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The ARCR has stopped taking new applications for their Group Medical Plan with the CAJA.
[quote=”DavidCMurray”]I need to point out here that, for many folks, joining the Association of Residents of Costa Rica and then enrolling in the CAJA through their negotiated contract will be the least expensive approach.
For legal residents, ARCR’s dues are $50 per year plus $10 for additional family members — effectively $5 per month. The negotiated rate for CAJA for couples over 55 years of age is $47 per month (for the couple). So for $52 per month, you can meet the CAJA enrollment requirement without any consideration of your ability to pay.
[/quote]In the ordinary course, with no errors in the wire transfer instructions, the transfer of funds will usually take about two business days.
No, fifteen business days is not a fixed waiting time for U.S. checks to clear for all CR banks, that is why I used the word “approximately”. For instance, Scotiabank also clears U.S. checks in ten business days; other banks require longer periods to clear U.S. checks, which periods seems to vary from time to time.
[quote=”DavidCMurray”]watchdog, do you know for a fact that that fifteen-day delay for a deposited [u]cashier’s[/u] checks applies to all Costa Rican banks? I ask because my regular bank check, if deposited at Banco HSBC, clears in ten business days, and others have written that Banco Nacional, for example, holds regular checks drawn on U.S. banks for up to six weeks. I don’t know how they handle cashier’s checks.
[/quote]The only way a direct payment can be made into a Costa Rican bank account from an international source, is by an international wire transfer, with the associated costs. The advantage is that the deposited funds are avaiable for use immediately, whereas the funds from a deposited Cashiers’ Check from the U.S. will only be available after approximately fifteen business days, when the check clears.
The amount required to be deposited for the financial component for a Rentista Application is now $60,000.00 U.S., as you are now only required to show an income of $2,500.00 U.S. per month for a TWO YEAR period, rather than the previous five year period required.
The deposit must be made in the personal name of the Applicant, not in the name of a corporation.
[b]Note from Scott[/b]: ‘WatchDog’ is the username for my friend and attorney Richard (Rick) Philps who is a Canadian citizen, naturalized as a citizen of Costa Rica. Rick practiced law in Canada as a member of the Law Society of British Columbia, for fourteen years, prior to moving to Costa Rica in 1998. Mr. Philps the earned his Bachelor of Laws and Licensing Degrees (Civil Law), and a Post-Graduate Degree in Notary and Registry Law, from the Escuela Libre de Derecho University, in San Jose, is a member of the Costa Rica College of Lawyers, and has practiced law in Costa Rica for six years. Mr. Philps practices law in the areas of real estate and development, corporate, commercial, contract, immigration, and banking. To contact attorney Rick Philps and his associate attorney Roger Petersen, please use the Contact Form at the bottom of:
To sum-up the article, to be able to “make it” in Costa Rica as a foreigner, you have to be capable of environmental and cultural compromise. A well written article by a person who obviously has a knack for writing in a sensitive manner.
What you are speaking about here is your tax status with Revenue Canada.
As a Resident Canadian, you pay tax on your World income to Revenue Canada. A “Resident Canadian for Tax Purposes” as opposed to a “Non-Resident Canadian for Tax Purposes” has a legal meaning as defined in the Revenue Canada Tax Bulletins.
As a Resident Canadian, you will be taxed on all your income, including pensions, with the normal allowable deductions.
If you meet the requirements of being a “Non-Resident Canadian” (eg. absent from Canada for at least 183 days per year, and with limited continuing ties with Canada as defined in the Income Tax Bulletin IT221R3-CONSOLID), there will be a 25% withholding tax at source on your income earned in Canada (Teacher’s Pensions).
You would be able to file a Tax Return in the normal manner each year, to substantiate a lower tax rate on your Canadian income, but this comes with the requirement of disclosure of income earned in other jurisdictions, even though that additional income would not be taxed by Revenue Canada as a Non-Resident Canadian, under current Tax Laws.
You should note, that claiming “Non-Resident Tax Status” is something that must be claimed formally on your final Tax Return when leaving Canada to reside in another jurisdiction.
The final Tax Return should be prepared by a Canadian Accountant, with your having received proper legal advice from a Canadian Tax Lawyer regarding your particular circumstances.
Written by Canadian/Costa Rican Attorney Rick Philps:
Full Name: Lic. Rick Philps
Business Title: Attorney
Company Name: Petersen & Philps
Address: San Jose, Costa Rica
Website Address: http://www.plawcr.com
Email address: rphilps@plawcr.com
Telephone numbers: 506 2288-4381 Ext. 102At this moment, I understand there to be four Constitutional Court challenges of the Corporation Tax Law, which if anyone of the challenges prevails, would strike-down the Law. I would say, given the track record of laws in CR surviving such challenges, it would be prudent to wait to pay the Tax until such time as these various Court challenges have been dealt with and incurr the late payment penalty at worst and possibly, not have to pay the Tax at all. Certainly, if you pay the Tax and the Law is struck-down, you will not receive a refund of the Tax payment.
