deposit: This amount is established at 75% of the cost of a travel ticket to your country of origin, or the country of habitual residence during the last five years before legally residing in Costa Rica. The value of the ticket will correspond to an open ticket for one year and will be set according to the route of entry into the country.

This deposit must clearly state the full name of the applicant and in favor of the "Direccion General de Migracion y Extranjeria" per section 133 of Law 8764, equivalent in colones to the reference exchange rate "sale" that is calculated daily and published in the Central Bank of Costa Rica to the account precisely indicated in the resolution for each.

Dues and expenses to be paid: Per section 33 subsection 4, and sections 251, 252, and 253 of Law 8764, the following amounts — equivalent in colones to the reference exchange rate "sale" that is calculated daily and published in the Central Bank of Costa Rica — are payable to the account precisely indicated in the resolution for each:

• US $25 in favor of the "Fondo Social de Migracion" for the use of immigration services

• US $98 for the value and issuance of the document that accredits you as a CR Temporary Resident.

Both payments must be in favor of the "Direccion General de Migracion y Extranjeria" in the applicant's full name.