Before you start

A determination of the source of each income stream
Registration with Hacienda if you have Costa Rican-source independent income
Corporate records, where you hold property or a business through a company
Municipal property registration for the impuesto sobre bienes inmuebles

Step-by-step

1
Determine the source of each stream, not your own status
Costa Rican tax follows where the income arises, not where you live. A salary from a Costa Rican employer is Costa Rican-source; fees from Costa Rican clients are Costa Rican-source however they are paid; a foreign pension generally is not. Do this stream by stream before assuming anything.
OnlineWho: You
2
Let withholding handle a straightforward salary
Employers withhold income tax monthly on salaries under the schedule in Ley 7092, with the aguinaldo — the statutory thirteenth month paid in December — exempt. Employees with a single employer typically have nothing to file.
Via employerWho: Your employer
3
Register with Hacienda if you invoice anyone in Costa Rica
Independent professionals and businesses register, issue electronic invoices through the approved system, and file periodically. Costa Rica's electronic invoicing regime is comprehensive and compliance is enforced.
OnlineWho: You
4
Handle the company obligations if you own one
A sociedad anónima or SRL owes an annual corporate tax whether or not it trades, must file an inactive-company return if it does not, and must report its ultimate owners to the Registro de Transparencia y Beneficiarios Finales. Missing these accrues penalties and can eventually cost you the entity.
OnlineWho: You
5
Pay the municipal property tax and any luxury-home tax
The impuesto sobre bienes inmuebles is levied by the municipality where the property sits, based on a registered value you are required to update periodically. Higher-value homes may also fall within the separate solidarity tax on luxury housing.
In personWho: You
6
Take advice before assuming a remote salary is untaxed
Remote work for a foreign employer while living here is exactly the case where source is argued about. The Ley 10008 nomad category resolves it by statute for its holders. For everyone else it is a question worth paying an accountant to answer once rather than assuming.
OnlineWho: You

Documents you’ll need

DIMEX
Employer withholding statements
Electronic invoicing records, if registered
Corporate filings and the beneficial-ownership declaration
Municipal property registration and valuation

Things most newcomers don’t know

Territoriality is real, and it is narrower than the marketing.

Ley 7092 taxes income generated within the national territory — from property located, capital used, services rendered and rights exploited here. Foreign-sourced income generally sits outside it, which is a genuine advantage over a worldwide-taxation country. But income from Costa Rican clients is Costa Rican-source however it is invoiced or paid, the principle has been narrowed in specific cases involving passive income routed through international structures, and 'I live here but my money comes from abroad' is a conclusion, not an argument. Have each stream characterised properly.

Source: Ministerio de Hacienda; Ley 7092

The Ley 10008 nomad category is the one place the answer is written down.

For holders of the remote-work stay, Ley 10008 expressly exempts the qualifying foreign income from Costa Rican income tax and exempts the basic work equipment from import duties. That statutory clarity is unusual — for everyone else living here on a residence category and working remotely, the source question is decided on general principles. If your situation is genuinely remote foreign employment, the nomad category buys certainty as well as speed.

Source: Ley 10008

Owning property through a company is normal here and carries three separate annual duties.

Costa Rican real estate is very often held in a sociedad anónima or SRL. That entity owes the annual impuesto a las personas jurídicas whether or not it does anything, must file a return for inactive companies, and must report its beneficial owners to the RTBF. Foreign buyers routinely inherit a company along with a house, assume it is dormant, and accumulate penalties. Ask for the company's filing history as part of due diligence, not afterwards.

Source: Ministerio de Hacienda; Registro Nacional

The aguinaldo is a legal entitlement and it is tax-free, which changes how December works.

Every employee is owed a thirteenth month's salary, paid within the first twenty days of December and exempt from income tax. It is not discretionary and not a bonus. For an employer it is a real annual cost to budget; for an employee it is why December in Costa Rica is simultaneously the month of the aguinaldo and the month the marchamo falls due. Both hit the same fortnight.

Source: Ministerio de Trabajo

Common mistakes to avoid

Treating 'territorial tax' as 'no tax for foreigners'.
Invoicing Costa Rican clients from abroad and assuming that makes the income foreign-source.
Buying a house inside a company and never filing its annual returns.
Missing the beneficial-ownership declaration deadline.
Forgetting that the aguinaldo and the marchamo both land in the same December fortnight.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.