Retiring in Costa Rica: Pensionado Residence, Required Pension, Taxation of the French Pension and Access to Care

A tourist stay of 180 days at most, visa-free for a French passport, suits a reconnaissance trip; France Diplomatie (the French foreign ministry) specifies that an authorisation must be requested beyond 90 days. To settle, the general law on migration and foreigners (No. 8764) provides for temporary residence, granted for more than 90 days and up to two years, renewable for an equivalent period, with rentistas, pensionados and investors among its subcategories (articles 79 and 84). The guide to living in Costa Rica describes the arrival formalities, and the page on retirement insurance abroad brings together the social protection benchmarks.

• Pensionado: a monthly, permanent and stable pension from abroad of at least USD 1,000 (article 81).
• Rentista: monthly, permanent and stable income, from abroad or from the banks of the national banking system, of at least USD 2,500 a month (article 82).
• Inversionista: investment in real estate, securities, shares or productive projects of at least USD 150,000 for the length of Law No. 9996 (article 8 of that law).

The pensionado shows that they receive a monthly pension of at least USD 1,000, permanent and stable in nature. The text requires a pension from abroad; a French retirement pension, certified by the paying body, fits this logic. The rentista has income of at least USD 2,500 a month, and this amount allows the residence of the spouse and of children under twenty-five, or adult children with disabilities, to be requested (article 82). Applications are filed with Costa Rican consulates abroad or, failing that, with the immigration directorate (DGME) (article 84).

Renewal requires the holder to keep meeting the conditions of their status and to be affiliated to the CCSS insurance schemes, since the grant of residence and without interruption (articles 80 and 86). A temporary resident carries out only the paid activities that the DGME authorises (article 80), a point to bear in mind for any supplementary activity. After three consecutive years of temporary residence, the person, their spouse and their first-degree parents may apply for permanent residence, which is indefinite (articles 77 and 78). Residence does not exempt you from proof of health insurance: see below.

Law No. 9996, known as the law to attract investors, rentistas and pensionados (law of 5 July 2021), provides incentives for people admitted to these categories: exemption from import duties on household furniture, once only; import of two vehicles at most, exempt from duties and value added tax; exemption from income tax on the sums declared to obtain residence, while income from investments made in the country remains taxable; a 20% exemption from transfer duties on property acquired during the life of the law; exemption from import duties on professional or scientific instruments (article 5).

Article 12 limits applications for these benefits to the first five years the law is in force, and guarantees that those who obtained them during that period keep them for ten years. As the law dates from 5 July 2021, the application window ends in 2026 according to the text, whose official database (SINALEVI) shows no amendment at the date of consultation. Before any plan based on these benefits, or on the USD 150,000 threshold, the DGME and the Ministry of Finance (Hacienda) confirm what applies at the date of application. Finally, article 6 specifies that these residents do not automatically become Costa Rican tax residents.

• Payment: Assurance retraite (the French pension insurance) pays the pension in more than 180 countries, by transfer to an account in France or abroad, with possible bank fees. The guide to receiving your pension abroad details the options.
• Proof of existence: an annual certificate to be completed by a competent authority and returned on time, failing which payment may be suspended.
• Address and bank: any change is notified by letter to the regional fund before departure.
• Suspended benefits: the solidarity allowance for older people (Aspa) and the supplementary disability allowance are not paid abroad.

For anyone with their tax domicile outside France, Assurance retraite indicates that the CSG, the CRDS and the Casa (French social levies on pensions) are not deducted, whereas a health contribution of 3.20% may be deducted if the retiree remains covered by the French health insurance or has at least 15 years of contributions in France. The guide to retirement abroad completes these benchmarks.

Costa Rica does not appear in the list of tax treaties concluded by France published in the BOFiP (position at 1 January 2018). The list of tax information exchange agreements mentions only the agreement of 16 December 2010, in force since 14 December 2011, which organises exchanges of information without allocating the right to tax. In the absence of a treaty, each State applies its domestic law.

• French side: the tax authority points out that French-source pensions paid to a non-resident are subject to withholding tax. The scale applicable in 2026 provides for 0% up to €17,275, 12% up to €50,112 and 20% above (BOFiP, 2 April 2026), the authority mentioning a 10% allowance before the scale is applied; the 0% and 12% rates are final and the 20% rate is credited against the tax due. French tax residence must be assessed: you can remain a French tax resident even though your home is abroad.
• Costa Rican side: article 1 of the income tax law (No. 7092) taxes income from Costa Rican sources, generated within the national territory. A pension paid by a French body is in principle foreign-source; Hacienda confirms the treatment of each situation. The 2026 scale for employees, retirees and pensioners starts at CRC 918,000 a month, with rates of 10% to 25%, and applies to Costa Rican-source income, for example local activity or rent received locally.

The combination of tax residence status, the nature of the pension and the date of departure is specific to each case: tax advice and the tax office for non-resident individuals confirm the treatment before settling.

A retiree receives no automatic cover from France outside Europe. Assurance Maladie (the French national health insurance) reserves this case for twelve states or territories with an agreement (Andorra, Quebec, Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, New Caledonia, French Polynesia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Morocco, Tunisia), and form S1 applies only in Europe. Costa Rica is not one of them, and no social security agreement binds it to France.

• CCSS: affiliation to the fund’s insurance schemes is a condition for renewing residence (articles 80 and 86 of Law No. 8764). The CCSS website could not be consulted for this page; its arrangements and contributions are obtained from the fund.
• CFE (retirees’ plan): reserved for holders of a pension from the French basic scheme, with no professional activity and no health questionnaire, from €147 a month. Cover is immediate if enrolment takes place before departure or within three months of settling in; otherwise a waiting period of three months before age 45 or six months from age 45 applies; return to France takes place with no waiting period.
• First-euro international insurance: actual costs reimbursed within ceilings, direct payment possible, evacuation and repatriation; the medical questionnaire and medical history determine the exclusions.
• Temporary stays in France: a retiree living outside an agreement country is reimbursed if they have at least 15 years of contributions to a French scheme, via Cnarefe (the National Centre for Retirees of France Abroad).

See the guide to healthcare reimbursement in Costa Rica, the page on retirees’ health insurance abroad and the guide to the Costa Rican healthcare system.

A retiree’s budget depends mainly on the city, the housing and the health cover. The official sources consulted do not publish a typical budget by city; the “Economic benchmarks” block above gives the up-to-date indicators, and the minimum wage of an unskilled worker, CRC 12,436.41 a day since 1 January 2026 (Ministry of Labour), offers a local scale. A budget expressed in euros varies with the exchange rate, because local scales are in colones and residence thresholds in dollars.

• Proximity of care: housing close to a full-service facility counts for more than slightly lower rent, in particular for an older person, because France Diplomatie describes winding roads and a very high accident rate.
• Natural hazards: frequent earthquakes, regular eruptions of volcanoes such as Turrialba and Poás, floods during the rainy season from May to November.
• Safety: the country is under reinforced vigilance on the France Diplomatie map; the advice by San José neighbourhood is in the page on living in Costa Rica.

Healthcare cost benchmarks are in the guide to budgeting for health abroad.