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I am truly sorry for this deluge of questions (plus more to come), we are just making our plans to move to Costa Rica and as everyone knows the devils in the details.
Kindly advise: We are planning to move around April 2007, we’re visiting end of next week to hopefully make more of the planning complete. I’m sure we won’t be able to get our residency (cedula) by that timeframe, but I would like my oldest daughter enrolled in school (she’s turning 5 in Jan). Would this be a problem? After we apply for residency, can we move to Costa Rica while we wait for the cedulas.
Thanks.
Tony
I am sorry I can not answer your question but would love to hear how you are making this move. How are going to live down there? What are you going to live on? What do you expect your expenses will be per month? I know some of this sounds personal but my husband and I and my 4 year old son would also like to make a move but so far have not yet figured out a way to do it without taking on a huge risk. I guess the risk I talk about is our retirement funds, college funds, living a lifestyle that, while we expect major changes is not uncomfortable and the benefits outweight the negatives, and that our son would be properly educated so that one day he can compete in the world, if he so desires. We continue to look for opportunities and are going down again in a few weeks to check out some things as well as going in April (believe me the plane tickets and hotels are taking a toll). But we love the country and would love to make the change, what a wonderful way to raise a child, bi-lingual, and exposed to so many things that would open their eyes to a huge world and new perspective. But…. we keep getting stuck in the details. Would love to hear how others are doing it. Not just in vague descriptions but in actual real life terms. I would love to hear from you.
Thanks!
Koty
I’m not 100% sure but I don’t think that the schools here actually require you to show that your child has legal residency.
They will certainly want a copy of the passport but you might want to check by sending a simple (anonymous email account) email to a couple of schools and ask them what are their requirements.
Scott Oliver
PS. There are millions of bilingual children in the US no?
Hi Koty,
My wife and I have been very good savers, and with the sale of our house last year and our retirement funds, as well as investments, we might be able to support our family for a while. It would be good to skim through the posts in this forum because its probably one of the most talked about topics.
Basically, I plan to simplify our life and cut back on the unnecessary spending that a typical US household consumes. How many type of cleaning solution do we really need? Infant shoes that costs the same as mine? These are just one of the many things that I feel you would have to give up, but for the better, no? I’ve lived in a less fortunate country before, the materialistic mentality of some families is not healthy in my opinion. I wish my wife can adjust, truth be told, I feel she is still on the fence.
One thing that might kill this for us is the staggering amount required by the new law for residency (we have 3 kids). I have contacted a guy (recommended on this forum) that specializes in helping with the immigration process. I’ll truly decide once I get all the answers. I wish you the best too. Keep in touch, hopefully our families meet in CR in the future.
Tony,
The Tico school year starts in January, so your kid will start late. While some exclusive schools do demand that you apply for enrollment early, like Lincoln High School, you’ll be looking for a nursery school or kindergarten. These are MUCH more plentiful, and are less likely to turn away new kids even though classes already started. You should have no problem placing your kids somewhere when you get there. If you’re going down there, for your own peace of mind you might simply call or drop in on one of them and ask.
I scanned over the new immigration law, and it does state that you can enter and remain in CR as long as your application is pending. For more info go to http://www.migracion.go.cr.
There is a lot of BS to go through when you first arrive, immigration is total chaos especially at the moment and then you have to get telephone lines, cellular, your internet connection sorted out and your driver’s licens and car if you choose to buy one.
But ….
After you are here and have settled all that during the first 60 days, life is sweet.
I have never felt more free and content as I do now and nobody bothers you – I have received one telephone cold call since I moved here.
Keep it simple and enjoy the things that really matter in your life.
Scott Oliver – Founder
WeLoveCostaRica.comThank you for the kind reply. I have posted and read the posts for the information that you refer to. My husband and I too have investments and have saved and would have an income to rely on from investments etc. However, no one has really answered the question regarding the amount of income people with young children (or in our case child) need to live on. I appreciate the type of changes you refer to: not needing expensive shoes, living on what you grow and what is available in local markets, giving up what feels like essentials at home. However, many of these notions feel rather romanticized to me and probably contribute to the high number of people who move to Costa Rica and then decide they need to move back. (what is the percentage??? 60%)????? I agree this type of lifestyle is preferable to the materialistic one in the states but….. I would love to hear what people, who successfully live in Costa Rica with children, are actually living on. What are your expenses for school, insurance, travel back home, etc…..?
Koty,
You have asked this same question repeatedly and got several answers already, with many specifics. But again, it all depends on your lifestyle, which only you know. All I can tell you is that living in Costa Rica while maintaining our current lifestyle cost us about one third of what we normally spend in the US (Midwest). If you are unable to take advantage of the IRS exclusion for residents of foreign countries, make that 50%. These figures have not changed for us over the last 20 years, and yes, we raised our 2 kids there, paid for private schools (not the expensive ones), had a house and two used cars.
