Costa Rica — Property: Foreign Ownership

Why this matters

Understanding that foreign ownership is unrestricted for regular land but capped at 49% within the 200-meter maritime zone is the single most important fact for anyone considering coastal property, and getting the transfer tax rate right (1.5%, not 3.33%) avoids a meaningful budgeting error.

Key facts

• Foreigners can own regular (non-maritime-zone) titled property in Costa Rica with the same rights as citizens — no residency or citizenship requirement, and no general restriction on property type.
• The Maritime Zone (Zona Marítimo Terrestre, ZMT) — the first 200 meters inland from the high-tide line along the coast — is the main exception: the first 50 meters is public land that cannot be privately owned by anyone, and the next 150 meters is available only via government concession.
• Within maritime-zone concessions, foreign individuals or foreign-majority companies are capped at 49% ownership; a foreign individual generally needs 5+ years of legal residency to hold a concession directly.
• The property transfer tax is 1.5% of the higher of the sale price or fiscal/cadastral value (Ley No. 6999) — not 3.33% as an earlier draft stated.
• Some foreign buyers hold property through a Costa Rican corporation (sociedad anónima) for asset-protection or estate-planning reasons, but this is a choice, not a legal requirement for owning regular titled land.

Steps

1. Confirm the property is titled land, not a maritime-zone concession — This determines whether standard foreign-ownership rules (no restrictions) or the 49% cap on ZMT concessions applies.
2. Decide on personal name vs. corporate ownership — Foreigners can hold titled property directly in their own name; some choose to hold it via a Costa Rican corporation for liability or estate-planning reasons, which is optional, not required.
3. Complete the purchase and pay the transfer tax — The notary closing the sale typically withholds and remits the 1.5% transfer tax to Hacienda before registering the transfer with the Registro Nacional.

Costs

• Property transfer tax: 1.5% of the higher of the sale price or fiscal/cadastral value

Timelines

• Property title transfer: Commonly a few weeks to a couple of months, depending on complexity; not a fixed, uniformly published timeline

Required documents

• Passport
• Proof of funds
• Contract of sale
• Notarized deed (Escritura Pública) for title transfer

Common mistakes

• Assuming the 1.5% transfer tax is 3.33% (an outdated/incorrect figure) when budgeting
• Not realizing that 'beachfront' properties often fall within the maritime zone and carry a 49% foreign ownership cap via concession, unlike regular titled land
• Assuming a Fideicomiso (trust) or corporate structure is legally required to buy regular titled property as a foreigner — it is not; direct personal ownership is standard