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Some of the banks have internet access and a bill pay feature. Once you set-up the 1st time it should not be a problem.
Ditto that ssure. Also had a major problem with a small 4×4 rental company out of Grecia run by an American. 10 year old rig, suspension was shot, no A/C, window seals gone (interior dust cloud) and had to purchase a new battery for it, which I was reimbursed for. I reiterate the same – stick with the major companies, including the local Poas or ToyotaRents or a private deal. If you have not figured it out plasticbrad, cars are ridiculously expensive in CR, primarily due to taxation and tariffs.
Beverly Hills, must be a plastic surgeon and $1.75 is certainly not the norm. This is the average, just to prove a point:
SPECIALTY Years 1-2 >3 Max
Allergy/ Immunology $158,000 $221,000 $487,000
Ambulatory $ 80,000 $112,000 $152,000
Anesthesiology: Pediatrics $ 283,000 $311,000 $378,000
Anesthesiology: General $207,000 $275,000 $448,000
Anesthesiology: Pain Management $315,000 $370,000 $651,000
Cardiology: Invasive $258,000 $395,000 $647,000
Cardiology: Interventional $290,000 $468,000 $811,000
Cardiology: Noninvasive $268,000 $403,000 $599,000
Critical Care $187,000 $215,000 $320,000
Dermatology $ 195,000 $308,000 $452,000
Emergency Medicine $192,000 $216,000 $295,000
Endocrinology $171,000 $187,000 $260,000
FP (with OB) $182,000 $204,000 $241,000
FP (w/o OB) $161,000 $135,000 $239,000
FP – Sports Medicine $ 152,000 $208,000 $363,000
FP – Urgent Care $ 128,000 $198,000 $299,000
Gastroenterology $265,000 $349,000 $590,000
Hematology/Oncology $181,348 $245,000 $685,000
Infectious Disease $154,000 $178,000 $271,000
Internal Medicine $154,000 $176,000 $238,000
IM (Hospitalist) $161,000 $172,000 $245,000
Medicine/Pediatrics $139,000 $168,000 $271,000
Medical Oncology $198,000
$257,000 $455,000
Neonatal Medicine $286,000 $310,000 $381,000
Nephrology $191,000 $269,000 $447,000
Neurology $180,000 $228,000 $345,000
Obstetrics/Gynecology $211,000 $261,000 $417,000
Gynecology $159,000 $213,000 $358,000
Maternal/Fetal Medicine $286,000 $322,000 $610,000
Occupational Medicine $139,000 $185,000 $290,000
Ophthalmology $138,000 $314,000 $511,000
Ophthalmology Retina $280,000 $469,000 $716,000
Orthopedic Surgery $256,000 $342,000 $670,000
ORS – Foot & Ankle $228,000 $392,000 $791,000
ORS – Hand & Upper Extremities $288,000 $459,000 $770,000
ORS – Hip & Joint Replacement $330,000 $491,000 $715,000
ORS – Spine Surgery $398,000 $670,000 $1,352,000
ORS – Sports Medicine $266,000 $479,000 $762,000
Otorhinolaryngology $194,000 $311,000 $516,000
Pathology $169,000 $321,000 $610,000
Pediatrics $135,000 $175,000 $271,000
Pediatrics – Cardiology $145,000 $282,000 $607,000
Pediatrics – Critical Care $196,000 $259,000 $398,000
Pediatrics – Hematology/Oncology $182,000 $217,000 $251,000
Pediatrics – Neurology $175,000 $189,000 $362,000
Physiatry $169,000 $244,000 $313,000
Podiatry $128,000 $168,000 $292,000
Psychiatry $149,000 $169,000 $238,000
Psychiatry – Child and Adolescent $158,000 $189,000 $265,000
Pulmonary Medicine + Critical Care $215,000 $288,000 $417,000
Radiation Oncology $241,000 $385,000 $787,000
Radiology $201,000 $354,000 $911,000
Rheumatology $179,000 $229,000 $378,000
Surgery – General $226,000 $291,000 $520,000
Surgery – Cardiovascular $336,000 $515,000 $811,000
Surgery – Neurological $354,000 $541,000 $936,000
Surgery – Plastic $237,000 $412,000 $820,000
Surgery – Vascular $270,000 $329,000 $525,000
Urology $261,000 $358,000 $619,000Actually, the opposite is more frequent regarding pharmaceuticals. The FDA process is so full of red tape, that it takes years to get successful drugs to market which only adds to the outrageous cost. This is wht so many Americans travle to Canada for prescription medications. Personally, I like the CR approach. If you have a good idea wht is ailing you, then you can get the medicine you need right from the pharmacist without the gatekeeper system that we have in the US.
$2 million a year is an exageration. Only the top heart and brain surgeons make anywhere close to $2 million per year. Kost family practitioners earn $100,000/year; the other $100,000 oes to their malpractice provider. A chief of a department at a major metro hospital would make somewhere between $400,000-$500,000.The banks in CR a relatively safe. Where in the US do you see two armed guards and controlled entry, yet robberies happen in the US daily. However, I would have to agree with Scott that the banks in CR are completely lacking in customer service and expediency. A simple transfer of funds from one account to the other at th “national” bank took one fax, one e-mail and finally a heated long distance phone call, in Spanish of course, asking why my request is being ignored, especially conidering the sum? I appreciate the Switzerland angle Scott. Can you open a Swiss account without being physically present?
