Costa Rica Beaches – Investment on the Coast

If you’re going to build on the coast, be careful!

Building near the sea is lovely, but laws protect the beaches and biodiversity on the coasts.

The first article of the Maritime Coast Law (#6043) states that the first 200 meters of shoreline belong to the State.

The first 50 meters of land (measured from the high-tide mark) cannot be rented, sold or used at all.

The next 150 meters are “restricted.” That is, lots located here can be given in concession for no less than five years and no more than 20 years.

However, lots in areas that have no regulating plan cannot be given in concession.

Nevertheless, some concessionaires, especially in Guanacaste, have paid municipalities to get permits to build when they had no right to do so.

Foreigners must have lived in the country for five years before they can be granted concessions. Foreign and Costa Rican companies wishing a concession must have at least 51 percent Costa Rican ownership. This last point makes an exception of those constructions built before 1977, which (up to the 50-meter line) belong outright to the owner.

Regulating plans are a must before gaining a concession but in many places they don’t exist, forcing the concessionaire to order the plans themselves. One example is in Santa Teresa-Mal Pais where along 17 kms of coastline, some 11 regulating plans have been created and only 25% of them are for concessions.

Until regulating plans exist everywhere, shoreline owners need to be aware that they may have bought rights to a concession and not a property title.

Getting a Concession

1. Investigate whether the land use has been declared for tourism purposes or not.
2. Have the National Geographic Institute place markers showing the boundaries of public lands.
3. The area must be included in a regulating plan.
4. Evaluation by the Office of National Direct Taxation (Dirección Nacional de Tributación Directa) and present the request according to Article 27 and those following in Law No. 6043.
5. Have the land inspected and the edict published.
6. Consult in advance with the Institute of Tourism for all buildings other than homes.
7. Prior approval needed from the Intitute of Tourism or the Institute of Agrarian Development.

Our thanks to Gloriana Gomez and our friends at La Nación – Costa Rica’s largest Spanish circulation newspaper for their permission use this article.

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Andrew Makarik

to@welovecostarica.com

Andrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.