How many foreigners live in Costa Rica ? The country has been a top tourism and retirement destination for many years. So how many people from other countries have made Costa Rica their home with legal residency status.
How Many Foreigners Have Residency ?
According to the Department of Immigration of Costa Rica there are 488,935 (*) foreigners with residency status in Costa Rica. This is further broken down into Special Categories 58,363, Temporary Residency 50,671 and Permanent Residency 379,901.
Where do they Come From ?
The report further breaks it down by continent:
Africa: 710
Americas: 452,518
Asia: 15,852
Europe: 19,683
Oceana: 247
There are 24,201 United States citizens with residency in Costa Rica and 3,639 from Canada. The vast majority of foreign residents in Costa Rica come from the neighboring country of Nicaragua with 329,066 citizens.
Costa Rica is also a popular safe haven for citizens of Latin America. The country is now home to 7,792 Venezuelans, 26,739 Colombians and 2,828 Argentinians.
Costa Rica has always been a favorite destination for Europeans and we have 3,430 Germans, 3,963 from Spain, 3,147 Italians, 1,939 from France, Netherlands 1,279 and 1,167 from the U.K. and 1,272 from Switzerland.
The full list of each country is broken down for you below:
(*) The latest report from immigration is as of December 31, 2016
| COUNTRY | CATEGORY | RESIDENCY | TOTAL | |
| SPECIAL * | TEMPORARY | PERMANENT | ||
| TOTAL GENERAL | 58,363 | 50,671 | 379,901 | 488,935 |
| AFRICA | 475 | 74 | 161 | 710 |
| AFRICA DEL SUR | 0 | 3 | 4 | 7 |
| ANGOLA | 3 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| ARGELIA | 3 | 2 | 10 | 15 |
| BENIN | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| BHUTAN | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| BOTSWANA | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| BURUNDI | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| CABO VERDE | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| CAMERUN | 35 | 1 | 2 | 38 |
| COMORAS | 4 | 0 | 6 | 10 |
| COSTA DE MARFIL | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| EGIPTO | 11 | 13 | 19 | 43 |
| ERITREA | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| ETIOPIA | 28 | 0 | 1 | 29 |
| GABON | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| GHANA | 14 | 1 | 2 | 17 |
| GUINEA BISSAU | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| GUINEA ECUATORIAL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| KENIA | 43 | 4 | 14 | 61 |
| LESOTHO | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| LIBERIA | 16 | 0 | 4 | 20 |
| LIBIA | 0 | 0 | 12 | 12 |
| MADAGASCAR | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| MALAWI | 12 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| MALI | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| MARRUECOS | 3 | 7 | 17 | 27 |
| MAURICIO | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| MOZAMBIQUE | 15 | 0 | 3 | 18 |
| NAMIBIA | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 |
| NIGER | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| NIGERIA | 62 | 6 | 20 | 88 |
| REPUBLICA DE GUINEA | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| REPUBLICA DEL CONGO | 5 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| REPUBLICA DEM. DEL CONGO | 8 | 0 | 3 | 11 |
| RWANDA | 32 | 0 | 0 | 32 |
| SENEGAL | 2 | 0 | 3 | 5 |
| SEYCHELLES | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| SIERRA LEONA | 8 | 0 | 1 | 9 |
| SOMALIA | 21 | 0 | 1 | 22 |
| SUDAFRICA | 19 | 22 | 13 | 54 |
| SUDAN | 13 | 0 | 1 | 14 |
| SWAZILANDIA | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| TANZANIA | 11 | 2 | 3 | 16 |
