This Wednesday Aug 26th Costa Rica registered 1,002 new cases of Covid-19 for a total of 36,307 positive cases out of which 13,317 have already recovered; 400 people remain hospitalized 143 in the intensive care unit. With these numbers, the government announced the sanitary measures that will apply as of September. From Monday, August 31 and through September 8 the country will be in a tran...

A moderately strong earthquake shook Costa Rica this Monday, August 24 at 3:50 pm According to the National Seismologic Network (RSN)the earthquake had a magnitude of 6.2 and the epicenter was located 12 kilometers southwest of Jaco, Garabito, Puntarenas as a result of the subduction of Cocos plate. ...

Costa Rica’s San Lucas Island opened up again this weekend for tourism. San Lucas Island is located off the Gulf of Nicoya in Costa Rica, 5.4 miles from Puntarenas, and has an area of fewer than 500 hectares. This island is famous in Costa Rica because it used to function as a prison from 1873 to 1991; at first just for thieves and other petty crime offenders but later for more dangerous criminals...

Saturday August 22nd Costa Rica entered the reopening phase even though over the the past couple of days it has registered the highest number of new daily confirmed Covid-19 cases since the start of the pandemic. On Friday the country registered 1,059 new cases while Saturday the Ministry of Health confirmed 950 new patients. Since the pandemic reached the country back in March, Costa Rica has ...

Did you know that meteorites are rarer than gold, platinum, diamonds or emeralds? They are worth as much as $1,000 a gram, meaning one weighing one pound could be worth one million dollars. Last year, a meteorite fell to earth in Aguas Zarcas, San Carlos, and this week the prestigious American Association for the Advancement of Science predicted that same meteorite could hold the secret to how the...

After more than 20 years as one of Costa Rica's most iconic billfish sportfishing destinations, Crocodile Bay Resort has begun its transformation into Botánika Osa Peninsula, Curio Collection by Hilton. Slated to open in October 2021, Botánika will belong to a global portfolio of distinctive, upscale hotels and resorts that cater to passionate travelers seeking local discovery and authentic experi...

As of September 1, Costa Rica will allow entry via air of international tourists from six states of the United States: New York, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, and Connecticut. According to the announcement made by the Ministry of Tourism the decision was made because these six states have an epidemiological risk similar or lower than the levels of transmission for Costa Rica. By...

As we all know Costa Rican economy is suffering especially in the area of tourism. Costa Rica is currently sitting at a historic high 24% unemployment rate which has left hundreds of thousands of people without work and without a means to take care of their families. As of Aug 1st Costa Rica has reopened it's doors to select countries in an attempt to "Reactivate" tourism and for obvious COVID ...

Coronavirus has created a true health crisis around the world. Most governments do not seem to be clear about the best way to tackle this problem; and the imposition of different types of restrictions on free transit, commerce, and tourism,  has been the general rule adopted. These restrictions have a negative effect on the economy, causing the loss of jobs, the disappearance of companies, the clo...

The third man accused of the murder of CIMA Hospital doctor Maria Luisa Cadeno, Dutch millionaire Harry Bodaan, is now under house arrest for the July 20 murder of Dra. Cedeno. On Friday, Bodaan surrendered his passport, relinquished his cell phone, has been barred from all travel, and will be wearing a “tobillera electronica”, a monitoring ankle bracelet. He has been forbidden to speak with the o...

The tagline of the 5-Star resort La Mansion Inn is “You come as a guest, but leave as a friend.” Dra. Maria Luisa Cedeno Quesada (43), wasn’t even able to leave alive. Three men are in custody for her murder, including the owner of the hotel, Harry J. Bodaan, a longtime fixture on the Manuel Antonio social scene, often referred to as the Ambassador of Quepos. Bodaan (69), was taken into police cus...

Location: Escazu, San Jose Events: Temporary Suspension of Municipal Police Services in Escazu (San Jose) Embassy contacts have confirmed the Policia Municipalidad Escazu (Escazu Municipal Police or PME, which is the largest police force in Escazu) has temporarily suspended public services after staff tested positive for COVID-19. PME officials have reported that all PME staff are observing ...

Three American citizens with Costa Rican residency filed a Habeas Corpus recourse (through which a person reports unlawful detention) against the Ministry of Health and the General Directorate of Migration after they were denied entry to the country on August 6th when they flew back to the country from Houston, Texas aboard a repatriation flight. A US national with Permanent Residency, who is m...

