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Costa Rica Immigration Wins Right Detain Foreigners
Posted by Marcel Evans on March 10, 2013 in Costa Rica News

QCOSTARICA / Costa Rica’s Immigration Police have the right to detain foreigners and hold them for 24 hours while their agency investigates their travel documents, ruled the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court (Sala IV) this week.

In doing so, Sala IV rejected a 2011 constitutional challenge of 13 articles of the Immigration law. The court heard testimony from several unions and associations representing foreign workers.

Sala IV judges refused to consider most of the articles but did debate Article 18 of the law and Article 31. They permit detention of foreigners in order to examine their migratory status.

If their status appears illegal they can be held up to 30 days, the court ruled. Acting Immigration director Freddy Montero said the ruling gives his police time check for illegal traffic of human beings, and false immigration papers.

(This country has a strong desire to halt human trafficking within its borders but but sometimes lacks the legal tools to follow up its humane inclinations.)

But Montero pointed out that the ruling should not raise fears of high-handed mistreatment of foreigners. Immigration cannot, says Artile 24, hold a passport indefinitely without a time limit placed on the confiscation. Only the courts have that power.

Immigration can hold a passport longer than 24 hours only if important considerations force it to do so and only with a formal resolution. Again, the courts may do this, but not Immigration.

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What came to mind was the poster that was fraudulently editing his electronic ticket from the airline on his computer to show a different return date.

Having been detained by Costa Rican immigration, I can certainly say it happens.

My passport had almost expired so they wouldn't let me enter. Tried to enter Nicaragua...wouldn't let me enter for the same reason. Ended up being taken to the border police station where I sat for god knows how long, on a bench with 15 or so Nicaraguans who had been caught for smuggling something in the country illegally...mostly themselves.

I told them right from the get go that this will end with you guys giving me a 4 day visa to go to the Canadian embassy in San Jose and get a new passport, since it is the closest Canadian embassy for some quite some distance. They thought I was being rude, but asking them to look at it rationally, and exactly what options they have, it will end this way... Unless I am to undertake the rest of my life living in some weird Costa Rica-Nicaragua no mans land knows affectionately as Penas Blancas.

Needless to say...5 hours later I was on a bus to San Jose.

Question: Very interesting but I am a little confused as to if you were denied entry by CR how they were able to detain you. Where were you coming from when this happened? Also, how much time was left on your passport?

The six month rule is not just Costa Rica but is pretty common throughout the world. I was in CR about a rear ago and wanted to go to Nicaragua. While I was down in CR I went over the 6 month line and when I went to buy a bus ticket to Nicaragua on Nica bus, they wouldn't let me because of the 6 month rule.

This is probably why I renew my passport 8 months or more before it expires and I start planning a trip.

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