| Here are some money-saving tips for bringing small items
to Costa Rica. First, when entering the country as a tourist
by plane, you can bring in a lot of personal effects and small
appliances. A tourist is sometimes waved through Customs without
ever having to open any luggage. Costa Rica has become a popular
tourist destination.
1. The government understands that tourists come here to
enjoy the country and have many different hobbies and reasons
for visiting. They know that tourists need such items as surfboards,
bicycles, kayaks, musical instruments, photographic equipment,
small stereos and more. The government permits items for personal
use not intended for resale. The number of these personal
items has to be reasonable in relation to the length of the
stay or needed for the exercise of one's profession during
his or her trip. Finally, all items have to be portable and
considered luggage.
The amount of luggage allowed on the plane by airlines is
limited in most cases to two pieces that must not exceed 66
pounds. Sometimes they allow excess luggage for an additional
fee. If they do allow you to take more, do so, because it
is the cheapest way of bringing items into Costa Rica.
While on the plane, you have to fill out a Customs declaration
form. If you are bringing anything that is not considered
luggage under the law, declare it at a very low price. Once
you have picked up your luggage from the carousel you will
have to go through Customs. If they redlight you, you must
go through an inspection; otherwise you'll walk through unstopped.
There is a duty-free exemption of up to $500. If you exceed
the $500 limit, the back of your passport will be stamped
bonificado, which once again means you will be restricted
from bringing more imported items into the country for a period
of six months. If you bring in more items within six months,
you will have to pay the corresponding taxes. Do not think
you can get away with bringing more items before then ripping
out the last page of your passport. They keep all records
on computer.
You have two options if your duty-free $500 exemption is
not enough. You can pay the duties right then and there, or
you can ask for a receipt and return the following day to
pay.
Tourists and residents have the right to bring in $500 in
merchandise purchased abroad every six months tax-free, in
addition to personal items considered part of a traveler's
luggage. There is a long list of personal items you may bring
in, such as: clothing, toys, sports equipment, such as surf
boards or fishing equipment; a personal computer, photographic
equipment; radios, tapes and musical instruments. Personal
items are not limited to this list. Almost any article that
will be used by the resident or traveler while in the country,
whether to work or play, may be considered a personal item.
The $500 tax does not apply to personal items, but is additional
to them. Any merchandise that exceeds the $500 limit and cannot
be considered a personal article will be retained in Customs
until the import duties are paid. Be forewarned that Customs
officials will usually stamp the passports of people who bring
in obviously new merchandise.
Used clothing and books are not subject to taxes. Do not
pack them with taxable articles or you may have to pay taxes
on them anyway.
Have friends bring a few things when they come to visit you
in Costa Rica. Always try to take as much as possible with
you on the plane rather than shipping items by boat, because
most used personal things are not taxed at the airport. Even
used appliances have a good chance of clearing airport Customs
if you can fit them on the plane.
2. If you have a small amount of items (less than 500 pounds)
that you cannot take with you as luggage, you should consider
sending it as air cargo. One slightly crazy friend of ours,
who has moved back and forth between Costa Rica and the United
States four times, highly recommends American Airlines Cargo.
He always uses them to ship his belongings to Costa Rica.
If you choose to ship your belongings by air, try American
Airlines. Call their 800 toll-free number. They will ask you
your intended destination. You will then have to give them
the number of boxes you are planning to ship, and the respective
weight and dimensions of each box.
The operator will then figure out the approximate cost. All
items will officially be weighed at the airport cargo facility.
The cost is based on either the total weight or the combined
dimensions of all your boxes, whichever is greater.
You will then be given the choice of sending your things
by express or standard freight. The latter is your best bet
if you are not in a hurry. It takes only two to five days
to reach Costa Rica from the United States. The only drawback
to shipping standard rate is that it will be on a space-available
basis, and your merchandise may be slightly delayed. The cost
works out to be about a dollar per pound.
It is highly advisable to make your travel plans so as to
arrive in Costa Rica before your shipment. This way you can
go directly to the Customs house and remove your things after
paying the corresponding taxes.
