Would like to become an expat living in Costa Rica

Hi england341,

Welcome to Expat.com!

Concerning your accommodation search, you may put an ad in the housing in Costa Rica section.

Do not hesitate to ask your questions on the forum. I hope you get lots of replies.

Christine

Thank you Christine for your suggestion.  I will do just that.  I really want to find a way to live and support myself in Costa Rica.   But my favorite area is the Arenal area and finding help in a smaller town such as this one is not easy.   Thank you:)

You cannot work in Costa Rica until you become a resident. This takes a few years or you can spend lots of money on a lawyer or opening a business. Here is a website for you therealcostarica.com

MissB wrote:

You cannot work in Costa Rica until you become a resident. This takes a few years or you can spend lots of money on a lawyer or opening a business. Here is a website for you therealcostarica.com

Well, yes and no.
You cannot work LEGALLY in Costa Rica until you are a resident, or unless you work on the internet and the home company is outside of Costa Rica.

Sometimes you can find a "situation" where you work for a bed and breakfast or small mom&pop type hotel or bar where they are willing to hire gringos off the books. Just like in the U.S. people sometimes work and get paid cash "under the table".

I'm not advocating breaking any laws, I'm just giving a realistic picture of what some people do.

Many people do work illegally and don't get caught.

Of course if you get caught you can get kicked out and not allowed back in for 5-10 years so it is a risk. Not sure if there are other penalties or not. You can also possibly get a company to sponsor you to work legally in  Costa Rica if they need your skills and can't find a Tico to do what you do or if you find someone who is so impressed with you that they will pull for you.

Also unless it is a big company like HP or something, most jobs in  Costa Rica do not pay much at all.

In my view the best way for an expat to work in  Costa Rica is to find a legit business on the internet, or creating your own business(es) online.

Look up the "Lake Arenal Community" on Facebook. It is a community of expats and they will be able to help you with any specific questions you may have. Good luck!

You are replying posts over two years old ...

LOL! Thanks kohlerias ! I guess I replied to 2 old threads, then!
Okay, I'll be more careful about looking at the dates!