Just starting our investigation about moving to Costa Rica

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  • #173547
    dawnshave
    Member

    My husband, children and I are looking for a more family oriented relaxed life.

    We live in Canada and Costa Rica is appealing.

    We want to spend some time visiting some areas but will ultimately need a location where we have the potential to work.

    Any suggestions or advice?

    #173548
    costaricafinca
    Participant

    First step is to read the [i]rules and reg’s[/i] needed to live here, Try http://www.residencyincostarica.com & http://www.therealcostarica.com which will explain that you cannot legally work here until you have Permanent residency which can take approx 4 years.

    Also, be awarer that salaries are very low…and private education, which most expats prefer, for your children is expensive.

    If you do move, pick your chosen schools before committing to a home.

    #173549
    dawnshave
    Member

    [quote=”costaricafinca”]First step is to read the [i]rules and reg’s[/i] needed to live here, Try http://www.residencyincostarica.com & http://www.therealcostarica.com which will explain that you cannot legally work here until you have Permanent residency which can take approx 4 years.

    Also, be awarer that salaries are very low…and private education, which most expats prefer, for your children is expensive.

    If you do move, pick your chosen schools before committing to a home.[/quote]
    Thank you for the starting point

    #173550
    maravilla
    Member

    and then there is the issue of legal residency — and if you still have to work, you probably don’t have a lifetime pension now. which means, you’d have to put up at least $60,000 to get the other category of residency. it’s just not that easy to pick up and move here, esp if you still have a need to earn a living.

    #173551
    VictoriaLST
    Member

    …but, can’t you start a business without all this fuss? As a retired person, I haven’t checked.

    #173552
    DavidCMurray
    Participant

    Buying an existing business or establishing a new one in Costa Rica involves many legal and bureaucratic hurdles. And once those are jumped, there is still the matter of earning a living at it.

    Remember, until one is a legal Permanent Resident (which can easily take five years to achieve), one cannot work in any capacity in competition with a Costa Rican. Even as the owner of a business, you can direct the work of others, but you cannot work in the business yourself. So if you own a restaurant, for example, you can schedule workers and assign duties, but you cannot open up, you cannot close, you cannot cook or bus tables, etc.

    #173553
    rxmurphy
    Member

    [quote=”DavidCMurray”][b]So if you own a restaurant, for example, you can schedule workers and assign duties, but you cannot open up, you cannot close, you cannot cook or bus tables, etc.
    [/quote][/b]
    Sounds like the perfect job for me David! If only I could paid for that.

    #173554
    DavidCMurray
    Participant

    [quote=”rxmurphy”][quote=”DavidCMurray”][b]So if you own a restaurant, for example, you can schedule workers and assign duties, but you cannot open up, you cannot close, you cannot cook or bus tables, etc.
    [/quote][/b]
    Sounds like the perfect job for me David! If only I could paid for that.[/quote]

    My (admittedly limited) understanding of the restaurant business is that if you want to make a million dollars, you have to start with two.

    #173555
    camby
    Member

    [quote=”DavidCMurray”][quote=”rxmurphy”][quote=”DavidCMurray”][b]So if you own a restaurant, for example, you can schedule workers and assign duties, but you cannot open up, you cannot close, you cannot cook or bus tables, etc.
    [/quote][/b]
    Sounds like the perfect job for me David! If only I could paid for that.[/quote]

    My (admittedly limited) understanding of the restaurant business is that if you want to make a million dollars, you have to start with two.
    [/quote]

    Curious-lets say with time, expense, money, lawyers,etc-I buy or start a resteraunt……I have to hire only CR citizens…Fine and good….
    Things are busy one day and the tables are nto getting bused/cleaned quickly enough, food is backing up,etc…through no fault of the Tico/a workers, things are just palin old busy….I bus a table in my buisness to help things move along and maybe, clean a dish,prep a plate to go out….
    Am I now in violation of the CR law? and if so, how often is this, really, enforced? How often would one of my employees squeel on me? yes, realize they could if they wanted to get something on me and stick it to me, fine..but really, how often is this enforced? Hiring additional help or calling in people might not be a reasonable long term idea…..

    #173556
    costaricafinca
    Participant

    This has and will continue to be enforced, either by disgruntled employees or with when migracion is prowling around…
    I know someone who was ‘held’ by [i]migracion[/i], when he proceeded to lock up his establishment one night when his employee was in the process of throwing up in the bathroom …
    This man had a successful business with 30+ employees, married and had children with a Tica but hadn’t yet got the official word for him to work, due to other mitigating circumstances.

    #173557
    camby
    Member

    [quote=”costaricafinca”]This has and will continue to be enforced, either by disgruntled employees or with when migracion is prowling around…
    I know someone who was ‘held’ by [i]migracion[/i], when he proceeded to lock up his establishment one night when his employee was in the process of throwing up in the bathroom …
    This man had a successful business with 30+ employees, married and had children with a Tica but hadn’t yet got the official word for him to work, due to other mitigating circumstances.[/quote]

    How long was he held for? Who turned him in? why?
    I support the CR law about work and nationality, keeps CR peoples from being pushed out for lower wage earners and foreigners, fine and good, but sounds like the Govt there is taking things way to far as well and making the law look bad……
    Would that the USA have such laws, but at same time, we would likely mess it up just as bad in the enforcement of said law. The laws are good, enforcement sucks. Maybe some tweaking or more moderate rules, but…

    #173558
    costaricafinca
    Participant

    He was ‘caught’ by migration during their periodic ‘sweeps’ and was held until a lawyer intervened.
    Because his application was ‘in process’ and having a Tica wife and family, he narrowly missed being deported.
    Real estate agents advertise a huge amount of B&B’s for sale, and people purchase them and do not realize that ‘legally’ they are not permitted to ‘cook breakfast and clean up after their [i]paying[/i] guests’.

    #173559
    camby
    Member

    [quote=”costaricafinca”]He was ‘caught’ by migration during their periodic ‘sweeps’ and was held until a lawyer intervened.
    Because his application was ‘in process’ and having a Tica wife and family, he narrowly missed being deported.
    Real estate agents advertise a huge amount of B&B’s for sale, and people purchase them and do not realize that ‘legally’ they are not permitted to ‘cook breakfast and clean up after their [i]paying[/i] guests’.[/quote]

    Good to hear he was released, though, after a real hassle….
    In this type of situation, then, one is really dependent on hiring good, honest and productive people and seemingly, disabled to rely fully on them for everything…..
    I take it, one can own and work a buisness of one is the sole employee? Say, that bookstore we discussed on another thred awhile back? or hire a employee and just manage the books?
    In some ways, would not mind a buisness that ran itself, being more behind the scenes, but then, there is a large area for abuse, theft,etc…

    #173560
    costaricafinca
    Participant

    No, you cannot perform any physical task in your own business, but you can receive a salary from it.
    The text below was copied from [url=http://www.residencyincostarica.com/questions.html]Residency in Cost Rica[/url]
    [i]”However, you can manage your own business and financial affairs, including being self-employed as a consultant or managing your own business or corporation”.[/i]

    #173561
    DavidCMurray
    Participant

    Nope, my understanding is that if you owned a small bookstore and had no employee, you couldn’t run it. That is, you could not unlock the door to the public, you couldn’t sort and shelve books, you couldn’t sell books, you couldn’t sweep the floor or clean the bathroom, and you couldn’t lock the door at night.

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