Wow...what did the pandemic do to Costa Rica...but more importantly, WHAT IS THE COSTA RICA GOVERNMENT doing about this situation???

I'm a permanent resident of Costa Rica, and a property owner for 13 years. Costa Rica is a day late, and a dollar short! It's cheaper to live in Panama, ship cars, household goods for free, multiple senior discounts etc. I'm selling my property in Costa Rica, moving to, and buying property in Panama. Costa Rica is digging deeper and deeper into expats pockets, for bloated government programs, government employee benefits and retirements.

I've travelled to Asia (mostly Vietnam) and just got back from CR recently. There are similarities. Here are a few points and comparisons. First of all both countries put big duties on cars which makes them unaffordable for most people. In Vietnam the import duties on smaller motorbikes is much less, so there are a lot of them, but surprisingly nowhere near as many in San Jose. In Vietnam there are so many people that having a lot of cars would be impossible, but again, I thought there would be far more in San Jose, where traffic is pretty bad, though at least there's good public transit. Now here is a big difference between North America and countries like CR and Vietnam: credit. In Canada you can buy a car, pay almost no interest and have a payment of a couple of hundred bucks a month. Same as buying a house. Interest rates of less than 2%, while in other countries it's difficult or impossible to get financing. I'm not sure why, but the easy credit makes a huge difference to standard of living (assuming interest rates remain low, of course)

You guys are amazing! Thank you for the research you put into your shows.

You guys are amazing! You addressed the issues with all enthusiasm. All the items are very informative. Thank you a bunch and keep providing good information. Take care.

Excellent video. Thanks folks

Thanks for all the info you guys are providing, your vids are always very informative

Amazing video ! so informative thank you ! Pure Vida

Thanks for putting this information together.

Thank you for this information. Love and light from South West France

This guy with his great accent reminds me of growing up in Texas (70's) and how talkative and friendly people were. Bubba with the jungle behind him is weird combo.

Thanks for the info guys great👍🌴😎

Love you Guys ❤❤. Thank you for all the infos 🤩

Great video! Subscribed!

Indeed sir... the comfortable temperature, the beauty everyday, day in, day out - indeed just that right there is enough. Add to that, clean air, ocean breezes, having an entire beach, or an entire mountainside to oneself, and it's pure life. Thank you both, for who you are, and all you do

You guys make a great team. Awesome video

I just moved to costa rica to start my homestead I appreciate your videos!

I am so glad that I found you and Rebecca. I will retire within the next 2 years. I had been leaning heavily towards Ecuador--no longer. Recently I found a lady online who lives in San Ramon and she seems like the real deal. I've researched the area; it looks wonderful. I live and teach Special Education students in Cripple Creek, Colorado a small mountain town. The weather here is perfect, and I see that San Ramon's highest daytime temperatures won't cause me to melt. I'll just have to adjust to the rain and the 😱dreaded humidity though. 😉 I'm getting my Teaching English as a Foreign Language certification just to keep my hand in education and to augment my pension. So, it's time to put on my Big Boots once more and start my newest adventure.

Great information! We're in Nicaragua at the moment but we're planning to come to Costa Rica soon.

Do you have another updated video on this new law that we would watch please ? Thank you it was so well explained !

Hi guys. Thank you for the info. Can you please post a link to that first video you mention so much?

My man thank you

Hello! Thanks for the great videos. I’ve enjoyed learning about living in CR from both of you. Can you tell me if any of these laws actually passed? I know this video was made during the pandemic so just curious if these incentives actually went through. Thanks! 😊

Hi. Love your video. Any updates on passing law to bring cars in for retirees?

Please do a detailed up to date on these proposed new law's.From my experience there are 3 speeds in Costa Rica.Slowstop and never LOL

Another great video, you 2! I am now going to watch your live Q & A. What is the tax on Apple Juice?

Great video. Thank you. I would like to comment on the price of things in CR. It's not that CR is expensive. It's that the US is cheap. We pay import fees when we purchase things, and most of the things one buys in the US are imported. The US is one of the cheapest countries of the world for things like electronics. :)

please keep us updated on the tax free car imports...

Fyi USA has loads of tax treaties with countries that eliminates double taxation.... Like Canada where I am for example. Costa Rica just happens to not be one of those countries, but most in the western world have those treaties.

Plan on buying a property in Costa Rica in the coming years and moving from Canada permanently. Seems like the ideal place to live as Canada degrades in every way. Freedom and financial freedom is very important.

Any updates on the implementation of the new requirements?

