Country visa guide
Costa Rica digital nomad visa: income rules, length, and tax
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For years Costa Rica was a remote-work bolthole with no paperwork to match. That changed in 2021, when the legislature passed Ley 10008 and created the Estancia de Trabajador o Prestador Remoto de Servicios, a non-resident category built for people who earn abroad and want to settle in for a year or two without dipping into the local job market. The deal is easy to grasp: bring foreign income, keep it taxed where it comes from, and swap the endless tourist-stamp runs for a permit that holds. Here is what the rule asks of you, the tax angle that makes it worth a look, and the fine print that catches people out.
The facts, at a glance
The rules below come straight from the statute; the fees and the filing steps come from published guidance, since the law leaves those to regulation. Rules and fees do drift, though. Treat each line as a sourced estimate and confirm it with the Dirección General de Migración y Extranjería before you file or pay anything. It is a planning baseline, not the checklist you bring to filing day.
| Programme name | Estancia for remote workers and service providers, Trabajador o Prestador Remoto de Servicios (Ley 10008, 2021) In Costa Rican law this is a non-resident category (subcategoría de estancia), not a residence permit, so the time does not build toward permanent residency on its own. |
|---|---|
| Minimum income | US$3,000/month for a single applicant; US$4,000/month if you include your family group, averaged over the prior 12 months The US$4,000 family figure can be reached by combining your income with your spouse's or another member's, and it has to be income that keeps coming in while you are out of your home country (art. 10a). |
| Initial duration | Up to 1 year, renewable once for a further year (max 2 years) if you stayed at least 180 days in-country during year one Ley 10208 (2022) read art. 15 as "up to" a year, so a shorter grant is possible. Before it expires you can apply to switch to another migration category. |
| What you cannot do | Take paid work or provide paid services inside Costa Rica. The estancia only covers remote work for clients and companies abroad Breaking that cancels the estancia and every benefit attached to it, and you then owe the income tax you were exempted from plus interest and penalties, and the import duty on any equipment you brought in duty free (arts. 13 and 14). |
| Application route | Apply online to the Dirección General de Migración y Extranjería (DGME) via its Trámite Ya platform (from inside or outside Costa Rica); once approved you attend an in-person DGME appointment for biometrics and DIMEX card issuance The law requires the DGME to run this through a digital window and to decide within 15 calendar days, with the clock pausing if it writes to you for a missing document (Ley 10008, arts. 6 and 7). |
| Health cover | Proof of medical insurance valid in Costa Rica for the full stay (min. US$50,000 coverage) Ley 10008 requires cover for the whole stay but leaves the minimum amount to the DGME, so this figure can move without the law changing. |
| Government fees | Approx. US$100 application + US$90 issuance, plus standard apostille/translation costs |
| Tax on foreign income | Full exemption from Costa Rican income tax on profits (Ley 7092, Title I). The law says beneficiaries are never treated as habitual tax residents of Costa Rica and their foreign earnings are not Costa Rican source income The exemption covers the beneficiary alone, not the family group: a partner who wants it has to qualify in their own right (art. 16). It says nothing about what your home country may still tax. |
| Local perks | Drive on your home licence for the visa term; exemption from import taxes on the basic personal computing and telecoms equipment you need for the work; you can open savings accounts with Costa Rican banks The equipment exemption follows proportionality criteria set by the customs authority, and you owe the duty back if you pass the kit on while still a beneficiary (art. 17). |
Eligibility, in short
A strong fit if you draw a steady remote salary or freelance income at or above US$3,000 a month, your clients sit abroad, and your health cover is in order. The territorial exemption on that foreign income is the real draw, and the 180-day presence rule is gentle next to most residence permits.
Think twice if your income is lumpy, sits just under the bar, or comes from inside Costa Rica. Paid work in the country isn’t merely taxable, it is off limits under the law: take it and you lose the estancia, the tax exemption and the equipment exemption together, and you owe the tax back with interest. The permit also stops at two years and, being a non-resident category, won’t carry you to permanent residency by itself.
Why the tax angle matters
Most countries that chase nomads still claim the right to tax your worldwide income the moment you become resident. Costa Rica doesn’t. Its system is territorial, so only income with a Costa Rican source is taxable there, and Ley 10008 removes any doubt for the foreign earnings that won you the visa: it exempts them outright and states that you are not a habitual tax resident of the country. That exemption is personal, though, so a partner on your application doesn’t inherit it. The catch waits back home. Your country of citizenship or prior residence may keep taxing you until you’ve genuinely cut your tax ties, and a treaty, or the absence of one, decides who collects. Settle that before you book a flight, not after you land.
How to file without surprises
Applications go to the DGME through an online window, which is how the law sets the process up, and it has fifteen calendar days to decide once your file is complete. The pieces that snag people are the income proof (twelve months of statements, ideally with an accountant’s letter confirming the foreign source) and an insurance certificate written for the full visa term. Getting foreign documents apostilled and translated takes far longer than filling in the form, so kick those off early. Already in Costa Rica on a tourist stamp? You can usually file from inside the country instead of trekking back to a consulate.
Before you commit
Two quick checks first. Our digital nomad visa checker shows how Costa Rica’s income and document bar stacks up against the dozen-odd other nomad visas you might qualify for, so you don’t lock into the first one you happen to read about. And if your plan means hopping in and out of Europe between Costa Rican stints, our Schengen 90/180 calculator keeps your EU day-count honest while you base yourself in San José. Both are free and answer instantly.
Frequently asked questions
How much income do I need for the Costa Rica digital nomad visa? +
Plan on a steady US$3,000 a month if you apply solo, or US$4,000 a month once you add a spouse, children or a dependent parent, averaged across the previous twelve months. The family figure does not have to come from you alone: the law lets you reach it by combining your income with your partner’s. You back it up with bank statements or a letter from your employer or accountant that shows the money is foreign-sourced and will keep coming in while you are out of your home country.
Will I pay Costa Rican tax on my remote salary? +
Costa Rica taxes on a territorial basis, which means it reaches income earned inside the country and leaves money you earn abroad alone. The Estancia spells this out: the foreign earnings that qualified you stay free of local income tax, and the law says you are never treated as a habitual tax resident of Costa Rica. Two limits worth knowing. The exemption covers you, not your partner or children, so anyone else who wants it has to qualify in their own right. And none of it binds your home country, which may keep taxing you, so check your own residency and any tax treaty before you move.
How long can I stay, and can I renew? +
You get up to a year up front, with a single renewal that adds a second year, two years in total. The condition for that renewal is written into the law: you have to have actually been in the country for at least 180 days during year one.
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Sources
- Ley 10008 of 11 August 2021, "Ley para atraer trabajadores y prestadores remotos de servicios de carácter internacional (nómadas digitales)", Asamblea Legislativa de Costa Rica, in force 1 September 2021 and amended by Ley 10208 of 22 April 2022. Official consolidated text in SINALEVI, Procuraduría General de la República
- The Costa Rican Times. Costa Rica's Digital Nomad Visa: rules, fees and step-by-step guide
- Visit Costa Rica (ICT, official national tourism board): Digital Nomads page
Voymo gives general information to help you organise your move. It is not legal, tax, or immigration advice, always confirm with an official source or a qualified professional before you act.