Over 5,800 Americans gave up their citizenship in the first half of 2020, compared to 2,072 Americans who renounced their citizenship in ALL of 2019. How many of them are heading to Costa Rica? Why did they decide to leave? CNN, Newsweek, NY Times and Fortune Magazine have all reported recently that Americans seem to be leaving the US in droves. Many are permanently giving up their citizenship,...

Beach restrictions had been relaxed in Quepos on Saturday, when American Amiri Aarash (79) and his Costa Rican companion Betzi Jimenez (39) decided to return to the ocean together to celebrate the weekend. Neither of them made it out alive. Once again, the notorious riptides at Playa Linda, Matapalo Quepos swept another pair of swimmers to their deaths. A passerby by the last name of Quiros rep...

Saturday August 8th Costa Rica has registered 721 new Covid-19 cases for a total 22,802 confirmed patients out of which 7,589 have already recovered. 360 people are hospitalized, 80 of them in the intensive care unit. 228 deaths are reported in relation to the pandemic in the country. The government announced adjustments on the restrictions and sanitary measures that had already been announc...

There are currently 551,373 Costa Ricans without work: 282,000 men and 269,000 women. These are the latest figures from the National Statistics and Census Bureau (INEC), and indicate that the country has reached a 24% unemployment rate, the highest in the most recent years of Costa Rica’s history. These figures represent an increase of 256,000 more unemployed people from the previous year, and ...

The Government has confirmed it will now allow foreign tourists who have purchased international insurance policies to enter the country. When Costa Rica opened its air borders in August 1st, Executive Decree 42513-MGP-S, established that all tourists had to acquire an insurance policy that would cover health and lodging expenses in the event of quarantine due to Covid-19; however, this insuran...

By Laura Gutierrez of Immigration Help Costa Rica In response to many emails from concerned clients wrestling with travel plans, I would like to address how the most recent adjustment to travel into Costa Rica impacts anything to do with residency. The best summary of the new program can be found in English on the Costa Rica Embassy Washington D.C. website here: http://costarica-embassy.org/...

In Costa Rica, businesses that require face coverings for entry allow either a mask or a shield – "mascarilla" or "careta", in Spanish. Which one is better protection for you and others? Most experts agree that masks are much more effective in stopping the spread of the coronavirus COVID-19. Commented infectious disease expert Luis Romero on the radio show “Nuestra Voz”, “I don’t know who invente...

Costa Rican border police officers seized this week a total of 1,552 kilograms of marijuana that was hidden close to the estuaries, in the Sierpe water lands in the county of Osa in Puntarenas. The police found 60 packages hidden under black plastic, nearby they located three men, two Costa Ricans, and a Nicaraguan who attempted to escape but were eventually caught and placed under arrest. I...

This Saturday, August 1, the Turrialba Volcano in Cartago registered one of its biggest eruptions so far this 2020 with a column of gas and ashes that reached approximately 500 meters above the crater and 3,840 meters above sea level (12595.2 ft). Although the Turrialba Volcano has remained active for years now the last time it expelled ashes was back in November 2019, however since June it has...

As it was announced by the Government in the past days, Costa Rica partially reopened air borders this August 1st for international flights to and from the United Kingdom, the European Union and Canada, with this it also announced the beaches located in areas under yellow alert can now open from 5:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in hopes that this will gradually reactivate the tourism sector which has been s...

Source: US Embassy Costa Rica: Until August 1, only Costa Rican citizens, Costa Rican residents who departed Costa Rica PRIOR to March 24, those whose residency is in process who departed Costa Rica PRIOR to March 24, minor children of Costa Rican citizens, and foreign diplomats will be able to enter Costa Rica. This restriction applies to land, sea, and air arrivals. Aircrews will not be subje...

The two equine antibody formulations prepared by the Clodomiro Picado Institute of the University of Costa Rica (ICP-UCR), from plasma of horses hyperimmunized with viral proteins, are capable of inhibiting the infectivity of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus which causes COVID-19 disease. This was the result of tests carried out at George Mason University, in the United States, which confirmed that t...

So we all have heard that there are new requirements to travel to Costa Rica once the airports reopen to select countries August 1st.  Tourists that plan to visit Costa Rica during the upcoming weeks will have to follow all sanitary measures in place and comply with certain requirements, such as taking a Covid-19 test 48 hours prior to the flight, filling out a form with the information for epi...

As of Wed July 28th Costa Rica has registered a total 16,800 confirmed cases of Covid-19 out of which 4,050 have already recovered. 334 people are currently hospitalized and 75 of them remain in the intensive care unit. The number of deaths related to this virus has increased to 133 with over 110 deaths in July alone. The Costa Rican government announced the new measures that will be in place for...