We recommend packing your belongings in unmarked plain boxes,
especially if you are shipping computers, stereos or other
electronic equipment. Number each box and put the name and
address of the person who will be receiving them in Costa
Rica. Make a list of the contents of each box for yourself,
the airlines and customs. This will help ensure your boxes
get there intact. All of your boxes should be made of thick
cardboard and have plenty of packing materials to protect
any fragile items. Airline employees often heap heavy boxes
on top of other cargo. Be sure to write not for resale on
any paperwork and air bills. This will save you a lot of money
when the Customs people figure out how much you will pay in
taxes.
If you decide to get your things out of Customs yourself,
the process goes like this. First, you will have to go to
American Airlines Cargo, located near the airport, pay a small
fee and take the paperwork to the Customs house. When you
arrive there, you go to a couple of windows. Next, you will
sit and wait until they call your name. While you wait you
can peek inside of a large glass window and watch the workers
load and unload boxes of all sizes and shapes from the 20-foot
high storage shelves.
When your name is finally called you go inside and the inspector
opens all of your sealed boxes and determines what the contents
are worth. Due to a lack of knowledge or because the Customs
inspector will want to, they sometimes apply the same rules
as luggage and you will pay nothing or very little. Most of
the time you do not need a Customs broker to help you with
a small shipment.
Finally, you go to a window, which also serves as a branch
of one of the national banks, and pay the taxes on the items
you have imported.
There are small trucks or taxis de carga available
outside the Customs building that you can hire to take your
belongings to your house or apartment. Prices are quite reasonable.
We took a full load to San José and the driver only
charged us about $30. He even helped us load and unload.
3. If you have more 500 pounds and large items like refrigerators,
it is too expensive to ship by air. Your best option is to
send your things by boat in a cargo container. It is more
cost-effective to use a large container, and the transit time
will be shorter. As a rule of thumb, shipping a quarter of
a container will cost as much as a half, and a half will cost
as much as a whole container. So it is best to use a whole
container. Your Customs agent can get all of your household
items and belongings out of Customs.
Here is what one expat said about the experience of shipping
his things by container: I moved down with everything that
would fit in a 40-foot container, from the Indianapolis area,
and if I remember correctly I paid about $5,500 to $5,800.
However, if your location is close to a major seaport, the
cost should be a lot lower. My container had to go by truck
to Chicago, then by rail to the eastern seaboard (possibly
New York or Virginia Beach) before it got onto the ship, and
the cost for the land portion was probably greater than the
cost of the sea voyage.
The best part is that they left the container parked in my
driveway for several days at no extra charge. It was up on
wheels of course, so I had to build a ramp to load it. I loaded
it myself with some friends and hired a crew for the real
heavy stuff.
Having that kind of time was key to getting everything to
fit right, which was important to me because not a cubic foot
was wasted and there were 2,261 of them. Instead of
selling or giving away a ton of stuff in the States, we brought
it all down and gave it away here, and brought a lot of additional
supplies we needed for our mission work here, in addition
to all our household stuff, a couple thousand books and my
17-foot canoe.
4. Driving through Mexico and Central America is another
way to bring your household goods and personal belongings
to Costa Rica. However, because of the length of the journey,
delays at border crossings and other hassles, this method
is not recommended. We understand that some trucking companies
will ship your belongings overland.
Whether you chose to send some of your possessions by ship
or plane as unaccompanied luggage, you will learn to exercise
extreme patience. Be prepared to face some unnecessary delays
and frustrations when dealing with the Costa Rican Customs
house, or aduana. Since the new modern Customs warehouse
opened near the airport, this process has been somewhat streamlined.
However, it is more usual than not to make several trips
to the Customs warehouse to get your belongings. At worst
you may spend all day dealing with mountains of paperwork,
only to hear at the end of the day that you must come back
tomorrow. Furthermore, fickle Customs officials sometimes
decide the value of the shipped goods, and two identical shipments
can be taxed differently depending on who examines them at
the aduana.
