Costa Rica
General Information for Costa Rica
Geo-political:
Capital City: San Jose. 09° 56.00′ N, 084° 05.00′ W
Nationality: (noun) Costa Rican(s), (adjective) Costa Rican.
Population: 5,097,988 (July 2020).
Communications:
International Direct Dial Code: 506.
Number of Internal Airports: 161 (2013).
Major Languages Spoken: Spanish (official) and English.
Economy:
Currency: 1 Costa Rican Colon (CRC) of 100 Centimos.
Exchange Rates:
(as of November 2020)
USD 1.00 = CRC 605.97
Exchange rates under licence from
XE.com
Main Industries: Medical equipment, food processing, textiles, clothing, construction materials, fertilizer
and plastic products.
Agricultural Products: Bananas, pineapples, coffee, melons, ornamental plants, sugar, corn, rice, beans,
potatoes, beef, poultry, dairy and timber.
Imports: Raw materials, consumer goods, capital equipment, petroleum and construction materials.
Exports: Bananas, pineapples, coffee, melons, ornamental plants, sugar, beef, seafood, electronic
components and medical equipment.
Commodities: Products: Imports 51,320 bbl/d.
Environment:
Territorial Sea: 12 n.m.
Continental Shelf: Continental Shelf: 200 n.m. Exclusive Economic Zone: 200 n.m.
Coastline Extent: 1,290 km.
Climate: Tropical and subtropical; dry season (December to April); rainy season (May to November);
cooler in highlands.
Natural Resources: Hydropower.
Natural Hazards: Occasional earthquakes, hurricanes along Atlantic coast, frequent flooding of lowlands
at onset of rainy season and landslides, active volcanoes and Arenal (1,670 m), which
erupted in 2010, is the most active volcano in Costa Rica; a 1968 eruption destroyed
the town of Tabacon; Irazu (3,432 m), situated just east of San Jose, has the potential
to spew ash over the capital city as it did between 1963 and 1965; other historically
active volcanoes include Miravalles, Poas, Rincon de la Vieja, and Turrialba.
Terrain: Coastal plains separated by rugged mountains including over 100 volcanic cones, of
which several are major active volcanoes.
Average Temperatures:
| Month | High | Low |
|---|---|---|
| January | 23° C | 10° C |
| June | 26° C | 15° C |
| September | 28° C | 15° C |
DOCUMENTS:
Required on arrival:
Capitania de Puerto:
12 Cargo Manifests
3 Crew Lists
1 General Declaration
2 Passenger Lists
1 Visaed Clearance Permit
Customs:
5 Cargo Manifests
15 Cargo Tally Books
2 Consular Manifests
1 Crew List
1 General Declaration
1 Maritime Declaration of Health
2 Passenger Lists
1 Stores List
MAG:
1 General Declaration
1 Stores List
Maritime and Health:
1 Crew Effects Declaration
1 Crew List
1 Maritime Declaration of Health
1 Passenger List
1 Stores List
Port Authority:
3 Cargo Manifests
PRATIQUE:
Yellow fever vaccination is required for travellers who are arriving from, or have
transited through, countries with risk of yellow fever transmission. Certificates
are valid 10 days after the date of vaccination.
The Pan American Sanitary Code:
Established by the signatory governments of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa
Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Panama,
Paraguay, Peru, United States of America, Uruguay, and Venezuela, being desirous of
entering into a sanitary convention for the purpose of better promoting and protecting
the public health of their respective nations, and particularly to the end that effective
cooperative international measures may be applied for the prevention of the international
spread of the communicable infections of human beings and to facilitate international
commerce and communication.
Full details available from the Pan American Health Organization website.
www.paho.org/
Bills of Health:
- The Master of any vessel or aircraft which proceeds to a port of any of the signatory governments is required to obtain at the port of departure and ports of call, a Bill of Health, in duplicate, issued in accordance with the information set forth in the appendix and adopted as the standard Bill of Health.
- The Bill of Health will be accompanied by a list of the passengers, and stowaways, if any, which shall indicate the port where they embarked and the port to which they are destined, and a list of the crew.
- Consuls and other officials signing or countersigning Bills of Health should keep themselves accurately informed with respect to the sanitary conditions of the ports, and the manner in which this code is obeyed by vessels and their passengers and crews while therein. They should have accurate knowledge of local mortality and morbidity, and of sanitary conditions which may affect vessels in port. To this end, they shall be furnished with any information they request pertaining to sanitary records, harbours, and vessels.
- The signatory governments may assign medical or sanitary officers as public health attaches to embassies or legations, and as representatives to international conferences.
- If at the port of departure there is no consul or consular agent of the country of destination, the Bill of Health may be issued by the consul or consular agent of a friendly government authorised to issue such Bill of Health.
- The Bill of Health should be issued not to exceed 48 hours before the departure of the ship to which it is issued. The sanitary visa should not be given more than 24 hours before departure.
- Any erasure or alteration of a Bill of Health shall invalidate the document, unless such alteration or erasure shall be made by competent authority, and notation thereof appropriately made.
- A clean Bill of Health is one which shows the complete absence in the port of departure of cholera, yellow fever, plague, typhus fever, or of other pestilential disease in severe epidemic form, liable to be transported by international commerce. Provided that the presence only of bona fide imported cases of such disease, when properly isolated, shall not compel the issuance of a foul Bill of Health, but notation of the presence of such cases will be made under the heading of ``Remarks'' on the Bill of Health.
- A foul Bill of Health is one which shows the presence of non-imported cases of any of the diseases referred to in 8. above.
- Specific Bills of Health are not required of vessels which, by reason of accident, storm or other emergency condition, including wireless change of itinerary, are obliged to put into ports other than their original destinations, but such vessels shall be required to exhibit such Bills of Health as they possess.
- It shall be the duty of the Pan American Sanitary Bureau to publish appropriate information which may be distributed by port health officers, for the purpose of instructing owners, agents, and Masters of vessels as to the methods which should be put in force by them for the prevention of the international spread of disease.
Other Sanitary Documents:
Every vessel, carrying a medical officer, will maintain a sanitary log which will
be kept by him, and he will record therein daily: the sanitary condition of the vessel,
and its passengers and crew; a record showing the names of passengers and crew which
have been vaccinated by him; name, age, nationality, home address, occupation and
nature of illness or injury of all passengers and crew treated during the voyage;
the source and sanitary quality of the drinking water of the vessel, the place where
taken on board, and the method in use on board for its purification; sanitary conditions
observed in ports visited during the voyage; the measures taken to prevent the ingress
and egress of rodents to and from the vessel; and the measures which have been taken
to protect the passengers and crew against mosquitoes, other insects, and vermin.
The sanitary log will be signed by the Master and medical officer of the vessel, and
will be exhibited upon the request of any sanitary or consular officer.
In the absence of a medical officer, the Master shall record the above information
in the log of the vessel, insofar as possible.
Equal or similar forms for Quarantine Declarations, Certificates of Fumigation, and
Certificates of Vaccination, set forth in the appendix (not reproduced), are hereby
adopted as standard forms.
PRE-ARRIVAL INFORMATION:
In practice, owing to the closeness of other ports of call, Agent notifies the relevant
Port Authority 48–72 hours in advance of the vessel's arrival. 24 hours before the
vessel's arrival, Agent must report in writing to the Port Authority the vessel's
ETA and owner/operator. 12 hours before arrival, confirmation of ETA is advised.
A distribution list of the cargo to be unloaded should be submitted with one of the
ETA notifications, although failure to submit this information should not delay berthing.
In addition, the number of longshoremen for loading and unloading must be reported.
Failure to confirm the ETA may result in losing the vessel's turn in berthing.
