“The tourism of sun and beach is the cornerstone of our industry, Costa Rica has 1,228 kilometers of coasts and around 600 beaches, and the activities related to these are the preferred ones for national and international tourists, extending the visitation schedule allows the country to continue to reactivate employment”, informed this Thursday the minister of tourism Gustavo Segura. The visita...

The family and friends of Albert Lusk are offering a reward of ONE MILLION COLONES (Around $1700 USD) to the person(s) who can help locate this missing American. Albert never returned from his usual hike on the morning of September 21, in the area known as Cerro Turu, near the Parque Nacional Braulio Carillo. His car was found on Calle Brena Mora. His usual hike was up to a waterfall on the Rio...

By Laura Gutierrez of Immigration Help Costa Rica As of Oct. 15: Residents of Florida, Georgia and Texas will be allowed into Costa Rica. As of Nov. 1: All U.S. citizens and residents will be allowed into Costa Rica. Please click here for Laura's personal travel experience from Costa Rica to the USA and back during the COVID-19 Pandemic. For a comprehensive list of all originating coun...

This Monday, October 5, Costa Rica reached a grand total of 81,129 confirmed cases of COVID-19 out of which 49,703 have recovered. 1004 people have died in relation to this virus and 570 people are currently hospitalized, 212 of them remain in the intensive care unit. Despite this, the Minister of Economy, Industry and Commerce, Victoria Hernández announced the decision to reopen bars and casin...

Thirty people fanned out on Friday October the 2nd searching for 67-year old Albert Lusk, who disappeared twelve days ago. The group included members of the Red Cross, firemen, members of the Fuerza Publica, and the Organismo de investigacion Judicial (OIJ). Sniffer dogs were brought in capable of finding both survivors, and forensic remains of those who have perished. Searchers combed the mountai...

On February 15, 2020, Costa Rica stopped a shipment of over five tons of cocaine – the biggest drug bust in Costa Rican history – headed for the Netherlands. This drug interdiction was a triumph, but shined a bright light on the Costa Rican cocaine trafficking problem. “In Costa Rica, we are facing a tsunami of cocaine, and it’s drowning us”, stated former chief of Costa Rica’s national anti-drug ...

Residents and citizens of the United States will be able to enter Costa Rica again starting November 1st, and before this date, on October 15th, access will be granted to citizens and residents of the states of Florida, Georgia, and Texas. This measure was announced by the Costa Rican Tourism Board “to help the economic reactivation of the country”, stated the Minister of Tourism Gustavo Segura...

In recent weeks, Costa Rica’s iconic Imperial Beer’s eagle (‘aguila’ in Spanish), has been turned on its head. It’s been seen upside down on signs, trucks, bottles, billboards and other promotional material. What gives? Imperial’s press office explained, “The country is passing through very difficult moments that have us all feeling like we are upside down on our heads, but together we will mov...

United States Attorney William M. McSwain announced that the internet sports betting company, 5D Holdings Ltd. (operating under the unincorporated brand name, “5Dimes”) and Costa Rican Laura Varela, have agreed to forfeit more than $46.8 million in gambling proceeds as part of a settlement agreement in a criminal investigation into 5Dimes’ sports betting operation based in Costa Rica that allowed ...

Heavy rainfall this Tuesday caused problems for drivers in different areas of the country, particularly in the General Cañas highway which connects Alajuela and San José and some areas of Heredia. In the General Cañas highway close the Real Cariari Mall the sewer system collapsed and caused the highway to flood which damaged 7 vehicles and of course caused severe transit problems that extende...

The US Embassy in Costa Rica has the following message for US Citizens in Costa Rica that wish to submit their vote for the upcoming elections in the USA: If you plan to vote in the November 2020 election it is important to ACT NOW! Don’t wait, return your voted ballot right away! Remember U.S. embassies and consulates are not polling places; same-day in-person voting is not available outside t...

On Monday, September 28 for unknown reasons a pick-up truck caught fire on Route 27 Santa Ana – San Jose near the toll booths. The incident occurred after the pick up truck had passed the toll booth, the fire started, the driver got out of the car, and the driver of a tank truck stopped to offer help, however, the truck starts rolling in reverse and out of control towards the toll booths. Th...

The security cameras of a store in Alajuela, Costa Rica captured the exact moment in which a baby stroller rolls out of control across the parking lot of the commercial center and heads towards the main road where it impacts a bus on the side. The footage shows the moment when the woman in charge of the baby opens the door to her car leaving the stroller to the side, she then proceeds to put so...