The documentation required to import personal effects and
used household goods are: an original bill of lading, a copy
of your passport including the pages with the last entry to
Costa Rica, and a list of the value of each item. This list
should include brand name, model and serial number of all
appliances, large and small. All items have to be used for
at least six months before shipping.
Because of this lengthy process and hassles, many people
pay a local Customs broker, Agencia Aduanera, or hire
some other person or their lawyer to do this unpleasant task
for them. It may cost a little more this way, but it will
save valuable time and hassles.
We recommend the following company (please see their ad in
the classified ads section of this guide):
Ship to Costa Rica
Tel: 258-8747 Fax: 258-7123
Toll-Free from the United States or Canada: 1-866-245-6923
E-mail: shiptocostarica@racsa.co.cr
Here is what Susan said about Ship to Costa Rica's services:
Well, finally, we have our stuff! The container arrived a
week ago, but we had to store our things because we considered
moving to another spot. Then after a hectic week of looking
around, we decided we liked our spot just fine and we had
a great deal, talked to the neighbors about the reasons we
considered leaving and decided to stay here.
So today was the BIG day. We got a call at 8:30 this morning
to say the truck was ready at the warehouse and did we want
them to come NOW. That was three hours early imagine
that! And I groaned and said, But we're not even dressed.'so
we did the Keystone Cops thing and ran around throwing on
clothes, throwing cats in the maid's room, throwing the dog
in the laundry room, throwing the sheets in with the dog and
getting ready for the big day.
And the truck came and unloaded and the other truck came
and unloaded and unloaded, and unloaded. The only space they
didn't unload into was the hall bathroom. So that's where
we hung out for a moment of peace from the boxes and piles
of stuff. Even though we de-stuffed multiple times back in
the States we still had so much stuff that I have no idea
where it will go.
Our maid stood wide-eyed through the entire day wondering
when the stuff would stop arriving and dreading having to
unpack it. She deserves a medal.
Today I truly felt like an American with many of the undercurrents
of what that word means to people who are not and have not
got what we have. It was almost embarrassing. But I was assured
that we were perfectly normal for Americans moving to Costa
Rica.
After it was all delivered, the guys unwrapped all the furniture
and took away the garbage. They helped us bully several dozen
boxes into a handy storage area we have under the stairs and
smiled the entire time, except for when they delivered my
500-pound fire-proof filing cabinet up a long flight of stairs we
affectionately call this the pig'.
Many thanks to and hats off to Charlie Zeller of Ship to
Costa Rica and his son Charlie, Jr., the head of the moving
crew. From start to finish, these are the most professional
movers I have ever worked with. They are honest, gave me a
quote up front and stuck to it right down to when I paid them,
delivered on time to my door, arranged all the trog'work and
paperwork and Customs stuff. Stored my stuff in their warehouse
for a week after it arrived in Costa Rica for free and overall
did a fantastic job for us. Not one piece of furniture was
damaged. I do give myself a little credit because I know how
to pack. There have been so far a few little items, mostly
dishes, chipped or broken. Nothing that can't be replaced.
Five stars to Charlie and his crew. If you are looking to
move to Costa Rica, I definitely recommend them and you can
find them through the ARCR, another wonderful organization
that has been immensely helpful.
So now we are starting the unpack and my animals are sniffing
around wondering what the heck went on here all day; they
are checking out every box and all the new nooks and crannies
and we are all thinking, gee, this looks like home and it
don't echo no more in my place.
Be sure to ask the following when choosing a customs agency:
Does the agency have English-speaking employees? Talk to them
to see if they are customer-service oriented. Find out if
they have the resources to access computerized Customs information.
Talk to long-time residents who have dealt with reputable
agencies and get referrals.
Carlos Bravo of Servex International is another good Customs
broker. You may contact him at Tel: 253-1152, Cell: 383-2904
or
Email: servex@racsa.co.cr.
You may also choose to consult the Yellow Pages for a listing
of Agencias Aduaneras (Custom's brokers). The Association
of Residents of Costa Rica (ARCR) can give you the names of
several Customs agencies.
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