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Costa Rica Imports and Exports

If you are interested in Product trade in Costa Rica below you can find a quick guide for Costa Rica import and export. We highly recommend you read it carefully and seek advice from our in house attorney for further information and guidance. Some processes might be different from others depending on the product, our general guide will indeed provide you with a better idea and a quick look into Costa Rica costums needs and requirements. Please be aware that even though most products are eligible in Costa Rica import and export, yet some are not, due to sanitary regulations mostly. Some prohibited items for trade are:

• Alcoholic beverages (personal use quantities only)
• Narcotics and drugs
• Explosives
• Used tires
• Pornographic or subversive material

Allowed with a special permit or certain conditions:

• Animal or agricultural products, plants, medicines, and large quantities of alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, and food require a special permit
• Weapons and ammunition with an original invoice and registration at origin are allowed if it has a special permit at the Firearm and Explosive Department, a paid tax and for personal use only.
• New items are subject to very high duties and require an original receipt
• Large appliances must not exceed one of each item
• Computers subject to import regulations
• Purchase Invoice, Instruction Booklets, and original Ocean Bill of Lading/Air Waybill required

Is you are interested in shipping cars to Costa Rica, please note the following requirements: Cars are subject to high import taxes and duties, tax amount to pay depends on the value, model, year, cubic centimeters and extras of the vehicle. The needed documents are:

· Registration Card or Property Title

· Purchase Invoice

Regarding pets: Dogs and cats permitted. They do need certain documents:

• Anti-rabies vaccination
• Health Certificate
• Invoice indicating value of animal

Used goods and personal effects are subject to import taxes and duties. All shipments are inspected in every circumstance and you must provide original documentation when shipping to Costa Rica. The percentages that each item pays are calculated by the Customs duties list and the variables considered when calculating the total import duties are based on the Cost Insurance and Freight (C.I.F):

· Import Duties (called impuesto arancelario D.A.I): published in the customs duties regulations. The list is divided into categories. Each product is in turn levied a particular percentage of import duty based upon the CIF price of that product.

· Consumption tax (impuesto selectivo de consumo- S.C.): The customs duties regulations will indicate the percentage of consumption tax applicable to each product.

· A 1% tax of Law 6946: levies an additional 1% tax on the C.I.F. price of the product.

· A sales tax (impuesto de ventas -I.V.): The imported product is subject to Costa Rican sales tax at the time of entry.

The sum of the items indicated above will give you the total import tax on a particular product being imported to Costa Rica, please contact our lawyer if you have any questions on the import taxes or available Costums Broker Agencies.
Regarding exports, Costa Rica has an investment-friendly climate. Commercial leaders such as Microsoft, Abbot Laboratories, Continental Airways and Intel Corporation have invested to place some of their business branches; mostly because of the major production and distribution facilities. All of these corporations made their product a Costa Rica product for many years now, along with the traditional exportations such as coffee bananas or even its lucrative tourism industry.
The government maintains export controls on some items (subsidized goods, under price controls, or product for consumption by lower-income groups (grains, sugar, etc.). Exports of wood, ornamental plants and metal scrap need a license given by the Ministry of Agriculture or the Ministry of Economy. coffee exports are regulated by ICAFE which is the National coffee Institute. Textile products exports to the United States are regulated by the Textile Quota Office.
Costa Rican exports have and exclusive use of the metric system but, does accept international product standards. In Costa Rica, products use the International Standards Organization (ISO) designation in their promotional campaigns.
As an incentive for exports, there are Free Trade Zones scattered around Costa Rica and the 'Regime of Active Finishing'.
Over 200 companies in the FTZ employ 31,000 workers. The areas included are: electronics (69%); textiles (9%); medical instruments, watches, and jewelry (3%); machinery and equipment (3%); television sets, radios and communications equipment (3%; and others (13%). The benefits to qualifying companies established in FTZs include:

· 100 percent exemption from all import taxes associated with the import of goods used to make exported products: equipment and machinery.

· 100 percent exemption from sales and consumer taxes, and taxes levied on remittances abroad.

· 100% exemption from income tax for the first eight years of operations and a 50% percent exemption for the following four years, for free zone investments in areas of "greater relative development.

· 50% longer periods of exemption from income taxes for free zone investments in areas of "lesser relative development;" and

· 50% credit for job creation in rural areas.

As you can see an import company in Costa Rica, as well as an export company will find good things when it comes to trading products from Costa Rica and into the cou