Refugee status
Unidad de Refugio, Dirección General de Migración y Extranjería · Official name: Solicitud de reconocimiento de la condición de persona refugiada (Ley General de Migración 8764; Reglamento de Personas Refugiadas)
People who fear persecution can ask Costa Rica's migration authority (DGME) for refugee status. Under the Refugee Regulation as amended in 2022, the claim must be made within one calendar month of entering Costa Rica; late claims are inadmissible. New arrivals can claim at an authorised border post; people already in the country book an appointment with the Refugee Unit in La Uruca, San José. Claimants receive a provisional document. They can ask for a work permit only if the authority takes longer than three months to decide.
Life in Costa Rica
Finance
3
Currency
Costa Rican Colón
CRC
Costa Rican Colón
Cost of living
62
Price level · US = 100
World Bank price levels, 2025
Tax
10–25%
Income tax (national)
VAT (IVA) 13%
Salary scale 2026: monthly salary up to CRC 918,000 exempt; 25% on the excess over CRC 4,727,000 a month. Self-employed have a separate annual scale.
Living
1
Happiness
#4 of 145 countries
World Happiness Report 2025
Who it’s for
Foreign nationals in Costa Rica or at its border who fear persecution in their country of origin.
Eligibility
Claim within one month of entry
You need to lodge your refugee claim within one calendar month of the day you entered Costa Rica.
One calendar month
Time limit to claim · counted from day of entry
- Claims made later are inadmissible
- Rule: Refugee Regulation as amended by Decreto 43810
Official wording
The claim must be lodged within one calendar month counted from the day of entry into Costa Rica; claims made later are inadmissible (Refugee Regulation as amended by Decreto 43810).
Fear of persecution
Grounds as set out in Costa Rica's refugee rules (Ley 8764 and the Refugee Regulation).
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- 2 documents
- 4 steps
- Processing times and conditions
