By Ivo Henfling

The new Costa Rica residency card is worrying some residents unnecessarily. Some online newspapers in English,  like AM Costa Rica, Inside Costa Rica and the Tico times reported this week about the new DIMEX residency cards but the information wasn’t clear what a DIMEX residency card is. For that reason, I have received several emails from my readership, worried about not being able to do any bank business without the new residency card. of course you will also need this residency card to buy Costa Rica real estate although you will be able to do that also with your passport.

By Ivo Henfling and Mr. Z.

Just a couple of days ago, I wrote a blog about immigration in Costa Rica and a friend, Mr. Z,  just sent me a great sample of Costarican bureaucracy and what happened to him while trying to get his Costarican residency papers renewed. I am sure that some day, it will all work well, but this is a huge task for the Costarican bureaucrats.

The Costa Rican Central government has been working hard to digitalize their services so they will become more user friendly and step by step they are trying to make the long lines at the govenmental office shorter and shorter. I think it was the government of don Oscar Arias who first installed a Minister of Competitiveness and that started certain services in the INS (Insurance company), CCSS (Social Security system) and today, there are 7 governmental institutions that offer digital services.

By Ivo Henfling

Few Costa Rica golf communities in Costa Rica can boast the option of such a complete amenity in their community. Ciudad Cariari and Los Arcos, two small communities located just off the highway between the International airport Juan Santa Maria and San Jose, and very close to Belen, offer great homes for sale for those who like the quiet of the suburbs and the services of the city.

Ciudad Cariari and Los Arcos, both master planned subdivisions and very secure communities, where created by visionary developers in the 1970’s offer beautiful boulevards with trees and green areas everywhere. Both communities border the Cariari golf course and club so when you live in Cariari or in Los Arcos, you can walk to the club.

By Ivo Henfling

You should definitely get residency in Costa Rica when you plan to live here permanently. The law indicates that if you are a permanent resident as a pensionado or rentista (two different types of retiree), you should be in Costa Rica 4 months out of the year as a minimum. Many of you are snowbirds and will live in Costa Rica only for a certain amount of time and others live here permanently. Many of you do the 72 hour trip out of the country every 3 months to renew their tourist visa, so yo become a perpetual tourist. And that’s what I want to talk to you about today.

By Brooke Bishop

If it is time for your 72 hours out of the country, Bocas del Toro Panama is a good option.

You cross the border into Panama in Sixaola Costa Rica, a sleepy border town in the Southeast part of the country surrounded by banana plantations.  You can drive your car there, park it, go into Panama, or get a shuttle from one of the popular beach hotels in Cahuita, or Puerto Viejo.  If you are going to drive it into Panama, make sure that you have spoken with your lawyer, and have all of the necessary paperwork.  The shuttle is about $28 a day, and the parking is $7 a day.  

By Ivo Henfling

Nature Air will be flying from Costa Rica to Nicaragua from 3rd of March 2011. I doubt most Nicaraguans that live in Costa Rica will be worried too much about this news, because they can't afford it, but more and more business people seem to go to Managua constantly.

For those expats without residency in Costa Rica, the so-called perpertual tourists, this flight will not be for you as the passengers flying from Managua into San Jose will have to carry printed proof of onward travel from Costa Rica (a flight or bus reservation departing within 90 days). The Costa Rican Department of Immigration requires passengers to present their travel documents in the airport in Panama to guarantee boarding (vice versa).