Residents and citizens of all 50 states within the U.S. will be permitted to enter Costa Rica beginning November 1, a measure that will help the country's economic reactivation and job creation, announced Gustavo J. Segura, Costa Rica tourism minister.
Currently, residents of Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, D.C., Arizona, Colorado, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Mexico, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Wyoming California and Ohio are allowed to enter the country. Beginning October 15, residents of Florida, Georgia and Texas will be able to visit. Then, from November 1, the remaining states will be allowed entry.
According to the Costa Rican Tourism Institute, allowing the entry of citizens and residents of all states within the United States could generate $1.5 billion in foreign currency for Costa Rica, which equals 2.5 points of the GDP and about 80,000 jobs for the year 2021.
“Our conversations with technical teams in the airline sector allow us to determine that by opening the United States market, airlines could attract between 35 percent and 40 percent of 2019 air traffic, both originating in North America and connecting in that region,” said Segura in a press statement. “This will allow us to reactivate tourism, so that companies can work, at least, above the equilibrium point during the high season, which runs from November 2020 to May 2021. A tourist visiting the country activates a series of productive chains, such as agriculture, fishing, commerce, transport, tourism guides, hotels, restaurants, operators, artisans—and in looking that, we must focus to continue with the reactivation, safeguarding sanitary measures against COVID-19.”
Before the pandemic, the North American market brought 1.6 million tourists to Costa Rica, with an average stay of 12 days and a daily expense of $170 per person. The size of the potential market for the United States is 23.5 million tourists.
Entry Requirements
Residents and citizens of the United States of America who wish to visit Costa Rica must meet three requirements:
- Complete the digital form called HEALTH PASS, available at https://salud.go.cr
- Take a COVID-19 RT-PCR test and obtain a negative result; the sample for the test must be taken a maximum of 72 hours before the flight to Costa Rica
- Obtain travel insurance that covers accommodations in case of quarantine and medical expenses due to COVID-19 illness; travel insurance is mandatory and can be purchased from an international or Costa Rican insurers.
Beginning November 1, 2020, it will no longer be necessary to present proof of U.S. residency, as all states will be allowed to enter.
In addition to the United States, 44 additional countries have been authorized to enter Costa Rica as of August 1, the day that Costa Rica’s airports reopened. To date, approximately 6,000 tourists have entered the country, all complying with strict protocols, and none of whom have been reported as carriers or infected with COVID-19.
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