All Entries in the "Laws" Category

U.S. Based Developer of Costa Rica Land a Ponzi Scheme

Lorraine Fox wanted a piece of paradise; a tropical retirement home where the temperature is warm, the air is clean and the stress of South Florida is far away.

Along with hundreds of other people across the U.S., Ms. Fox entrusted that dream to Hollywood, Florida based Paragon Properties of Costa Rica. Four years and $115,000 later, the 55-year-old real estate agent has nothing to show for it.

How To Maximize Social Security for Costa Rica Retirement

Although every retiree has their own specific reasons – such as climate, beauty, nature, etc. – affordability is the one constant that brings thousands to this Central American country. For United States ‘ex-pats’, part of the financial equation is Social Security benefits.

Here is are some legal, little-known strategies that can immediately boost those U.S. Social Security checks or direct deposits.

7,000 U.S. Marines Landing on the Beaches of Costa Rica

A flotilla of 46 United States Navy warships capable of carrying 200 helicopters, along with 10 Harrier vertical take-off and landing fighter jets, and 7,000 combat ready marines is on its way to this Central American country with no standing army.

On July 1, 2010 the Costa Rica Legislative Assembly voted 31-8 to grant the U.S. military full in-country access through the end of 2010 to help fight drug trafficking.

Costa Rica Jaguars get a Protected Migration Pathway

Animal conservation groups are working to create natural corridors for big cats to travel through human-populated areas.

One such corridor is already in-place to help Costa Rica’s jaguars survive, but development is a constant threat to even established pathways.

The Inauguration of Costa Rica’s First Female President

Saturday May 8th, 2010 Laura Chinchilla Miranda was inaugurated into office as the first female president of Costa Rica.

The democratic, peaceful transfer from current President Óscar Arias Sánchez to Laura Chinchilla Miranda took place in a specially constructed viewing area in Parque Metropolitano La Sabana while visiting world dignitaries looked on.

President of Costa Rica Supports ‘Legal Recognition’ for Gay Couples

Outgoing Costa Rican President Óscar Arias finally takes a stand on gay unions by stating he supports legal recognition of same-sex couples.

A bill to grant gay couples pension, inheritance, immigration, social-security and other rights is languishing in the Costa Rica Legislative Assembly. So is same-sex marriage coming anytime soon to Costa Rica?

Meet the New Ticas of Costa Rica

In Costa Rica, one woman will soon be president. Another is training to summit Mt. Everest.

Women are increasingly taking jobs out of the home. Putting their careers first, delaying motherhood – while they are slowly rising up the corporate ladder and climbing the echelons of government.

Meet the new Ticas.

Costa Rica’s Relationship with the Catholic Church Amidst Controversy

Today is the religious day known as Good Friday, a holiday observed primarily by Christians commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

Yet while a majority of Costa Rican’s are Roman Catholics, the Church has been standing in the eye of a hurricane for the many allegations of pedophilia by priests around the world … and Costa Rican bloggers are concerned!

Costa Rica’s Newest, Largest Marina Boating Facility Opens April 21

Marina Pez Vela, promoted as ‘Costa Rica’s first full service marine facility offering all the necessities for serious boating and amenities for non-serious fun in one of the most spectacular fishing locations in the world’, is opening April 21.

Slips ranging from 35 to 200 feet are located inside a huge new 44 acre breakwater-enclosed harbor, located in the Central Pacific town of Quepos.

The Last Jaguars of Costa Rica

For nearly 20-years Dr. Eduardo Carrillo has been tracking, filming and gathering data on the near threatened jaguar population of Costa Rica.

Carrillo explains that the forests of Latin America are the symbolic heart of this region, and the health of the jaguar population is a key indicator of just how healthy the forests are.

8 Things Costa Rica Taught Me During My Visit

World Wildlife Fund’s Elissa Poma accompanied the WWF on their most recent 2009/2010 Costa Rica for Families EcoTour.

Here are 8 things Elissa learned about Costa Rica during her visit.

President-elect Laura Chinchilla Names Cabinet, Creates Drug Czar

Costa Rica’s President-elect Laura Chinchilla has been busy formalizing her economic, foreign relations, domestic and national security teams.

She also went on the offensive against the growing regional problem of narcotics trafficking by stating drug interdiction will be one of her government’s main priorities as she announced the establishment of a new anti-drug commissioner.

Teaching English in Costa Rica

Today, there is an even greater variety of teaching jobs available in Costa Rica, many with decent salaries that allow one to live in a comfortable apartment, eat well and spend two or three weekends a month at the nearest beach, volcano or mountain town.

Seasoned English teacher Sarah Mosley did just that. She has taught ESL in Costa Rica for two years and is currently teaching at the Green Life Academy in Playa del Coco.

Canadians Almost Escape Spectacle of 2010 Winter Olympics in Costa Rica

It was only when I arrived in Nosara, a beach village on the Pacific in Costa Rica, that I realized the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics had been stressing me out.

We found this country blissfully oblivious to the Winter Olympics, where no one even knew they were happening.

Made in Costa Rica: U.S. Major League baseballs

Costa Rica is home to the world’s only authorized U.S. Major League (MLB) baseball manufacturing facility.

More than 300 Costa Rican workers sit in neat rows in the town of Turrialba, Cartago Province for 10 hours a day sewing the 108 stitches that make-up each Rawlings official MLB baseball.

Analysis of the Newly Opened Costa Rica Insurance Market

Costa Rica President Óscar Arias Sánchez signed into law Costa Rica’s new insurance reform ending the Instituto Nacional de Seguros’ (INS) eighty-year-old monopoly over the country’s insurance industry.

Can the INS compete in an open market with other private insurers on price, product diversity and service?

Internet and e-Commerce Industries Booming in Costa Rica

Central American countries, like Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama, are all experiencing a considerable scale of development in their telecommunication sectors.

However, Costa Rica has managed to reach a high level of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure and operation advancements due to its economic policies.

Is Costa Rica a Third World, Second World or Developed Country?

There is a multi-million-dollar mega-mall in Escazú, west of San José, which sports outlets of some of the world’s most exclusive stores. But, according to the State of the Nation report in November, at least 16,000 Costa Rican homes are “without basic services,” such as electricity and running water.

A constant feature of this disparity in the makeup of Costa Rica is that, while certain areas of the country are surging ahead, there are many areas in which the country is not keeping up or is, indeed, falling behind.

El Niño and Pathogen Killed Costa Rica Toad – Not Global Warming

The Monteverde golden toad, vanished from Costa Rica’s Pacific coastal-mountain cloud forest in the late 1980s. The role that climate change played in the toad’s demise has been fiercely debated in recent years.

According to a new study, global warming did not kill a Costa Rica amphibian often cited as an example of climate-triggered extinction.

Costa Rica’s New Traffic Laws Take Effect March 1, 2010

Costa Rica’s new and sweeping traffic reform laws (reformas a Ley de Tránsito) will finally be the law of the land on March 1st, 2010.

The cornerstone of the new reform is the computerization of drivers’ license records, and the use of a strict points system to force drivers to re-evaluate and change their driving practices.