To answer your questions regarding the payment of the Luxury Home Tax, due January 15th of each year, is as follows:
You should have an Architect, or Engineer complete the property evaluation Form D-179 found on the Ministry of Hacienda’s web site. This provides for an evaluation of the improvements (structures) on the property initially. If the value of the improvements is less than 100,000,000 colones (approx. $200,000.00 U.S. at current exchange rates), the Luxury Tax does not apply. However, if the value of the improvements on the property equals, or exceeds 100,000,000 colones, the Tax applies to a combined evaluation of both improvements and the property value, on a sliding scale, starting at .25% of the combined improvements/property value per year. The Tax is payable to the Ministry of Hacienda.
Note from Scott: ‘WatchDog’ is the username for my friend and attorney Richard (Rick) Philps who is a Canadian citizen, naturalized as a citizen of Costa Rica. Rick practiced law in Canada as a member of the Law Society of British Columbia, for fourteen years, prior to moving to Costa Rica in 1998. Mr. Philps the earned his Bachelor of Laws and Licensing Degrees (Civil Law), and a Post-Graduate Degree in Notary and Registry Law, from the Escuela Libre de Derecho University, in San Jose, is a member of the Costa Rica College of Lawyers, and practices law in Costa Rica in the areas of real estate and development, corporate, commercial, contract, immigration, and banking with the Law Firm of Petersen & Philps.
To speak with Attorney Rick Philps or Attorney Roger Petersen about hiring them as your Costa Rica attorneys, please contact them using the information below:
Lic. Rick Philps and Lic. Roger A. Petersen – Attorneys at Law, San Jose, Costa Rica Tel: 506-2288-4381, Ext. 102; Email: rpetersen@plawcr.com Email: rphilps@plawcr.com Website: http://www.plawcr.com or http://www.costaricalaw.com
It is interesting to note that although you no longer require CR Consulate authentication of documentation coming from the U.S. for use in Costa Rica,using the Apostille format as previously explained, the documentation still has to be authenticated by the Ministry of External Relations in San Jose (Casa Amarilla), prior to it being available for use in Costa Rica. Unfortunately, Canada is not a signatory to this particular Hague Treaty, so documentation from Canada still requires CR Consulate authentication.
Note from Scott: ‘WatchDog’ is the username for my friend and attorney Richard (Rick) Philps who is a Canadian citizen, naturalized as a citizen of Costa Rica. Rick practiced law in Canada as a member of the Law Society of British Columbia, for fourteen years, prior to moving to Costa Rica in 1998. Mr. Philps the earned his Bachelor of Laws and Licensing Degrees (Civil Law), and a Post-Graduate Degree in Notary and Registry Law, from the Escuela Libre de Derecho University, in San Jose, is a member of the Costa Rica College of Lawyers, and practices law in Costa Rica in the areas of real estate and development, corporate, commercial, contract, immigration, and banking.
To speak with Attorney Rick Philps and Attorney Roger Petersen about hiring them as your Costa Rica attorneys, please contact them using the information below:
Lic. Rick Philps and Lic. Roger A. Petersen – Attorneys at LawSan Jose, Costa RicaTel: 506-2288-2189Email: rpetersen@plawcr.comEmail: rphilps@plawcr.comWebsite: http://www.plawcr.com or http://www.costaricalaw.com
The reforms to the Ley de Transito have still not been passed into law. The existing fines still apply, not the new amounts proposed in the reforms.
Jeep, KIA Sorento, and KIA Sportage are all popular vehicles in Costa Rica. There are Jeep and KIA Dealerships and parts and maintenance are readily available. The only thing to be aware of is that models imported new into Costa Rica are not the same as the new models in the U.S. of the similar vehicle. Maintenance and parts for U.S. models can be difficult to get in CR.
Costa Ricans take title to property through acquiring shares in a registered owner corporation, or in their personal name, in the same manner as expats do. They are more likely to take title to a residential property in their personal name and a commercial property through acquiring shares in a registered corporate owner.
The new Corporation Tax which comes into effect on April 1, 2012, will impose a tax on both active and inactive (holding) companies, with inactive companies being taxed at 50% of the tax rate of the active companies. The tax will be due in the month of April 2012 and will be approximately $134.00 U.S., at current exchange rates for the balance of 2012, for inactive companies. In the future, the tax will be due in the month of January of each year and will be approximately $180.00 U.S. at current exchange rates for the full year for inactive companies. The procedures for payment of the tax are yet to be announced by the Government.
