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$15 tax on air arrivals would catch condo owners
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

A proposal for a $15 head tax on airport arrivals also will include elimination of the current 3 percent tourism tax on hotel stays, according to the minister of Turismo.

The Arias administration will draft a proposed law to do just that and submit it to the Asamblea Legislativa, he said. The minister is Carlos Benavides, and he is anxious to collect money from both foreigners and Costa Ricans who come to the nation's international airports. Benavides made his comments to reporters Monday, although the idea of such a tax had been mentioned previously.

Ostensibly, the tax is designed to pay for promotion of Costa Rica to the outside world, but until a draft is prepared there is no way of knowing how strictly the funds would be allocated. Benavides has complained in the past of hotels that fail to remit the 3 percent tax and evade payments. He has not given any particulars, and some hotel owners question his statements.

Monday he also singled out those foreigners who rent or own condominiums as avoiding the hotel tax. The $15 head tax would be applied as individuals enter the country, so even those coming here to stay in private homes, rented condos, or other non-hotel accommodations would pay, according to the minister's plan.

Tourism officials also have said that families who visit Costa Rica are not paying enough money in hotel taxes because they frequently just stay in one or two rooms. A family of four would pay $60 to enter the country under the plan. Now they would have to spend about $2,000 at hotels to generate $60 in tax at 3 percent. Costa Ricans and foreigners already pay a tax to leave the country, and the idea of the new arrival tax probably will not be applauded universally.

Costa Rica seems to be experiencing a decline in the number of tourists, even though firm figures for the last half of 2006 are not yet available. Benavides has predicted a 4 percent decline over 2005.

The promotional efforts of the Instituto Costarricense de Turismo have not been consistent. Last year the government lavished $4.5 million in promotions efforts during the World Cup Games in Germany. During the Christmas holidays the tourism institute ran two full pages several times in the daily La Nación. This was a period when Costa Ricans either already were on vacation or already had made plans. Benavides also said that the tourism institute was talking to public relations firms in the United States and also negotiating with major airlines.

The tourism minister signed an agreement Monday that establishes a financial package supervised by Banco Nacional de Costa Rica. Income from the new private operator of the Caldera docks would be used to leverage bonds. The proceeds from the bonds would be used for public works that might also be considered of value to tourists.

For example, one project is to improve the breakwater and the levee at the tip of Puntarenas in the vicinity of the ferry terminal and the park there. Also mentioned would be a lookout on the Costanera Sur between Jacó and Playa Hermosa where motorists could stop to admire the view. Also proposed was a plan to repair the docks where cruise ships tie up in Puntarenas. The tourism institute will manage the projects along with the Instituto Costarricense de Puertos del Pacifico.

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You ALWAYS have an option ....... "NEXT" !!!

Just like the chicas at the DR...they will now get you cummin' and goin' Now let's see,it's going to be $15 cummin and $28 goin'. That's $43 which is almost exactly what we pay at ZB or Idem,so either way we are getting phucked.

i thought it was $ 26 for departure, did it go up Pura vida

Man what's next the Peter Meter tax ??? TAX,TAX,TAX seems like legalized stealing to me !

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"Run silent, run deep"
Spunk glazed Chicas are the building blocks of the universe!

why dont they just raise the departure tax? now we will have one more thing to do at the airport.

I don't understand why the departure,
and perhaps new arrival tax, aren't applied
to the plane ticket. They already have a page
of add-ons, on top of the actual air fare.
Seems that would be less paper work all around,
as well as not having to wait in line, then having
to fill out yet another form. They already know
when you arrive in country, so if you happen to
stay over 90 days, if your a tourist, they can
just say, wait a minute sir, you will have to go
over to ____ and take care of this matter first.
ShyOne

The airlines have repeatedly requested that procedure be adopted. The Government has steadfastly refused giving as a reason that under the current system the money is deposited in their account daily producing cash flow.

If the airlines collected the tax as part of the fare and then remitted the money to the Government there would be a time lag. Typically airline sales reports are produced monthly. Then a check would have to issued to accompany the report producing a lag time of 4 to 5 weeks for some collections. Additionally there is the fear that should a carrier go out of business (Air Madrid for example) the tax money would never be remitted to the Government.

When they first loosened up and allowed other places to accept payment (Hotel Presidente, TACA) it was felt that perhaps that was the first step in changing the system. To date that change has not materialized. However, if they start instituting an arrival tax as well I think they will switch to letting the airlines collect the money.

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Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

ShyOne: Your idea makes sense and that's why it will never happen in tico land. Wile Coyote

I'll bet the arrival tax of $15 will be collected at the airport and the 3% hotel tax will continue also

More confirmation on this tax: Inside Costa Rica - Sunday January 14:

$15 Tax For Each Person
The Insituto Costarricense de Turismo (ICT) - Costa Rican Institute of Tourism - announced it plans to establish a us$15 tax to enter the country.
Minister of Tourism Carlos Benavides confirmed the project and said that this would be a substitute for the 3 percent hotel tax now levied.

The sales tax in Costa Rica is 13%, however, hotels charge their customers a sales tax of 16%, the 3% going to the ICT coffers. The tourism minister explained that this tax will be applied to both foreigners and nationals entering through any airport.

The funds would be used to promote Costa Rica as a tourist destination abroad, since the current allocation places the country at a disadvantage against competing countries.

_________________
You ALWAYS have an option ....... "NEXT" !!!

I find it interesting that those of us who live here and choose not to get residency because it's a pain in the ass,will be forced to pay this additional tax to encourage more tourism which we don't really want. (except for our monger friends of course)

I find it even more interesting that someone who does not want more tourism chooses to remain a "perpetual tourist".

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Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine