National attention in Costa Rica is overwhelming focused on the fiscal deficit and the recent strike by public workers. Politicians and bureaucrats are making comparisons to the economic and currency crash of 1980. However, the coming crisis has the potential to be much worse than in 1980, and the reasons have yet to be clearly […]
Original Articles and Expat Advice for Costa Rica
Uber in Costa Rica collects $67 million per year
Tuesday morning would be a good day to avoid travel through downtown San Jose. Two unions that represent taxi drivers are planning a protest to begin at 9:00 am at Parque Central. Instead of targeting the Solis administration, drivers will converge on the constitutional court and likely bring eastern San Jose to a stand still. […]
Costa Rica Proposes Tax on Worldwide Income
A frequent rumor in Costa Rica is that Americans living here have trees that produce a limitless supply of dollars. From the Costa Rica point of view the income in dollars is not fully transparent, given that Costa Rica does not tax or require reporting of income earned abroad. However, if the government of Luis […]
Social Policy Root Cause of the Cuba Immigrant Crisis in Latin America
In recent years, Costa Rica has become one of the countries that immigrants from South America pass through on their long and perilous journey to the United States But during the last quarter of 2015 and the first quarter of 2016, the number of migrants, especially Cubans, reached record highs, putting enormous economic pressure and […]
Medicare Part A and the Affordable Care Act
Today is the last day of open enrollment under the Affordable Care Act, and for United States citizens and permanent residents to meet their responsibility to contract minimum essential coverage under federal law. Expats who plan to meet the bona fide residence test or the physical presence test, on their 2014 tax return return do […]
Costa Rica Drivers License Has Other 90 Day Rule
Although visitors with foreigners drivers licenses are allowed to operate a vehicle in Costa Rica for the duration of their tourist visa, normally 90 days, only legal residents and citizens can use their foreign license to apply for a Costa Rica license. In the past, Costa Rica allowed any foreigner who was in the country […]