Costa Rica
Retiring to Costa Rica from the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland, Australia or New Zealand. Costa Rica has a retirement residence route: Residencia temporal — persona pensionada (temporary residence for a pensioner). It requires USD $1,000 a month in income (Residencia temporal — persona pensionada).
Sources: DGME (Costa Rica): Reglamento de Extranjería, Decreto 37112-GOB, art. 100, as reformed by Decreto 42389 (17 Jan 2022), 2026-10-20 · DGME (Costa Rica): Reglamento de Extranjería, Decreto 37112-GOB, art. 100, as reformed by Decreto 42389 (17 Jan 2022), 2022-01-17
The country figures on this page were checked at their official sources between Oct 16, 2026 and Oct 20, 2026; each one shows its own source and date.
Research in progress. The official data sources for Costa Rica have not yet been through our quality assessment, so this page is incomplete. What is published here is sourced and dated; what is missing is missing rather than estimated.
Residency and healthcare · measured for Costa Rica
Residencia temporal — persona pensionada
- Income
- USD $1,000 / month 1 × pensionado (USD $1,000 per month, in force Jan 17, 2022) · A lifetime pension, certified by a competent authority, or its equivalent in colones at the Banco Central de Costa Rica's selling rate.
- Food 124.2
- Housing, water, electricity and gas 67.4
- Health 129.0
- Transport 83.6
- Restaurants and hotels 89.2
- Communication 112.6
- Clothing and footwear 100.4
- Overall average 89.8
Cite this
Source: ExpatAlmanac, "Prices against the world average in Costa Rica", https://expatalmanac.com/costa-rica, figures as of 2021; original data: World Bank, International Comparison Program 2021 (CC BY 4.0).
How you may quote us: terms of use.
From United States
Visiting
Not yet verified.Who may tax your pension here
- Private or workplace pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
- State pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
- Government-service pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
Healthcare from home
Not yet verified.Travel advice
Not yet linked.From Canada
Visiting
Not yet verified.Who may tax your pension here
- Private or workplace pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
- State pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
- Government-service pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
Healthcare from home
Not yet verified.Travel advice
Not yet linked.From United Kingdom
Visiting
Not yet verified.Who may tax your pension here
- Private or workplace pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
- State pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
- Government-service pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
Healthcare from home
Not yet verified.Travel advice
Not yet linked.From Ireland
Visiting
Not yet verified.Who may tax your pension here
- Private or workplace pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
- State pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
- Government-service pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
Healthcare from home
Not yet verified.Travel advice
Not yet linked.From Australia
Visiting
Not yet verified.Who may tax your pension here
- Private or workplace pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
- State pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
- Government-service pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
Healthcare from home
Not yet verified.Travel advice
Not yet linked.From New Zealand
Visiting
Not yet verified.Who may tax your pension here
- Private or workplace pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
- State pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
- Government-service pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
Healthcare from home
Not yet verified.Travel advice
Not yet linked.From South Africa
Visiting
Not yet verified.Who may tax your pension here
- Private or workplace pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
- State pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
- Government-service pension: not yet verified from the treaty text
Healthcare from home
Not yet verified.Travel advice
Not yet linked.Cite this
Source: ExpatAlmanac, "Residency and healthcare in Costa Rica", https://expatalmanac.com/costa-rica, figures as of 2026; original data: DGME (Costa Rica): Reglamento de Extranjería, Decreto 37112-GOB, art. 100, as reformed by Decreto 42389 (17 Jan 2022).
How you may quote us: terms of use.
Towns we cover in Costa Rica
We don't cover any towns in Costa Rica yet.
Provinces — no town covered yet: Alajuela · Cartago · Guanacaste · Heredia · Limón · Puntarenas · San José
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