.
We offer many Additional Services to help you make Costa Rica your home. CRIE and our team of independent attorneys and notaries will work for you! We match you with a highly qualified Costa Rican attorney for your specific case, thus saving you money on attorney fees.
Certification Service (getting your Background Checks and Birth Certificates + Apostilles)
Do you need to obtain your FBI Background Check and Birth Certificate while in Costa Rica? In this case, you don’t have to fly back home to get your documents done. CRIE offers you Plan “B” – you relax and enjoy CR, and we do all the work. We can assist you with fingerprinting, submitting the request, and having the apostilled results while chilling in Costa Rica.
Find out more about getting your documents from the USA the right way.
A US Background Check + Apostille through CRIE is $550 USD, a Birth Certificate + Apostille is $470 USD, Birth Certificate Apostille only is $300 USD. Note that the translation to Spanish is an additional cost and depends on the length of the content of the background check.
For more information and the prices for getting your documents from other countries – please CONTACT US here.
Open a Costa Rican Bank Account
Foreigners getting their residency can use the receipt (certificado trámite migratorio) that they get from Immigration to open a bank account in Costa Rica.
However, new regulations make it difficult for foreigners awaiting their residence cards to use banking services. Even though the banks are obligated to assist, you’ll find the generally uncooperative if you go to a branch alone. At CRIE, we work with banks and agents who can help you navigate opening a bank account during your residency application process.
The cost of opening a Personal Account: $200 USD
The cost of opening a Corporate Account: $500 USD
Don’t hesitate to CONTACT US if you need our assistance opening your bank account in Costa Rica.
Insurance (Life, Home, Automotive, Medical)
If you need assistance getting Insurance in Costa Rica, we can connect you with qualified insurance brokers. They can help you get all kinds of insurance – Life, Homeowner, Automotive, and Medical Insurance.
CONTACT US today!
Bookkeeping Services
If you need assistance with bookkeeping for your business, we can help you. CRIE will connect you to a qualified and certified bookkeeper via our network of accounting professionals. They will assist you with getting your business online using QuickBooks. Our bookkeepers will support you using QuickBooks online, store your data on a virtual server in the cloud, and allow you to use a desktop version of QuickBooks from any computer, anywhere, with an Internet connection.
The specific services provided by our bookkeepers are:
- Issuing monthly invoices;
- Tracking payments;
- Recording all expenses;
- Bank reconciliations;
- Month-end reporting;
- Year-end Preparation for your CPA.
Are you interested? CONTACT US.
Is Residency Taking Too Long?
We can investigate your behalf with the Costa Rica Immigration Department (DGME). Then we report back to you with the details slowing down your process. Moreover, CRIE will give you your options to fix the problems.
The cost to start an investigation for your immigration file is $160 USD.
Got questions? CONTACT US!
Additional Residency Services:
- Scheduling and re-scheduling ANY immigration appointment: $100 USD;
- Re-scheduling fingerprints: $50 USD;
- Change of Residency Category: $925 USD;
- Dismiss and Restart Immigration File: $300 USD (+ Government Fees);
- Start an Appeal: $300 USD;
- Power of Attorney: $30 USD;
- Document Translations: $40 USD (per page);
- Passport-size Photo: $15 USD (per person).
For more details, please CONTACT US.
Civil Marriage Ceremonies
Civil Ceremonies take approximately 30 minutes to fulfill the legal requirements and sign all documents. We can perform ceremonies at our office or the notary’s office.
Find out more about getting married in Costa Rica!
The average cost for a civil ceremony is $700 USD.
The average cost for a sworn declaration required for civil ceremonies (if needed) is $300 USD (per person).
CONTACT US for our assistance in your Civil Ceremony.
Will and Probate
It’s essential to have a local Costa Rican Will to cover your property and assets located in Costa Rica. It will make the probate process much more straightforward than probing a foreign Will in Costa Rica. A Will must meet the requirements of legal formalities of Costa Rica.
Find out more about Wills and Life Insurance in Costa Rica. Read more about why you should make a Will in Costa Rica.
The average cost of a WILL is $500 USD.
Need our help? CONTACT US today!
Civil Lawsuits or Criminal Charges
The Costa Rican legal system is based on the Napoleonic code and is very complicated. If you do not have good legal representation, it will invariably cost you more. What’s at stake? A criminal case may determine whether you spend a lot of time behind bars, while a civil case could hurt you financially. So if you’re facing criminal charges or a lawsuit, you need legal muscle behind you. At CRIE, we can match you with the best independent attorney in our network for your specific case.
CONTACT US for a complete quote for your specific case.
Company Formations and Corporate Structures
Many home buyers and business owners in Costa Rica want to have the property they buy or the business they own registered in a corporation instead of their name. It’s a wise decision because there are many advantages to using a Costa Rican Corporation. For instance, including transferring control of assets more cost-efficiently, avoiding possible complicated probate issues. Moreover, privacy in terms of ownership of assets, liability limitation or separation from other assets, and tax advantages. By the way, you can grant simple powers of attorney in your absence.
We recommend that all property investments in Costa Rica use a Costa Rican corporation for ownership purposes. We are happy to help you with all legal matters in Costa Rica via our network of independent attorneys and notaries.
The starting cost for setting up a company formation is $1075 USD.
Full-service registration with Hacienda (tax authorities) will be around $200 USD.
CONTACT US for more information.
Real Estate for Investors
Gap Real Estate works on the principle that each client is treated with the utmost integrity and honesty and is committed to outstanding client representation and detailed market knowledge utilizing hi-tech marketing solutions.
In addition to our impressive track record of real estate sales and services, our Real Estate listings feature many residential homes for sale and lease, gated and resort communities. We deal with commercial and investment properties targeting the major growth areas of the Central Valley and the Pacific Beach properties in Costa Rica.
Click here for more information: GapRealEstate.com.
Investing in Costa Rica
Earn great returns with terms that suit your needs in Costa Rica! Make safe, consistent returns on your investment every month by lending on home equity in Costa Rica, secured by a mortgage lien on the title.
Click here for more information: GapInvestments.com.
Relocation Tours in Costa Rica
You may take one of our relocation tours of Costa Rica – we offer 3 unique 7-day tours around our lovely country. You’ll learn about the culture, locations to visit and live in, the healthcare system, how to apply for residency, how to invest in Costa Rica, and receive answers to any relocation concerns you might have.
For more information about the tour, click here: Relocate.cr
*All prices are subject to change without notice
*Taxes are not included in the price
*The cost of Additional Services is NOT included in your CRIE Residency Legal Fees.
Disclaimer: CRIE is not a government agency, nor does it represent a government agency in any way. CRIE is not a law firm.