| TOGO | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| TUNEZ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| UGANDA | 42 | 2 | 2 | 46 |
| ZAMBIA | 21 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| ZIMBABWE | 12 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| AMERICAS | 51060 | 41514 | 359844 | 452,418 |
| ANTIGUA Y BARBUDA | 0 | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| ANTILLAS HOLANDESA | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| ARGENTINA | 138 | 1385 | 1305 | 2,828 |
| ARUBA | 7 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| BAHAMAS | 11 | 6 | 8 | 25 |
| BARBADOS | 11 | 4 | 4 | 19 |
| BELICE | 137 | 24 | 79 | 240 |
| BERMUDA | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| BERMUDAS | 3 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
| BOLIVIA | 164 | 135 | 225 | 524 |
| BRASIL | 182 | 886 | 384 | 1,452 |
| CANADA | 280 | 1627 | 1732 | 3,639 |
| CHILE | 146 | 677 | 916 | 1,739 |
| COLOMBIA | 8633 | 3951 | 14155 | 26,739 |
| CUBA | 887 | 252 | 7902 | 9,041 |
| CURAZAO | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| DOMINICA | 1 | 6 | 18 | 25 |
| ECUADOR | 581 | 491 | 869 | 1,941 |
| EL SALVADOR | 1892 | 2009 | 7529 | 11,430 |
| ESTADOS UNIDOS | 3387 | 10815 | 9999 | 24,201 |
| GRANADA | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| GUADALUPE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| GUATEMALA | 771 | 1472 | 1520 | 3,763 |
| GUYANA | 5 | 8 | 24 | 37 |
| HAITI | 102 | 28 | 211 | 341 |
| HONDURAS | 1499 | 1203 | 2388 | 5,090 |
| ISLAS CAIMAN | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| JAMAICA | 16 | 46 | 126 | 188 |
| MEXICO | 603 | 3157 | 1521 | 5,281 |
| NICARAGUA | 27272 | 6887 | 294907 | 329,066 |
| PANAMA | 621 | 728 | 5603 | 6,952 |
| PARAGUAY | 73 | 51 | 49 | 173 |
| PERU | 646 | 796 | 3536 | 4,978 |
| PUERTO RICO | 3 | 17 | 8 | 28 |
| REPUBLICA DOMINICANA | 1739 | 321 | 2317 | 4,377 |
| SAN CRISTOBAL Y NEVIS | 5 | 1 | 2 | 8 |
| SAN VICENTE Y LAS GRANADINAS | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| SANTA LUCIA | 0 | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| SURINAM | 3 | 3 | 8 | 14 |
| TRINIDAD Y TOBAGO | 15 | 54 | 33 | 102 |
| URUGUAY | 42 | 163 | 240 | 445 |
| VENEZUELA | 1180 | 4299 | 2213 | 7,692 |
| ASIA | 3235 | 2683 | 9934 | 15,852 |
| AFGANISTAN | 7 | 3 | 2 | 12 |
| ARABIA SAUDI | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| ARMENIA | 2 | 0 | 6 | 8 |
| AZERBAIYAN | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| BANGLADESH | 10 | 8 | 2 | 20 |
| BULGARIA | 2 | 3 | 0 | 5 |
| CAMBOYA | 18 | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| CHAD | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| CHIPRE | 4 | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| EMIRATOS ARABES UNIDOS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| FILIPINAS | 68 | 159 | 193 | 420 |
| GUAM | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| HONG KONG | 0 | 33 | 94 | 127 |
| INDIA | 87 | 566 | 57 | 710 |
| INDONESIA | 26 | 9 | 6 | 41 |
| IRAK | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| IRAN | 10 | 34 | 117 | 161 |
| IRAQ | 10 | 0 | 4 | 14 |
| ISRAEL | 52 | 124 | 292 | 468 |
| JAPON | 203 | 178 | 187 | 568 |
| JORDANIA | 10 | 22 | 44 | 76 |
| KAZAJISTAN | 4 | 6 | 1 | 11 |
| KIRGUISTAN | 6 | 1 | 0 | 7 |
| KUWAIT | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| LAOS | 3 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| LIBANO | 15 | 32 | 94 | 141 |
| MALASIA | 10 | 20 | 3 | 33 |
