The crisis in Nicaragua has caused the requests for refugee status to increase, confirmed Director Raquel Vargas from the Directorate of Migration in Costa Rica in a press conference. According to Vargas, “there is no emergency and we are not facing a crisis at this point, there is an increase (in the number of requests), and we are clear on this; for this reason, we are going over the requests...

According to information released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the flow of immigrants through the north frontier (Nicaragua) registers a mild increase. “Since three weeks ago, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs maintains an Interinstitutional Coordination Committee to face the possible impact that the crisis in Nicaragua could have in Costa Rica”, informed the Vice-President and Chancellor,...

The Directorate General of Immigration in Costa Rica was supposed to start charging foreigners today, April 20, a $100.00 fine per month of irregular (illegal) permanence in the country, however, the immigration authority announced that they will not apply the fine for another 12 months. “The Directorate General of Immigration, through Executive Decree 41033-MGP, delays for 12 months the appl...

The Directorate General of Immigration in Costa Rica made the announcement over a month ago, tourists, foreigners who live in Costa Rica but are not legal residents and those who have temporary residence or special category but whose DIMEX (Migratory Identification Document for Foreigners) is expired will be fined $100 per month of irregular (illegal) permanence in the country. This coming Frid...

An analysis carried out by project State of the Region brings attention to how the changes in the immigration policies of the United States will affect the Central American region, and in particular Costa Rica and Panama, countries that will likely see an increase in the flow of immigrants from other Central American countries. It is evident that the changes taking place will have an impact in ...

Officers of the Professional Migration Police and personnel from the Ministry of Work and the Social Security Service  (C.C.S.S.) found a total of 47 foreigners working under "irregular conditions" AKA Illegally in two companies hired by Coopesa a company dedicate to the repair and maintenance of air crafts. The group included natives from El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico and Venezuela who receiv...

Authorities in Costa Rica are concerned as presence of Central America gang members “mareros” increases in the country. On February 20 a native from El Salvador was captured as a suspect of a robbery, he is allegedly a member of a “mara” (gang). From only 3 cases associated with maras in 2016 the number increased to 16 in 2017, according to official data by the Migratory Police. The members ...

Costa Rican immigration authorities denied entry this Saturday, December 6 to a Canadian citizen who apparently is part of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club. The man, of last name Gallant, was denied entry as he was doing immigration control at the Daniel Oduber International Airport in Liberia, Guanacaste and was sent home in the same flight in which he arrived. According to immigration auth...

A Costa Rican woman of last names Mora Sibaja was arrested in Perez Zeledon, Costa Rica under charges of Human Trafficking and Human Smuggling. According to the investigation which began in 2016, the woman charged between US$8,000.00 to US$10,000.00 to smuggle people to the United States through different routes; Mora would receive 50% of the payment in Costa Rica and the balance was paid befor...

“Living the integration” is an initiative launched in Costa Rica by The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) also known as the UN Refugee Agency in collaboration with the Chamber of Commerce and the Ministry of Labour; this initiative has the goal of offering work options to refugees in Costa Rica. Refugees are all those people that are forced to leave their count...

Starting a new life in a different country is certainly challenging, initially it may all seem exciting and romantic, like a long vacation, but as time goes by you start falling into the realization that this is your new reality, and adapting to it might not be simple, even if you speak the language and you already have your job and a few friends, adapting to a new culture and different way of doi...

The number of deported foreigners considered “dangerous” has duplicated in the last year. According to data by the Costa Rican General Directorate of Migration and Foreigners, effective deportations increased by 60%, going from 393 cases to 620, this is a result of a higher number of operations, 150% more, confirmed Esteban Obando, sub-director of Migration, while the number of migratory rej...

A 59-year-old Israeli man, Lita Jake, was deported from Costa Rica Monday, October 23, 2017 due to his alleged ties with the criminal structure led by the murdered Lebanese, Elías Akl. Akl was assassinated May 15 in Escazú, Costa Rica at the front entrance to a private school in Guachipelín. Police have continued to investigate those connected with Akl, and have made other arrests since his ...

Costa Rican border police agents detained a suspected human trafficker, in Spanish what's known as a "coyote," with six Ecuadorians in the mountains near the Panama border yesterday. The area of southern Puntarenas province where the man was leading the six undocumented migrants  is called ​​Guaycará de Golfito. The Costa Rican man, Agüero, knew of a route over the border that circumvented p...

Six Nicaraguan women, including a minor, who were sexually exploited in a bar in Upala, Costa Rica, were rescued in mid-September by the Costa Rican Immigration Police in a sting operation in coordination with the public prosecutor's office and the General Directorate of Migration and Immigration (DGME). During the operation, five suspects were arrested at the Pino Bar in Santa Clara de Upala f...

The estimated 65 Costa Ricans who will be repatriated from Puerto Rico Saturday, Oct. 7 will be leaving behind destruction caused by Hurricane Maria, and entering into a Costa Rica battling the aftermath of Tropical Storm Nate. Such is life in the hurricane-hounded Caribbean basin. This is the Costa Rican government's first ever humanitarian repatriation flight held for its citizens, said th...

That annoying paper you are always given to fill out while trying to sleep on your flight or bus back to Costa Rica may be a thing of the past. The Costa Rican General Directorate of Migration and Foreigners announced a pilot test of a digital system that will take the place of the paper forms travelers have had to fill out by hand when exiting or entering the country. For the average travel...

A documentary by Costa Rican filmmaker and producer, Miguel Gómez, aims to highlight the perils of irregular migration by focusing on the Mesoamerican corridor. From January - July of this year, the United Nations Migration Agency (IOM) registered 230 deaths of such migrants attempting to cross from Mexico into the United States. By recounting the true story of members of a Costa Rican regga...

-- Between 2013 to July 2017, 36,081 irregular migrants entered Costa Rica through Paso Canoas on the Panamanian border, according to immigration officials. Towards the end of 2015 and into 2016, Costa Rica faced a surge in irregular migrants for which it was not prepared, said the government press office today, and that forced institutions and communities to respond to the emergency. First th...

Editor’s note: The views expressed by guest columnists are not necessarily those of The Costa Rica Star, its advertisers, or its staff.  From Costa Rica to Washington, governments continue to wrestle with issues of undocumented immigrants as people young and old flee situations of despair with dreams of reaching the United States of America. U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announce...

Costa Rica's policy towards migrants seeking transit through the country has been to grant them a 25-day permit and basic assistance at border shelters, after a screening procedure to register their country of origin and to vet any criminals. Recent years has seen a new phenomenon of migrants from diverse countries in Africa, Asia, as well as Haiti arriving at Costa Rica's southern border with ...

Farmers in Costa Rica are clamoring for changes in immigration policies in order to facilitate contracting field hands from Nicaragua and Panama, said a report in Costa Rica's agricultural industry's magazine, ProAgro. The Costa Rican National Chamber of Agriculture and Agroindustry (CNAA) says that current legislation does not coincide with the reality of the agricultural, aquaculture, and agr...

Costa Rican leaders met last week to analyze the country's progress on the situation of refugees in the country, said the Foreign Relations Ministry press office. As of June 30, 2017, there are a total of 4,414 persons recognized and living as refugees in Costa Rica; however, in recent years there has been a marked increase in the number of refugee applications. In 2015, 2,203 applications were...

Yesterday, some 80 migrants entered Costa Rica through Paso Canoas on the southern border with Panama, reported the Public Security Ministry. The men, women, and some children, who are in transit to the United States by foot, are from a number of African and Asian countries, said officials. According to immigration authorities, the migrants are from Nepal (43), Eritrea (21), Congo (8), Angola (...