Costa Rica · Retirement
Pensionado Residency
Open
Last verified July 2026
USD 1,000/month lifetime pension under Decreto 37112 art. 100 — a materially lower bar than Costa Rica's Rentista and on par with Panama's.
Costa Rica accepts private pension schemes more readily than Panama's Pensionado does, which makes it reachable for retirees whose income is not a government pension. Combined with territorial taxation and no inheritance tax, it is a clean retirement base.
Qualifying routes
$1k
Lifetime pension
per month, guaranteed for life, from a public or private pension scheme
The facts
- Qualifying figure
- $1k
- Total landed cost
- roughly USD 3–8k in legal and government fees, plus CCSS contributions
- Timeline
- 8–24 months — DGME backlogs
- Physical presence
- No annual minimum; art. 214 absence limits apply
- Family
- spousechildren under 25disabled adult children
- Permanent residency
- 3 consecutive years
- Citizenship
- 7 years; 5 for Ibero-Americans and Spaniards by birth
- Language test
- Spanish plus history and values examination; exempt for the elderly
- Dual citizenship
- Permitted
- Requirements
- certified lifetime pension of at least USD 1,000/monthclean criminal record, apostilledCCSS affiliation
What can go wrong
- The pension must be lifetime and guaranteed; portfolio income does not qualify.
- CCSS affiliation is mandatory and is a real ongoing cost assessed on income.
- DGME backlogs are severe.
- The naturalisation exams are real: Spanish plus Costa Rican history and values, pass mark 70. The elderly and medically impeded are exempt.