Great video. Hey how much is the caja for a couple in there 50's. And how much is private insurance for 2.

Unless you stay in the city the whole time you live there, a sedan is not going to cut it. You need a 4 x 4 vehicle that sits high and uses diesel. Gasoline is very expensive comparted to the United States. Ideally a Toyota 4x4 full cab with extended bed or Nissan 4x4 truck I don't know that Hyundai makes consumer targeted 4x4 trucks I don't I've seen one in America.

still waiting for them to approve to be able to ship my container there without the import tax

My number 1 concern about moving to Costa Rica is health insurance and whether it includes prescription medications. If you cannot answer this question can you tell me what site on the internet I may be able to get this information. Thank you. Robert Burnie

If you qualify by investing 150k or more. What is your premium going to be based on for the health care system?

Have you done a video on income tax? Property tax? Is there a sales tax? Do you have to pay taxes in Lousina and Costa Rica?

Funny how I am here listening to you guys for advice on retiring in Costa Rica. I was born and raised there until the age of 20. Since then I’ve been living in New Jersey and visit every year. I’m planning to retire in hopefully 9 years . Did the law pass?

Have they passed that law yet. Thinking on bringing my car. And all my things

Doubling the Caja fees for the ridiculous teachers pension payments is going to drive people RIGHT on out. So short sighted.

If I qualify under retirement and investment, will I qualify as a resident quicker?

Can retirees obtain mortgages on property in CR? If so, how would that factor into the $150-200K that is necessary for becoming residents? Also, is that $150-200K the same for individuals as for couples?

do u as a tourist or someone applying for residency need vaccine proof to enter facilities like gyms ,restaurants ect ?

Any update on the law?

Alan.. were you in Banco CR in Palmares today? My wife thinks she saw you there.. from a distance... I didn't think so.

the food there is fruits and vegetable organic? Had apple here in America on my refrigerator for two months and it would not rot. It wrinkled up and dried up a little but would not rot. It was as if the apple was embalmed. the fruits and vegetables there are they organic? Are fruits and vegetables like God intended?

In the last ten years, the United States government has allocated less than $50 million in foreign aid to Costa Rica. ... Currently, only 5.5 percent of Costa Rica's 58.91 billion GDP is attributed to agriculture, 21 percent of the GDP comes from industry and 73.5 percent is from the service and tourism industry. That’s 73.5% is from foreigners. What happens when the well runs dry ? Costa Rica has nothing else to sustain its infrastructure. Water , sewage , law enforcement, hospitals , professional services, how will you live when the well runs dry ?

Is it different for married couples vs individuals? Can a 2 person married couple bring in up to 4 vehicles?

Moved here eight years ago. PuraVida

What if you still owe and making payments can be you still bring your vehicle into Costa rica

No one mentions living in a mororhome. Wondering if they are allowed and the rules. I have many questions about living there.

How do we find out about these issues for our stuff we have sent here

5:01. Uh, the reason they don't write the laws in plain English is that they are written in Spanish.

Can I bring my classic 1965 Corvair convertible tax free? Has gthe law gone into effect yet?

Do I need to apply for a visa. ?

Did it pass?