I know I know. I guess there have been some specifics but not from families that are similar to ours and the same age. I appreciate your comments. Maybe I am just looking for too many “for sures”. I will keep fishing for that I guess and keep thinking that new people are viewing and responding everyday. The more opinions I get the more I think the average replies are valid and representative of what “real life in Costa Rica” is like. Sorry if I am boring you with the requests for specifics. Just trying to figure it all out.
Koty
I’m not sure what type of school you are thinking of enrolling your child in, but I can tell you that as a non-resident, I was able to enroll my children in the public school system in Puerto Viejo de Talamanca with no problems whatsoever. I believe a copy of their passports was made at one point, and a photo was taken to create their school ID’s, but through discussions with the teachers and principal, I received the impression that they could attend there indefinitely – residency was never an issue. In fact, there were a few other American and/or European children attending the school under the same circumstance.
As for the requirements of private schools, I am not sure. You would want to check with the administration of the particular schools you are considering.
I was thinking of enrolling them in a private school, but not those structured using US or European curriculums. I think enrolling them is not going to be a problem. CR is also accepting residency applications again, according to the person assisting us.
Thanks for all the answers.
Koty, many, many things in Costa Rica are markedly less expensive than they are in the U.S. There is no question of that. But some things are more expensive, and you might find yourself availing yourself of things you don’t have or use in the U.S. For instance, while drugs are relatively inexpensive here, if you have full drug coverage in the U.S. and find yourself paying cash here, you’ll be spending more on drugs than you’re used to.
Auto insurance is another expensive item here. We pay about twice what we did in the U.S. for a pretty much equivalent car. And if your children have been in public schools but here you plan to enroll them in private schools, that will be a new expense.
The best answer anyone can offer you is to bring all the money you can, to make provision for a reliable income flow whether you’re retired or still in your working years, and to not overcommit to anything until you get your feet on the ground financially. If your plan is for private school and it’s expensive, maybe start the kids in public school until you see what *your* cost of living turns out to be. Maybe plan to do your own housework until you determine that you really can afford a housekeeper. Maybe plan to mow your own grass. Maybe buy an inexpensive vehicle.
Too, you might make an inventory of things you simply cannot do without and figure out what they will cost. If someone in the family is medically dependent on one or more drugs that they simply cannot live without, find out if those meds are available and at what cost. (CAJA does not cover everything, and you must be a legal resident to enroll.) Your list might include something pretty expensive that you hadn’t planned on. It’s a start.
You should also carefully, carefully consider your anticipated housing costs. There are rumors out there that you can build a house for very little money. But if you’re planning to live in a gringo high demand area (a beach community, Escazu, etc) you may find housing more expensive than where you are now (depending, of course, on where you are now). And even if you don’t build in one of those areas, I can attest to the fact that housing isn’t that cheap. We’re finishing our second (main) house right now. While it’s been much less expensive than it would have been in the U.S., it would be a folly to think it could have been built for what some assert.
If a construction project is in your future, you can find builders who will build on a fixed-cost contract. The secret is to understand in great detail what is included and what is not, and what is “budgeted” and what that budgeted amount will buy.
In all these matters, you need to do your own homework. Figure out what *you* are likely to be spending and factor that up by at least 25%. Then, if it looks like you can make a go of it, start slowly and be conservative.
Hello, just to add a little hope. My grandson came to stay with us here in Grecia and we talked to some people in the community who advised us to send him to a private school. The school taught English as a second language, their curriculum was about the same as in the US the only difference it was in Spanish, which made it nice. What I enjoyed about our grandsons education was the opportunity to learn another language and also afforded him the opportunity to learn other customs. We were advised that sometimes it was difficult for the foreign student to adjust but they would try to do what they could to accommodate him.
He did great, went back home and he was right in step with his class, with the acception of reading. He was getting the majority of his reading lessons in Spanish. That was just brief, parents working with children over come any problems. The school only cost us about $150.00 per month, they started classes around the 1st week of February. You have to pay for uniforms, books, pencils, paper and a few other things. There are many private schools here in Costa Rica, many of the Costa Rican families are very much interested in their children learning to speak English and the private schools usually offer a more intense program.
Of course the age of the children does make a difference. After returning home and being involved in roller hockey, baseball, gymnastics and the availability of so many activities we, plus all you can eat buffets, it is hard for us to get him to visit.
If they are children ages 8 and above you may have a difficult time during their adjustment period, unless you enroll them in the European or North American type private schools.
thanks for that detailed insight. All our kids are below 5 years old. That’s one reason I want to try to make the move now.
Hi Makohan and thanks for the info…it’s a little harder to gather info about schooling in Talamanca..Are you referring to the school right in Puerto Viejo, or Cocles? Those are pretty much 100% spanish language with some english study correct? DO you happen to have any info on the school in Cahuita and/or Limon with regards to contact info, terms, fees, busing etc?
Thank you!
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