Container duty taxes in Costa Rica

[dsullivan]

We would be interested in finding out which articles can be brought to Costa Rica in a container and NOT be duty taxed. We have our own furniture, beds, linens, kitchen utensils and appliances, etc. But what about Paul’s tools (wood lathe, table saw, etc.) and my stained glass tools (grinders, saws, light table, etc.) and art supplies??? Would those be taxed even though they are only for our hobby and not for a business? We aren’t certain about this and wonder if anyone has had experience with this subject and can offer us information or advice. We plan on buying many of our household items there, but certain things, we want to keep…and from what I’ve experienced and heard, items such as sofas/beds/chairs…leave a lot to be desired in the areas of comfort and quality, therefore we intend to bring our own. We would definitely buy a car there, so that won’t be on the container. My cousin just paid $2,500 for a container to be sent to Italy where she and her husband are relocating. Is it around the same to Costa Rica? What things do they consider personal or taxable?

Thanks

[Andrew]

Take a look at Barry Wilson’s article at and contact him – he should know.

Scott Oliver – Founder
WeLoveCostaRica.com

[Indirallu]

Hi, I Just moved a household full of items including brand new appliances ( kitchenaid and profile GE) and unbeliably only paid $937 in import taxes!I even shipped all my kitchen and bathroom cabinets.
It really depends on the moving company/ customs broker you use.
I used a company called sgglobal and though it was expensive for the container ( 40′ $5000) The service was worth it.
I have everything I wanted in CR without paying the high prices or running all over the country to look for things

[dsullivan]

Hi,
Thanks for the feedback on the container. I’ve contacted the man that Scott told me about, but he hasn’t gotten back to me yet. Probably because we’re not moving right away. I would like to know what we’re looking at price-wise though…so your feedback gave me a realistic view of what to expect. I have to say, $5,000 seems a bit pricey to me, especially since my cousin sent hers to Italy for half the amount. But who knows…there may be reasons for the pricey cost. And like you said, if they did a good job, it’s probably worth the extra bucks. Did they deliver it right to your door there in Costa Rica? That would extremely nice…especially if they also helped you unload it.

So, we’re probably looking at about $6,000-7,000 including the import taxes from the info you gave us. We, too, are thinking of bringing some building materials with us since it’s difficult to find them there, ie; cupboards, appliances, tiles…Costa Rica tile is nice, but it’s really too slippery for floors, especially when the tile gets wet. My cousin found that out the hard way…they built the outside stairway down to the lower level, and she slipped on them one day when it had rained…fell hard and broke her wrist.

Thanks again for your feedback on this. We really didn’t have any comparisons to look at until you wrote. Now we have an idea of what to expect!

Diane

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