www.CostaRicaTicas.com

I want to know how many of you all are living in SJ atm. Who has duel citizenship. Who is pulling the tourist residency? My friend just tells me to marry a hooker lol that may be the easiest way but damn if i wanna do that right off the bat i really need some advice on how you all got your cars, tools etc, down in CR i know they can ship cars and crap into limon pretty easy have any of you had any experiance with this?

I am trying to move down there before i get too old to really do the type of things i enjoy.

thanks,

Surfdog

I now appreciate the absurdity of Costa Rica and understand more and more why people are choosing Panama. I may do the same in the near future.

Hi Bilko,

I just heard today that CR is planning to tighten up on the perpetual touristas. I hear that more than 180 days in CR during a year will require application for residence to get back in.

I now appreciate the absurdity of Costa Rica and understand more and more why people are choosing Panama. I may do the same in the near future.

VISAS- YOUR MONEY CAN STAY, BUT YOU GOTTA GO

While the residential real estate market in the U.S. continues to slow, the one ray of light has been the growth of the vacation and second home market. Here in Panama, the vacation and second home market is booming too, particularly in the beach areas and mountain communities. What better way to invest your money (or perhaps that IRA nest egg) than in buying a beachside condo or mountain retreat? Panama is the perfect place to buy a second home. What would you really rather do - spend those cold, northern winters with your toes in the sand and golfing in the cool mountain valleys or de-icing the car windows and putting on snow chains?

In the good old days, if you were from the U.S., Canada or Europe, a simple $5 tourist card and passport would give you a 90-day pass to paradise. And, if you really liked it here, you could have easily extended your tourist visa for another 90 days. That was more than enough time for all those snowbirds to escape the cold, dark winter months. Investing in that new condo would have meant no hassle enjoyment of your part time ticket to paradise!

Well that was the good old days when it was easy. On 25 May 2007, new tourist visa regulations came into effect that now limits your stay to 30 days. Sure, you can apply for a 60 day extension by going to the immigrations office. How hard can that be? Just go down to the office, stand in line, deal with an underpaid, under appreciated government clerk (think New York City Department of Motor Vehicles and by the way. how’s your Spanish?), give them your passport for two days and hope the immigrations office extends your visa another 60 days. Another option if you want to stay longer, is to just pack up the Bermuda shorts and flip flops and head out of the country for at least 72 hours so you can return to enjoy that $250,000 condo you just bought (and thought you would be spending the winter in).

To add confusion and uncertainty to the problem, the Panamanian immigrations department has been going out of its way to say that they plan to review each and every 60-day extension request. What does that mean? Well, here’s what the United States Embassy is saying about the situation:
“As of May 25, 2007, tourists are allowed to stay in Panama for 30 days. If they want to stay longer, an extension for up to 60 days (for a total of 90 days in country) from the Panamanian Migration Office is required. Please note that the approval of the extension falls under the Panamanian Immigration Office’s discretion”.
Clearly, the US Embassy is emphasizing that the extension of the visa is discretionary and not automatic. Something you might want to think about before plunking down a deposit on that pricy winter escape.