Unusual property tax system hurts newcomer.

By: Garland M. Baker B.

Exclusive to A.M. Costa Rica

Editor's Note: While this article was accurate at the time of publication, some information may now be outdated. We are currently preparing a comprehensive update. Sign up for our Alerts to be notified as soon as the revised content is live!

First there was arithmetic, and then came new math, and now Costa Rica has introduced tax math. 

Aristotle, the Greece philosopher, was the first ever to theorize this kind of geometric mathematics in his book The Physics. So, no one should be surprised Tributacion Directa, the Costa Rican tax authority, much like the IRS in the United States, and Hacienda, the Costa Rican treasury, has decided to use it in calculating tax values on property. 

Legal manipulations can protect property here.

By: Garland M. Baker B.

Exclusive to A.M. Costa Rica

Editor's Note: While this article was accurate at the time of publication, some information may now be outdated. We are currently preparing a comprehensive update. Sign up for our Alerts to be notified as soon as the revised content is live!

With so many people, ranging from the common property thief to the tax man, trying to take your property away from you, why not fight back and protect yourself with legal fences to keep the bad guys out.  

Here are a few ways: 

Registry law creates chance to steal property.

By: Garland M. Baker B.

Exclusive to A.M. Costa Rica

Editor's Note: While this article was accurate at the time of publication, some information may now be outdated. We are currently preparing a comprehensive update. Sign up for our Alerts to be notified as soon as the revised content is live!

Most people are unaware of the changes to the property registration laws at the Registro Nacional or National Registry, which were modified last year. However, these changes have opened the doors to shysters preying on the innocent.

Costa Rica’s registry laws are over 100 years old. This means they were written before computers existed. Because of this, no registration was ever deleted, even if it was full of mistakes.