Copies of the arrival notice should be sent to the Capitania de Puerto, which performs
the functions of Immigration, Customs, Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG),
and Health. In addition, copies must be submitted to the Agent and Customs for them
to report to their clients on the arrival of the shipments and to initiate import
procedures.
Departure:
The clearance permit is requested from the Capitan de Puerto 24 hours in advance of
the ship's departure, or immediately upon its arrival, if the ship is to remain less
than 24 hours in the port. The clearance permit requires Customs clearance (certification
that there are no charges pending) and remains in force up to 24 hours after the requested
departure time.
MEDICAL:
Medical care in Costa Rica is of a high standard. Only emergency medical treatment
is available without charge for visitors. Make sure you have adequate health insurance
and accessible funds to cover the cost of any medical treatment abroad and repatriation.
In the 2010 Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic, the UNAIDS/WHO Working Group estimated
that around 9,600 adults aged 15 or over in Costa Rica were living with HIV; the prevalence
percentage was estimated at around 0.3% of the adult population compared to the prevalence
percentage in adults in the UK of around 0.2%.
Also see "
General".
HOLIDAYS:
1 January (New Year's Day); 19 March; 11 April (Battle of Rivas Day); Holy Thursday;
Good Friday; 1 May (Labour Day); 29 June (Saint Peter and Paul); 25 July (Guanacaste
Day); 2 August (Virgen de los Angeles Day); 15 August (Mother's Day); 15 September
(Independence Day); 12 October (Meeting of Cultures Day); 8 December; 24 December
(Christmas Eve); 25 December (Christmas Day).
The first Sunday in February every four years is a holiday for Presidential Elections.
WEATHER/TIDES:
The rainy season in Costa Rica normally runs from May to November, coinciding with
the hurricane season in the Caribbean. Flooding can occur and heavy rains or hurricanes
can cause landslides (though roads are normally cleared quickly).
Also see "
General".
CUSTOMS:
Customs authorities now stipulate the following:
- All cargo on board the vessel with destination Costa Rica must be manifested.
- The Cargo Manifest and Bills of Lading must be registered into the Customs system (TICA) 24 hours before ship's arrival.
- Cargoes entering Costa Rica and that have not been manifested will be confiscated by the port on behalf of Customs.
- Any ship that has not been entered into TICA will not be berthed.
- Any failure to accurately submit details into TICA will incur a fine.
SHORE LEAVE:
There has been a steady increase in crime in recent years, including incidents of
violent crime and against foreigners. Opportunistic theft of personal belongings,
passports and travel documents is the main problem. Gang muggings and armed robberies
can occur even in daylight on busy streets. Eight foreign nationals have gone missing
in the last few years, with some related to criminal activity.
Only take official taxis. Avoid using unofficial taxis – ``taxi piratas'' – as several
violent incidents involving foreigners have been reported. Official taxis are red
with a triangular sticker and plastic box on the roof with the name and number of
the taxi company. Where possible use radio-dispatched taxis. When getting into a taxi,
ensure that the driver's identification number, name and photograph are clearly visible
on the dashboard, and ensure that the driver indicates the meter.
You should take special care when swimming from all beaches in Costa Rica. Rip tides
are very common. There are normally no lifeguards. You should seek reliable local
advice. You should also be aware that there are regular sightings of crocodiles along
the Pacific coast near the beaches popular with surfers (from Playa Azul down to Playa
Esterillos), and there have been attacks in recent years.
Also see "
General".
REPATRIATION:
Under Costa Rican law, children under the age of 18 born in Costa Rica are automatically
considered to be Costa Rican citizens, even if travelling on a foreign passport (i.e.
not a Costa Rican passport). Either notarised written consent from both parents or
a Costa Rican passport is required in order to leave Costa Rica. The nearest Costa
Rican Embassy or Consulate should be contacted for further information on laws regarding
the international travel of Costa Rican children.
Also see "
General".
GENERAL:
Information obtained from the UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office website. Updates available
from
www.gov.uk/fco/