With baited breath everyone in the tourism sector of Costa Rica is awaiting the official reopening of the country. The List of authorized countries will be reevaluated on a bi weekly basis to ensure the safety of Costa Rica and all of it's citizens. At this moment in time commercial flights from the following countries will be allowed to begin arriving starting August 1st. Canada, United Kin...

UPDATED :07/28/20 With the recent surge of COVID-19 deaths in Costa Rica, it is easy to overlook the fact that homicides are also still on the rise. Nothing has brought that home quite like the July 19th homicide of anesthesiologist Dr. Maria Luisa Cedeno Quesada, in a hotel room in Manuel Antonio, Puntarenas. She was only 43 years old. Dr. Cedeno was the head of Anesthesiology and Recovery ...

On Saturday July 25th Costa Rica reached another record on the number of new confirmed cases of Covid-19 with 931. This brings the total to 14,600 since the pandemic reached the country at the beginning of March. 10,960 cases are active. A total of 98 patients have now died. Through July 1st, the country only registered 17 deaths related to the virus, which means that in just the past 24 days t...

Thursday July 23rd Costa Rica registered 768 new confirmed cases of Covid-19, totaling 13,129 out of which 3,448 have already recovered, 81 people have died and currently, 290 people are hospitalized 43 of them in the intensive care unit. Despite the situation, during the press conference held today, the government confirmed that the country will begin to gradually reopen air borders as of Augu...

How will Costa Rica recover economically from Covid-19? That's a great question with many variables and unknowns. Two things are clear about COVID-19 in Costa Rica: Cases continue to increase, and it will be an uphill battle to recover the economy. Currently there have been 12,361 confirmed cases of COVID since it arrived on March 6 (via two American tourists), and 71 people have sadly lost th...

Costa Rica has confirmed a total of 11,114 cases of Covid-19 through Sunday July 19 and out of these, 2,966 have already recovered. Today the country reached a new record in the number of people hospitalized with a total of 241 patients, out of which 44 remain in the intensive care unit. 8 more people have died for a total of 62 deaths related to Covid-19. One of the latest deaths registered wa...

The Judiciary Investigative Police (OIJ) confirmed that according to the autopsy results a body found back on July 4th in the area of Jaco, corresponds to Karin Holzapfel, a 32-year-old German tourist that had been reported missing on June 28th. The family of the victim posted made the following post on Facebook: “It is with deep sorrow and regret to inform you all that yesterday, July 17, a...

On Thursday the National Emergency Commission (Comision Nacional de Emergencias, CNE), presented the latest status update and predictions for the growth of Coronavirus COVID-19 in Costa Rica. The predictions were described by some as worrisome, by others as catastrophic. The CNE predicts that if the virus continues to progress at the current rate, by mid-August the hospital capacity of the Cost...

Costa Rica reports a total of 9,969 confirmed cases of Covid-19, out of these, 2,818 are already recovered, currently, 211 are hospitalized, 38 of them are in the intensive care unit and 47 people have died. The government announced changes in the sanitary measures that will apply from July 20th through July 31st, these include: Vehicular transit restriction Counties in Orange alert: Tr...

This Thursday July 16th the President of Costa Rica, Carlos Alvarado, signed Law number 9875 to Transfer the Holidays (that fall on weekends) to Mondays with the purpose of promoting national tourism during the years 2020 through 2024. The purpose of the bill is to help reactive the tourism sector, one of the most affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. “At this time, it is of utmost importance t...

On March 27, eleven days after the first confirmed COVID-19 case, the head of Public Security (Direccion General de Armamento Publica) temporarily suspended all psychological exams and practice tests for those wanting new gun permits. Citing concerns of COVID transmission, all in-person applications and renewals for gun permits are suspended until further notice. People seeking work as private ...

By Laura Gutierrez of Immigration Help Costa Rica As mentioned in my previous article, navigating through this crisis is like driving with one foot on the brake and one on the gas. The Costa Rica Department of Immigration has once again hit the brakes with Resolution N° DJUR-0105-07-2020-JM. Don't get nauseous or someone will think you caught COVID. Immigration was scheduled to be open to th...

BAC Credomatic, Costa Rica’s largest private bank, announced this week that it is closing eleven of its outlets, canceling 187,000 customer credit cards, and laying off 373 of its employees. Many of BAC’s loyal clients have been contacted and told their credit cards will be cancelled within 60 days. Several other changes will be implemented in the coming months, apparently all due to the new law, ...