| MALDIVAS | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| MONGOLIA | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| MYANMAR | 20 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| NEPAL | 62 | 2 | 86 | 150 |
| OMAN | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| PAKISTAN | 12 | 7 | 14 | 33 |
| PALESTINA | 7 | 3 | 16 | 26 |
| QATAR | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| REPUBLICA DE CHINA TAIWAN | 25 | 169 | 2207 | 2,401 |
| REPUBLICA DE COREA | 115 | 500 | 405 | 1,020 |
| REPUBLICA DEM. POP. DE COREA | 62 | 10 | 6 | 78 |
| REPUBLICA POP. DE CHINA | 2230 | 741 | 5970 | 8,941 |
| SINGAPUR | 0 | 5 | 8 | 13 |
| SIRIA | 6 | 3 | 72 | 81 |
| SRI LANKA | 39 | 12 | 0 | 51 |
| TAILANDIA | 52 | 10 | 5 | 67 |
| TAJIKISTAN | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| TIMOR ORIENTAL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| TURKMENISTAN | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| TURQUIA | 12 | 11 | 25 | 48 |
| UZBEKISTAN | 6 | 0 | 6 | 12 |
| VIETNAM | 22 | 6 | 3 | 31 |
| YEMEN | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| EUROPA | 3480 | 6330 | 9873 | 19,683 |
| ALBANIA | 6 | 0 | 2 | 8 |
| ALEMANIA | 1009 | 818 | 1603 | 3,430 |
| ANDORRA | 0 | 6 | 2 | 8 |
| AUSTRIA | 146 | 81 | 139 | 366 |
| BELGICA | 36 | 225 | 279 | 540 |
| BIELORRUSIA | 7 | 0 | 19 | 26 |
| BOSNIA Y HERCEGOVINA | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| BULGARIA | 8 | 9 | 45 | 62 |
| CROACIA | 4 | 0 | 10 | 14 |
| DINAMARCA | 80 | 60 | 53 | 193 |
| ESLOVAQUIA | 15 | 22 | 11 | 48 |
| ESLOVENIA | 0 | 2 | 7 | 9 |
| ESPAÑA | 509 | 1386 | 2068 | 3,963 |
| ESTONIA | 3 | 1 | 2 | 6 |
| FEDERACION RUSA | 65 | 168 | 365 | 598 |
| FINLANDIA | 65 | 13 | 18 | 96 |
| FRANCIA | 306 | 767 | 866 | 1,939 |
| GEORGIA | 8 | 0 | 6 | 14 |
| HUNGRIA | 13 | 15 | 31 | 59 |
| IRLANDA | 22 | 67 | 28 | 117 |
| ISLANDIA | 31 | 0 | 0 | 31 |
| ITALIA | 309 | 906 | 1932 | 3,147 |
| LETONIA | 2 | 4 | 12 | 18 |
| LIECHTENSTEIN | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| LITUANIA | 0 | 10 | 3 | 13 |
| LUXEMBURGO | 2 | 5 | 6 | 13 |
| MACEDONIA | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| MOLDOVA | 2 | 1 | 5 | 8 |
| MONTENEGRO | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| NORUEGA | 82 | 58 | 54 | 194 |
| PAISES BAJOS | 271 | 405 | 603 | 1,279 |
| POLONIA | 15 | 62 | 71 | 148 |
| PORTUGAL | 10 | 80 | 51 | 141 |
| PRINCIPADO DE MONACO | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| REINO UNIDO | 180 | 493 | 494 | 1,167 |
| REPUBLICA CHECA | 15 | 36 | 51 | 102 |
| REPUBLICA HELENICA | 3 | 12 | 23 | 38 |
| RUMANIA | 10 | 32 | 97 | 139 |
| SAN MARINO | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| SANTA SEDE DEL VATICANO | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| SERBIA | 3 | 6 | 19 | 28 |
| SUECIA | 53 | 113 | 142 | 308 |
| SUIZA | 159 | 441 | 672 | 1,272 |
| UCRANIA | 27 | 21 | 78 | 126 |
| YUGOESLAVIA | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 0 | ||||
| OCEANÍA
| 100 | 70 | 77 | 247 |
| AUSTRALIA | 50 | 57 | 55 | 162 |
| FJI | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| ISLAS PITCARIN | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| MICRONESIA | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| NAURU | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| NIUE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| NUEVA ZELANDA | 40 | 10 | 16 | 66 |
| TIMOR ORIENTAL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| TONGA | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| VANATU | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| OTROS | 13 | 0 | 12 | 25 |
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