Do I need a visa to visit or to live in Costa Rica?
Do I need a visa to visit or to live in Costa Rica?
In order to live in Costa Rica, you need to obtain a residence permit or leave the country every 90 days in order to extend your stay in the country (however, this is only possible for countries that do not need to obtain a visa to travel to Costa Rica).
For most countries, Costa Rica is open and tourists can visit the country without a visa. Countries that do not require a visa to visit Costa Rica can enter Costa Rica and stay there for up to 90 days. These 90 days cannot be extended and the tourist must leave the country after the expiry of the visa. They can re-enter at any time to apply for an additional 90 days at the discretion of the immigration officer at the point of entry. At the same time, the passport on which you are traveling must have a validity period of at least one day.
These countries include the following:
GERMANY ANDORRA ARGENTINA AUSTRALIA AUSTRIA BAHAMAS BARBADOS BELGIUM BRAZIL BULGARIA CANADA CROATIA CHILE CYPRUS DENMARK UNITED ARAB EMIRATES SLOVAKIA SLOVENIA SPAIN STATE OF QATAR UNITED STATES OF AMERICA SLOVAKIA ESTONIA FINLAND FRANCE HUNGARY IRELAND ICELAND ISRAEL ITALY JAPAN LATVIA LIECHTENSTEIN LITHUANIA LUXEMBOURG MALTA MEXICO MONTENEGRO NORWAY NEW ZEALAND NORTHERN ZEALAND NETHERLANDS PANAMA PARAGUAY POLAND PORTUGAL PRINCIPALITY OF MONACO SAN MARINO PERU PUERTO RICO SERBIA SOUTH AFRICA KINGDOM OF THE GREAT BRITAIN CZECH REPUBLIC REPUBLIC OF SOUTH KOREA HELLENIC REPUBLIC (GREECE) ROMANIA VATICAN SINGAPORE SWEDEN SWITZERLAND TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO URUGUAY
The following countries can also enter visa-free and stay there for up to 90 days. But their passport is valid for at least three months.
ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA BELIZE BOLIVIA DOMINICA EL SALVADOR STATE OF BRUNEI RUSSIAN FEDERATION PHILIPPINES FIJI GRENADA GUATEMALA GUYANA HONDURAS NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS MARSHALL ISLANDS SOLOMON ISLANDS KAZAKHSTAN KIRIBATI MALAYSIA MALDIVES MAURITIUS MICRONESIA (FEDERATED STATES) NAURU PALAU KINGDOM OF TONGA SAMOA SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES SAINT LUCIA SÃO TOMÉ AND PRINCÍPE SEYCHELLES SURINAME TAIWAN TUVALU TURKEY UKRAINE VANUATU VENEZUELA
The following countries must obtain a visa from a Costa Rica embassy or consulate abroad before entering Costa Rica. A visa can be issued for a period of 30 days with the possibility of an extension of up to 90 days. In this case, the passport must be valid for at least six months.
These countries include:
ALBANIA ANGOLA SAUDI ARABIA ALGERIA ARMENIA AZERBAIJAN BAHRAIN BENIN BELARUS BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA BOTSWANA BURKINA FASO BURUNDI BUTAN CAPE VERDE CAMBODIA CAMEROON COLOMBIA CÔTE D’IVOIRE COMOROS CHAD ECUADOR EGYPT GABON GAMBIA GEORGIA GHANA GUINEA GUINEA BISSAU EQUATORIAL GUINEA INDIA INDONESIA JORDAN KENYA KYRKYZSTAN KOSOVO KUWAIT LESOTHO LIBERIA LIBYA LEBANON MADAGASCAR MALAUI MALI MOROCCO MAURITANIA MOLDOVA MONGOLIA MOZAMBIQUE NAMIBIA NEPAL NICARAGUA NIGER NIGERIA OMAN PAKISTAN PAPUA NEW GUINEA SAHRAWI ARAB REPUBLIC CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO (FORMERLY ZAIRE) PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA PEOPLE’S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF LAOS DOMINICAN REPUBLIC RWANDA SENEGAL SIERRA LEONE NORTHERN SUDAN SOUTH SUDAN SWAZILAND THAILAND TANZANIA TAJIKISTAN EAST TIMOR TOGO TUNISIA TURKMENISTAN UGANDA UZBEKISTAN VIETNAM YEMEN YIBUTI ZAMBIA ZIMBABWE
The last category of countries is a strict category. Citizens of these countries must have an entry visa BEFORE being allowed to enter Costa Rica. A visa is reviewed by the Director of Immigration before it can be granted. If issued, a visa is issued for a period of 30 days with the possibility of extension for a maximum of 90 days.
AFGHANISTAN BANGLADESH CUBA ERITREA ETHIOPIA HAITI IRAN IRAQ JAMAICA MYANMAR (BURMA) PALESTINE SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF THE NORTH KOREA SOMALIA SRI LANKA