The Organismo de Investigacion Judicial (OIJ) is asking for the public’s help in finding an American citizen named Albert George Lusk (67), who disappeared on September 21 in San Isidro de Heredia Province, leaving his car on a remote road as he often did before hiking to his favorite waterfall. Sadly, on that day, Lusk seems to have never returned from his walk. Mel Rivera, a resident on that ...

The Ministry of Environment of Costa Rica has ordered Ponderosa Adventure Park in Liberia to forbid visitors to take selfies with the wild animals they have and feed them, they have also ordered the Park to stop the reproduction of the animals they have. These are part of the changes that Ponderosa Park must put in place in order to comply with the Law of Conservation of Wildlife which was pub...

On the weekend of September 20th, photos of the Spanish couple Pedro and Silvia Sierra went viral. They depicted the couple in Costa Rica, Pedro in camouflage jungle gear, and Silvia in a bra and pants. They appeared to be deep in the jungle in the photos, and seemed to be hunting domestic cats. There were photos of cats impaled on trees, being eaten by snakes, hanging upside down from Pedro’s han...

The Costa Rica Central Bank (BCCR) published this September 24, 2020, the first fixed limit to the commission paid by commerce for the use of the point of sale terminal to accept debit and credit cards as a form of payment, the same was established at 2.5%. Charity organizations, transport services regulated by ARESEP, and service stations will pay a maximum 1.5% commission This new commissi...

At a press conference on September 21 at the Casa Presidencial in San Jose, it was announced that Costa Rica is having talks with 6 pharmaceutical companies currently working on a new COVID-19 vaccine. Those companies include Pfizer, Sinovac, Sinopharm, Moderna, AstraZeneca, and the Russian Sputnik V. Costa Rica is working to obtain enough vaccine doses for the entire country, while ensuring that ...

The Ministry of Health confirmed 1,087 new cases of Covid-19 positive patients for a grand total of 66,689 confirmed cases, out of which 25,706 people are already recovered. 637 people are currently hospitalized, 260 of them in the intensive care unit. Costa Rica has registered 760 deaths related to this virus. The Government estimates that the hospitals will reach their absolute maximum cap...

By Laura Gutierrez of Immigration Help Costa Rica Once again, the Department of Immigration (DGME) re-opening date has been moved back from September 18th to December 1, 2020, just as I had cautioned in previous articles. Also, as I predicted, this will be a by-appointment-only program on a first-booked, first-served basis. The DGME will begin receiving bookings on October 19th. How those booki...

According to a report published in SemanarioUniversidad.com prices of medicines in Costa Rica are as much as 50% more expensive than in the rest of Latin America “due to the advantages that international labs have which fix high prices and also to the power of the companies that distribute the medicines”. Several studies including one from the Ministry of Economy and Commerce (MEIC) confirm tha...

This Sunday a group of Costa Ricans gathered in front of President Carlos Alvarado’s house to protest against the proposals of crazy new taxes presented by the government in order to possibly qualify for a loan with the IMF (International Monetary Fund) this week. The group of protesters met in La Sabana and took Route 27 in a caravan which concluded in front of the President’s house in Santa A...

Muffadal Saylawa, Founder and CEO of Oro Chocolate, was en route to Chocoa, Europe’s largest sustainable chocolate convention, when disaster struck. He was traveling well-prepared, having bought plane tickets to Amsterdam, booked an airb&b, rented a booth at the convention, and recruited his sister to help with sales – Muffadal was filled with hope for taking his gourmet chocolate company to t...

The Government of Costa Rica presented this Thursday to the Legislative Assembly the proposal (Plan to overcome the fiscal impact of the pandemic) to negotiate with the International Monetary Fund for a new loan of $1.750 Billion. “We need to maintain economic stability and activate employment to improve the situation in the country generated by COVID-19. If we do not act, the risk is in the hi...

The United States Coastguard Service intercepted in international waters a Costa Rican vessel with four people aboard and upon inspection discovered 700 packages of cocaine, each with a weight of close to 1 kilogram. The four men, three Costa Rican and one Nicaraguan with ages ranging from 33 to 48 years were arrested and turned to Costa Rican authorities in Golfito, Puntarenas. As a result ...

Seven members of the same family died in a car accident that took place in Cartago. The accident involved a van and a police truck. The police car was on its way to a disturbance call that had been reported in the area of Llanos de Santa Lucia when it crashed into the van that was going across and intersection. The victims are a 70-year-old male, three women ages 43, 32, and 30, a 16-year-ol...

By Laura Gutierrez of Immigration Help Costa Rica On September 3, United Airlines flight 1080 non-stop to Newark was the first commercial passenger flight out of Costa Rica in six months. I was on it to visit family in New Jersey. In reviewing those trips to Newark and back to Costa Rica seven days later on September 10, I hope to answer persistent questions still coming to me from stress...

