- Overview: Costa Rica
- Global PEO and payroll
- Global HR Compliance
- Work permit for hiring expats via PEO
- Expand without a company set up
- Contractor vs. employee: which is better?
Immigration support for hiring expats in Costa Rica via PEO
Among many other issues companies face when expanding globally is global HR. This includes hiring local citizens and expats, and payrolling them, paying taxes and getting work permits and visas so that expatriates were eligible to work in a foreign country.
If you are a company that is already hiring or planning to hire international workforce for your international projects, you must be aware of how hard it may get to onboard the person if they are miles away. Things can get even more complicated if expats are to be onboarded in a foreign country.
Whether it is to serve your company’s clients in Costa Rica or to tap into a new market, Acumen’s ‘work permit and hiring expats through a Global PEO’ is here for you.
Attention: we are not an immigration service! We do not provide a work permit and immigration support as a standalone solution to individuals willing to work overseas.
Our solution is a one-stop shop service for the official employment of expats in Costa Rica after they have received a work permit or a visa. Our Global PEO for hiring expats is aimed at employer companies that want to transfer selected candidates or individuals whose employers are ready to finance their immigration and foreign employment.
Note: having one provider that sponsors a work permit or visa on your behalf and then employs the expat, minimizes risks of visa rejection and takes the hassle associated with immigration procedure off your head.
Unlike other global Professional Employer Organizations, we can provide a bunch of extra benefits in addition to immigration support and onboarding in full compliance with local labor legislation. This includes housing, office, mobile phone and car provision to meet-and-greet, dependents relocation, and others.
Focus on your primary business goals. And let us take care of the work permit and immigration procedures for you. Use our all-in-one solution:
- For long-term assignments in Costa Rica, allowing to payroll expats with full legal compliance
- As an interim solution before incorporating in the country
Hiring and payrolling expats in Costa Rica
Acumen’s approach to global mobility and expats employment in Costa Rica is backed with years of field expertise. Our team of seasoned professionals has managed to guide the whole bunch of companies of different sizes and sectors through the challenging immigration and onboarding and offboarding procedure.
We have helped companies to easily onboard, payroll and withdraw employees at the end of the employment agreement when it was needed based on their needs.
If you want to quickly and without risk get a work permit for your expatriate candidate, Acumen International can be your dedicated partner. We will guide you through all steps and advise on the documents required.
Note: we cannot shorten or affect the immigration procedure. However, we can make all necessary preparations so that you can onboard the employee immediately the permit or visa have been received.
We will ensure 100% compliance with the in-country labor legislation during the expats’ employment with Acumen International. Contact us for details on visa processing timelines and documents required to get a work permit in Costa Rica.
Estimated time for work permit issuance
Typically, the procedure of work permit issuance in Costa Rica takes from 1 day until entry to Costa Rica, and a further 5 to 11 months before the whole process is completed.
Major steps to get a work permit in Costa Rica
- Visitor Visa Application
- Entry to Costa Rica
- Temporary Residence Application Appointment Booking
- Temporary Residence Application
- Residence Card Application at the Immigration Office/ Bank of Costa Rica
Documents for work permit in Costa Rica, main applicant
| Name | Notes | Copies |
| 2 Passport Photographs | In color, with a white background. Face forward, mouth closed, eyes open. | Two originals |
| Travel Tickets | Booked returned ticket for entrance into Costa Rica via air, land or sea. The booking must show a set date for entrance and departure from Costa Rica. | One original |
| Evidence of Financial Capacity & Ties to Home Country | Any of the following documents are acceptable: -Letter or certification issued by the employer stating the position of the employee, salary and length of time working -Bank statements for the last three months (showing at least USD$100 per month of stay) The documents must also prove that the applicant maintains ties to his or her home country. | One original |
| Visa Application Form | One original | |
| Visa Payment Fee | One original | |
| Valid Passport | One original | |
| Application Form | One original | |
| Government Fees | Tax of 125 colons of stamps plus 500 colons corresponding to 2.50 colons per page submitted with the Temporary Residence Permit Application plus USD250 government fee for the temporary residence permit application. | One original |
| Fingerprints receipt from the Public Security Ministry | One original | |
| Power of Attorney | If authorizing a third party to submit the application. | One original |
| Police Clearance Certificates | Issued in the applicant’s home country or from the country of residence in the last three years. They must be original and issued within the previous six months (if no expiry document is stated). They must be also legalized by the Costa Rica consulate in home/resident country or apostilled in the country of issuance. | One legalized and translated original |
| Consular Registration Receipt | One original | |
| Birth Certificate | Showing full parentage. This document is valid for six months (if no expiration date is stated on the document) | One legalized and translated original |
| Copy of all Pages of Passport | Including stamp to show valid entry into the country. Must be notarized by a Costa Rican notary. | One notarized original |
| Support Letter for Temporary Residence | Must be addressed to the immigration authorities, and should state the purpose of the temporary residence application and include the employee’s address for notifications. | One certified original |
| Yellow Fever Vaccination Certificate | Only required if the applicant is coming from a high-risk country. | One original |
| 6 Passport Photographs | In color, with a white background. Face forward, mouth closed, eyes open. | One original |
| Copy of Residence Permits | Copies of all the residence permits held in the country where the applicant has resided over the last three years (if residing in a country other than that of origin). The last residence must be still in force. | One clear copy |
| Proof of Social Security Registration | One original | |
| Valid Passport | One original | |
| Proof of ID Card Payment | One original |
If you need to have your expat personnel legally work for you in Costa Rica without having to set up your own business entity for that, trust us to assist you with work permit and immigration support, and then employ your expats locally on your behalf.
Contact our team to let us take up your foreign employees’ immigration matters and relieve you of the responsibility of getting work permit by working with our local partners to organize and obtain all the necessary permits, as well as provide you with a detailed update on the progress of the process.
Contact us for more details about how you can get a work permit for your expatriate staff and employ them through Acumen International in Costa Rica.