🎉

I'm not a traveler at all but I was seriously thinking about moving to Costa Rica, but I found out a lot of things and it's just not financially smart in any way shape or form to move there, when I heard about Costa Rica years ago it was the place to go you could take your savings there and retire for the rest of your life and never have to worry about anything it's called peace of mind and that's very important back then Costa Rica value retirees very highly these days they had forgotten all about that it's called greed, to me personally speaking when I heard all these things about Costa Rica I was pretty shocked, because I felt like Costa Rica had a good head on its shoulders as a country because it understood how important it was to have people live in their country no matter if you were rich or poor, because in Costa Rica years ago your money went 10 times as far as anywhere else in the world which helped out a lot of people that didn't have a lot of money, so as Costa Rica has grown they have also gotten greedy, the worst thing anyone can do or any country can do as a whole is become greedy to forget where you came from, so I get but at the same time, greed for money and making it impossible for retirees no matter if you're only getting $600 a month us or 1200 us it shouldn't matter it's still a lot of money to help the economy in Costa Rica and that's what's important as a country and it seems like they have forgotten that because of greed, I think it would be very smart for them to look at Columbia because Columbia values the retirees by having great places to live for cheap reasonable prices that makes it affordable to live there which is the whole point of succeeding I'm helping their own economy their own people, I'm just saying these things because I was very disturbed about how Costa Rica once was such a beautiful humble people and country and now has become one of the most expensive places to live, this is a big turn off for people in general, it will drive people away very quickly which only means their economy will suffer but they're people will suffer as well it's very important whether it's $100 a month or $100,000 a month it shouldn't make a difference the whole point is that without their local people making a living by selling their goods and services to Foreigner retirees that have moved there such as food clothing nice places to live and so on, it's consistency that is the key to everything in this world, no one wants to take advantage of Costa Rica or its people that's part of the beauty of it, but what's making it very unattractive and not appealing anymore no matter how pretty the landscape or the weather is the fact that you can't retire there anymore everything is just too expensive, that's what needs to change and it needs to change very quickly in order for that country to stay in the good graces of the rest of the world especially retired people, the government owes that to its people and to the retired foreigners that want to move and live there, I hope the people and its government understands but it's the retirees the little people that don't have much every month, that was the anchor that stabilized and helped the country prosper, it just seems like Costa Rica government forgot all about that, I feel like their childlike in that sense there's a difference between retirees on $600 a month social security, an investor it's got 200,000 or even 2 million to invest in their country they should know the difference, and knowing along the way that it was the retirees but kept that country moving along, investors with big money come and go, there is no consistency they move from country to country to use that country to personally profit, they Don't really Care about the country as a whole or really about its people it's sad but that's the reality of greed, so I hope you members of the Costa Rican government should read this make a copy of it pass it around to your colleagues let them read it let them know that there's people that care and would rather spend their little bit of money, in Costa Rica and then return Costa Rica will take care of them this is the way the world works this is how we all survive, if I had a chair and a seat in the Costa Rican government first and foremost I would hold the retirees in high regard they would come first long before investors and corporate business, anyway just thought I would shed some light on what's really going on, Costa Rica cannot afford to no longer become a country that appreciates retired foreigners, it was their bread and butter in the beginning, and it should still be the same now, if someone can only afford $600 a month because that's all they get, then they should be able to live very comfortably on that I don't care what it is a nice decent house to live food to eat $600 should be plenty to pay for house utilities food insurance and then have left over that retirees would spend at the local vendors it just makes sense that's what should matter, investors and companies with big money come and go they're only there for a short time there is no consistency for the country with those people, the consistency lies with the people that retire there, tax the privileged always, leave the little people alone, because it's the little people that are consistent, and that's what matters

Hello again!! As for the world-wide taxation, countries have agreements precisely to avoid double taxation. Therefore, that alone wouldn't be a reason to scare away people. These tax agreements change from country to country, but in general the agreements are designed to NOT tax people twice, AKA double taxation. Let me give you an example. Say you want to retire to Spain on your US retirement. Now, say that the US charges 30% taxes on that income (please note that I'm just shooting numbers here for the sake of argument. I have no idea what the final tax rates would be.). Now, say Spain charges a 40% rate. One would pay the US that 30%, and then one would pay the extra 10% to Spain. So it's not like you are going to pay 30% to the US and 40% to Spain. That would be double taxation, and no one in the world likes that. :) Having said that, one is always better off when one's host country doesn't charge tax on income earned abroad. The rule of thumb is that one will always pay the highest taxes. If taxes in Spain are 40% then we would pay a total of 40% in taxes. Likewise, say Costa Rica's tax is 20%, then one would only pay the 30% the US charges. Again, please note that the numbers above are used only to explain the process and not to give any form of tax advice. I don't know what this is in CR, but if it's lower than the US it would be likely that one wouldn't have to pay taxes in CR even with worldwide taxation.

Update?

CR is becoming expensive, they know that are Many foreings in his country

A motorhome?

The awesome healthcare system in Costa Rica should be the big draw. There is not another country in Central America with a better deal for the gringo.

Really? Costa Rica is here in 23 is still stuck in Stone Age

I was going to move to Vietnam, got my long-term residency when I travelled there last year, but unfortunately its government is controlled by the CDC and WHO, who totally destroyed the economy and put draconian lockdowns in place even though 'covid' was practically nonexistent. I'm not sure how badly influenced the Costa Rican government is, but i have my concerns based on what I saw when I was there last month

Way too many ifs...

OMG I would love to go there, but it looks like there's far too many Americans. Totally off-putting

L

Vee-HICK-els

Not exactly the right guy to get advice about CR. Beware Folks!

My parents moved to Mexico and its a bit slower than living in the US. With current cost of living in Colorado I have to move out of the country at this point. Or live in a crap state

5mins into it and still blah blah blah

Hello guys , can you provide email please , we are very interested in moving to Costa Rica , love to connect with you 😀