Costa Rica residency applications begin with a category that fits your circumstances and the evidence required for that category. Use the Dirección General de Migración y Extranjería (DGME) checklist as the starting point. A general checklist cannot establish that you qualify or replace the instructions for your particular application.
This guide was checked against DGME’s Regularización Migratoria guidance on 7 September 2026.
Choose the applicable category first
DGME separates permanent residence, temporary residence, special categories and nonresident stays. Its temporary-residence menu includes Pensionado, Rentista, investors, certain family relationships and specified professional or employment situations. These are not interchangeable applications.
Start with the official category description and identify the evidence that supports it: for example, a qualifying pension, income, investment, family relationship or professional circumstance. For the Rentista route, see our DGME-based Rentista guide. If your circumstances involve more than one possible route, compare them before ordering documents.
General documents to review
DGME’s general requirements include the following. Read the full official instructions, including any category-specific additions and exceptions.
- Application: identify the applicant, request, address and notification method; follow DGME’s signature or authentication formalities.
- Photographs: two recent, front-facing passport-size photographs.
- Birth certificate: issued in the country of origin, with the required apostille or legalization. Check that its details agree with the passport.
- Criminal-record certificate: from the country of origin or the country of legal residence for the last three years, with the additional evidence specified when relying on the latter.
- Passport copies: the relevant identity, entry-stamp and visa pages, where applicable, certified or checked against the original as DGME specifies.
- Consular registration: the general checklist lists proof of consular registration.
- Financial or category evidence: use the requirements for your actual category; a document suitable for one category is not automatically enough for another.
Check names, document age and background-check coverage
Do not assume every birth certificate becomes invalid after six months. DGME’s published general guidance describes circumstances in which an older certificate is accepted, including appropriate formalities, matching passport information and a document in good condition. A discrepancy must be explained with supporting or corrected records.
The general guidance also addresses countries with local and federal criminal jurisdictions, including the United States and Canada. It calls for coverage across the relevant country’s territory and identifies additional records when a federal certificate reports arrests or pending proceedings. Check the exact instructions rather than substituting a local police letter without review.
Apostilles, legalization and Spanish translations
DGME distinguishes apostille from the consular-legalization route for foreign public documents. Which route applies depends on the issuing country and the applicable formalities. A notarized copy alone should not be assumed to satisfy those requirements.
For documents not issued in Spanish, the general guidance calls for a literal Spanish translation by an official translator or a notary who knows the language. Check the specific document instructions, including those for birth certificates, before commissioning the work. Read our translation guide for choosing and checking a provider.
Payments and fingerprinting are separate checklist items
DGME’s general notes identify a US$200 payment for a change from nonresident status to a category established by law. This is not a universal total application price. Check whether it applies to your request, as well as any category-specific fee and later documentation charges. Confirm payment instructions with the authority before paying.
The same general notes place proof of fingerprinting at the documentation stage, with stated exceptions for temporary workers and Indigenous people. Do not confuse that Costa Rican procedure with fingerprints used by another country to issue a background check.
Prepare, submit and follow the application
- Confirm the category and read both the general and specific DGME requirements.
- Check identity details and plan document issuance, authentication and translation.
- Confirm the current submission channel and appointment arrangements for your request.
- Keep the receipt, expediente number and a complete copy of the submitted file.
- Monitor the notification method recorded in your application and respond to any official request within its stated deadline.
- After a decision, follow the resolution and the applicable documentation instructions.
A receipt, a complete-looking file or a private adviser’s estimate does not guarantee approval on a particular date. Use DGME’s official expediente consultation for the information available about your file.
Keep related decisions separate
Do not assume an application settles questions about travel, work, renewal, health-insurance enrollment or a later change of category. Check the rules and documents for the particular status and activity involved. Citizenship is a separate procedure; residency approval does not automatically grant nationality.
For help organizing your circumstances and documents, contact CRIE through the CRIE website. Approval remains a decision of the responsible authority.
Official source
DGME: Regularización Migratoria, especially Requisitos Generales and the relevant category checklist. Verified 7 September 2026. Recheck the official instructions before submitting.