Costa Rica Residency Card

Abandoned by My Lawyer

Deserted island with broken boat lying on the beach with help sign to represent being abandoned by a lawyer

“Hey Laura… my lawyer abandoned me. Can you help?” An increasingly common lament and request. I recently submitted a Power of Attorney for a new client who requested that I investigate his case further. When I presented this documentation to the intake staff at the DGME (Costa Rica Immigration offices), they asked the routine question, […]

Application Approval Slowdowns

Application Approval Slowdowns image

“Hey Laura, where’s my application approval? It’s way overdue.” (If you have already read this, scroll down to the bottom for the April 4th good news update). Causes During COVID, there was a significant uptick in residency applicants in Costa Rica. Many new retirees fled the scourge de jour (politics, social degradation, COVID lockdowns) up […]

How to choose where to live in Costa Rica

Sunset collage of images from Costa Rica

So, you are contemplating a move to Costa Rica after being intrigued by the promise of its unique beauty and livability. Going back to 1500, Christopher Columbus gave it the name which translates into “Rich Coast.” It had nothing to do with gold, despite that being a major preoccupation. (And there was gold here.) Without drifting off […]