Costa Rica celebrates 199 years of independence this September 15 dealing with Covid-19, historically high unemployment rates, and street demonstrations from gold miners in Abangares, Guanacaste. Gold miners of the area of Abangares blocked a sector of the Interamericana Norte street which connects to Monteverde and the road that leads to Cañas in Guanacaste for more than 24 hours not allowing ...

The Minister of Tourism, Gustavo Segura, announced this Thursday, September 10 during the daily press conference in relation to the pandemic, that the entry to Costa Rica will be authorized for 7 other USA states as of September 15 and 8th one by October 1st. Residents of the following states will be able to enter Costa Rica after September 15: Washington, Oregon, Wyoming, Arizona, New Mexico, ...

Costa Rica registers an unemployment rate of 24.4%, confirmed the National Institute of Census and Statistics (Spanish acronym: INEC), this represents an increase of 12.9 points and 270 thousand people approximately, mainly women which reach a rate of 30.2%. The Government has announced several measures to stimulate employment opportunities, among these the authorization of more flights to ente...

Covid 19 seems to be the most popular phrase of 2020 in Costa Rica and the entire world. This virus appeared as an unwanted host, destroying plans for education, health, jobs, and economic growth around the world. In Costa Rica, the impact has been very severe. Even before receiving this "new guest" the economy was showing signs of "pneumonia." aswell as taking into consideration that during 2019 ...

The autopsy report of the brutal murder of CIMA Hospital doctor of anesthesiology, Dra. Maria Luisa Cedeno, was released today (Tuesday Aug 8th 2020), revealing the violent attack she received prior to being killed by one or more person on July 20th. The cause of death is listed as a fatal blow to the back of the neck, but she suffered blows and stab wounds – even bites – to her body prior to her ...

Late last month Costa Rican authorities completed 32 raids, arresting 27 people involved in illegal mining and an affiliated gold-laundering ring. The investigation began in April 2019, after authorities at San Jose’s Juan Santamaria International Airport noticed an unprecedented increase in the amount of gold listed in export documents filed. The investigation was thorough and intense, uncover...

The Costa Rican Tourism Board (ICT) confirmed that as of September 13 the country will increase gradually, but significantly, the number of authorized flights from the United States. As of that date, United Airlines will fly daily from Houston, Texas to the Juan Santamaría Airport and three times a week to the Daniel Oduber Airport in Liberia, Guanacaste. It is possible that the number of fligh...

Three Americans with legal residency status in Costa Rica were rejected entry on Thursday, after arriving on the first commercial flight from the US to Costa Rica since the borders reopened to Americans. They arrived on Thursday morning at 11:30AM at Juan Santamaria Airport, flying in from Newark International Airport in New Jersey. The flight was United UAL1080, and had 146 passengers onboard. Th...

Costa Rica’s Central Bank announced on Wednesday that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved $508 Million in emergency financing for Costa Rica to help alleviate the impact of the coronavirus, COVID-19 pandemic. The five-year loan was granted through the IMF’s Rapid Financing Instrument, and carries a spread of 150 basis points over the IMF’s special drawing rights (SDRs), equal to an ...

Costa Rica based cutting-edge provider of 3D design and rendering services 3D.CR (www.3D.CR) recently announced its expanded offering of dynamic 3D animations, walk-throughs, and fly-overs with the release of the new 2020 REEL summarizing the enhanced capabilities. For year's architectural 3D rendering is the smart, contemporary choice for developers, architects, designers, general contractors,...

By Laura Gutierrez of Immigration Help Costa Rica Prominent newscaster to a famous virologist: “Doctor, how long do you think this pandemic will last?” Doctor: “How would I know? I’m not a politician.” With the many emails I receive from dear clients trying in vain to set some travel dates either in or out of Costa Rica, often to coordinate with submissions dates for their residency applica...

Costa Rica has added another six states of the United States to the list of territories whose residents can enter the country by air for a total of 12. The first six states were announced over a week ago: New York, New Jersey, New Hempshire, Vermont, Main and Connecticut, now the list also includes: Maryland, Virgina and DC that will have authorized access as of September 1st and two weeks lat...

On Friday Costa Rica broke a new record for COVID-19 cases with a count of 1193 new cases, the highest since the pandemic began, and surpassing the August 13th total of 1072 new cases. The continual increase in cases is worrisome, especially given the country’s plan to enter a new phase of economic reopening on September 9, and the gradual return of tourists in recent weeks. Minister of Health Dan...