The DIMEX is the immigration identity document issued by Costa Rica’s immigration authority to foreign nationals with an approved immigration category. It is different from the initial residency application and from a Costa Rican citizen’s identity card. Start with DGME’s DIMEX page.
Your first DIMEX appointment
DGME says a person whose category has been approved must complete first documentation within 90 days after notification. The page directs applicants to arrange an appointment through the immigration call center at 1311 or BCR and to present the requirements stated in the approval resolution.
Read the notification and resolution before booking. If you have not yet been approved, a first-documentation appointment is not a substitute for the residency application.
What to bring
Build your checklist from the resolution and the appointment office’s current instructions. Check the required passport and identity records, payment evidence, CCSS documentation where applicable, and any category-specific items. Keep copies of your approval and appointment confirmation for reference.
Ask about original documents versus copies, how each applicant in the family is handled, and any additional requirements for a minor or a representative. Do not assume a renewal checklist is identical to a first appointment.
Photograph and personal details
Confirm the photograph arrangements with the office. DGME’s BCR documentation guidance refers to the stage when the photograph is taken; do not order printed photographs in an invented DIMEX size based on an unofficial article. First-application photographs and card-production photographs are not necessarily the same requirement.
At the appointment, carefully check your name, birth details and other information. Ask the office how to correct a discrepancy before the card is produced. A legal name change may need its own supporting records and procedure.
Fees and processing time
Confirm the payment instructions for first documentation. Renewal amounts and duplicate-card payments apply to different procedures and should not be reused automatically.
Keep the filing or service receipt and ask how collection or delivery will be communicated. Card production after the appointment is separate from the earlier residency application decision. There is no fixed production deadline promised in this guide; obtain the current estimate and follow-up channel from the office handling your card.
If your card has not arrived
Use the office and reference shown on your receipt to ask whether the card has been produced, dispatched or made available for collection. Confirm the delivery address or collection location before assuming it is lost. Keep a record of replies and follow any instruction to provide missing information.
Renewal, loss and travel
Check the expiry date once you receive the card. For renewal, use the residency renewal guide. If a still-valid card is lost or stolen, ask about DGME’s separate duplicate procedure.
A pending card-production receipt is not a travel guarantee. Check your documents and immigration situation with DGME and the airline before leaving or attempting to return without the physical card.
Contact CRIE if you need help organizing the instructions in your approval resolution.
DGME DIMEX information checked September 7, 2026. Images are illustrative.