The facility has to be certified by the same people that certify american medical facilities. This would eliminate all countries in Africa, except possibly South Africa and probably the majority of SE Asian countries. The catch is that the major portion of the exhorbitant health costs are totally predicated by lawsuits. There was a recent article on this web site regarding that very subject of how a litigious society we are in th US. These very same lawsuits cost the insurers tons of money, which they pass on in premium increases to their customers. As a business owner, our health insurance costs have increased double digits every year. When will it end? The question arises, why does the same procedure at CIMA, which is a US company run hospital affiliated with Baylor Medical School, with US trained doctors cost a fraction of what the same procedure does in the US. Same doctors, but no concern about malpractice insurance that costs the average family practitioner $100,000/year. Texas passed a tort reform law two years ago with respect to medical malpractice. Since then 2,000 + doctors have trnsferred their medical practies to Texas and medical malpractice premiums have been reduced 50%. Do you see the underlying problem here? There are more lawyers in the Columbia Tower (76 stories) in downtown Seattle, Washington than the entire country of Japan. 75% of our congress are attorneys!! Law in he US is a self-perpetuating business and costs all of us very dearly. There is little hope for tort reform on a national scale.
I have also lived all over the world, am well educated (Master’s) and fluent in Spanish by birth. I am not naive by any stretch and am solvent. I would never have even considered an ARM mortgage and was smart enough to capitalize on very low interest rates when I refinanced to a 15 year fixed rate mortgage at less than 5%. My prisoner in my own home statement was aimed at the fact that the value of my home vs. the balance owed needs to be a certain amount so I can quietly depart the purported safe haven, low crime and best country in the world to live in … pure unadulterated hog wash! I am better off then most. My cars are owned, all my auto expenses are a paid benefit, I have full health insurance coverage for myself, wife and two children who no longer live at home that costs me $0 and I have $0 credit debt. We are prisoners here of sorts, for everything in the US is focused on working, making money, paying bills and survival. The priority of family is somewhere down the list as is evident of the incredible growth in assisted living facilities. We put our folks in homes so they do not interfere with our lives.
Many of us are trapped by circumastance or the naive notion that the world revolves around the US and cannot or would not even consider leaving. Those of us who are well travelled, pay close attention to the state of the financial markets and have carefully planned for the inevitable know there is a better way than the rat race we call the USA. The formula/model is broken and the younger generation has neither the education or the work ethic to maintain any assemblance of status quo. My greatest concern is what lies in wait for my children and future grandchildren.Get out while you can is my #1 fear. How much time do we really have before travel is restricted based on frequency and/or pure speculative suspicion? Will CR be classified as a country of interest? We have become prisoners in our own homes because they are not worth near what hey were 1 year ago. Does not matter whether you have lived in it for 16 years because no one is buying!!!
I am reverting to the barter system…I mow your lawn with my tractor and you give me 20 lbs of fresh salmon.
I never stated that rentista or pensionista status would allow you to work in CR and if I inferred such I profusely aplogize. You MUST be a resident to legally work in CR, which has to be applied for after you serve yout time as a pensionista or rentista. The law is quite clear in that respect.
I also agree Scott and have spent 5 years educating myself on the laws in Costa Rica. I have asked every question that has come to mind of three different attorneys (consensus is a quite acurate confirmation). This is a one shot opportunity and I would never consider jeopardizing it on a technicality.
I am a free market capitalist Scott and I disagree with the “rescue” plan that will ultimately cost my household somewhere between $6,000-$8,000. The markets by nature, without interference are Darwinian. Someone had said on this web site before that in modern America profits are privatized and losses are socialized. That was one of the more profound statements I have heard in a long time. Regardless whether Chavez or Bush were properly or improperly elected; the similarity is that they both duped the population electing them, both ignore the constitiution and do as they please and both are ignorant, dangerous men. The differnce is that in the US you are not imprisoned or quietly exterminated if you disagree with your leaders politics. As far as military spending, the US my spend more total dollars, which are becoming worth less every year, but as a percentage of GNP (4%) it is less than it was during Viet Nam. One year in Iraq and Afghanistan would have paid for approx. 30% of the “rescue” plan. Now that is just as messed up as a soup sandwich.
LA meaning Latin America or Los Angeles?
Search for “rentista” and “pensionista” on this web site and you will get a good indication of what it takes to live here legally. You cannot work here legally unless you have residency, which comes after you have satisfied “pensionista” or “rentista” requirements. You would need to prove $1,000/month income for yourself + $500/month for each child or deposit $60,000 for yourself and $30,000 for each child in a CR bank Account and withdraw the monthly amount for 5 years to satisfy “rentista”. There is an application process involved with several requirements. It is always best to consult an attorney and Scott has a good list of recommended ones.
You can must apply for “pensionista” or “rentista” status before applying for residency unless you are married to a Costa Rican or have a child in Costa Rica. Once you achieve this status for 3 years, according to Javier Zavaleta (attorney), you can apply for residency that will be granted at the end of 5 years as a “pensionista” or “rentista”. To get this status, there is an application process that must originate in a CR consulate or embassy in the country of your current residence. They used to allow you to apply in CR, but I am not sure if they have reinstated that caveat. You must also prove a guaranteed income of $1,000 per month per person + $500/month per child for 5 years or deposit $60,000/person + $30,000/child in a CR bank account and withdraw the required monthly amount for 5 years to satisfy “rentista” requirements. You must also must be present in the country for at least 4 months out the year, non-consecutively. I suggest you purchase Roger Petersen’s book and thoroughly educate yourself on the CR legal system.
And as Scott has so emphatically stated, you cannot be an “employee” without residency. However, you can own a company (S.A. in CR) and employ Costa Ricans but to do so without “pensionista” or “rentista” status will only allow you to remian in the country for 90 days at a time and then leave for 72 hours. Then you would be considered a “perpetual tourist” and run the risk of being barred from the country if you are caught.
