XJune 11, 2026
🇨🇷 Costa Rica's tax welcome package dies in 33 days.
Law 9996's incentive window closes on July 14, 2026, and no successor is announced. The Investor, Rentista and Pensionado residency tracks survive. The tax package attached to them does not.
What closes is the right to elect the package. Opt in before the cutoff and, once granted, you keep it for 10 years:
A one-time duty-free import of household goods, within reasonable and justified limits.
Up to two vehicles, cars, boats or aircraft, free of all import taxes and VAT. Import taxes on a car in Costa Rica can run past 50 percent of its value, so this line alone is worth five figures.
Income tax exemption on the income you declare to qualify. Costa Rican-source income remains taxable.
Up to 20 percent off the real estate transfer tax on property bought while the law is in force.
Entry tickets are modest by regional standards: 150,000 USD invested for the Investor track, 2,500 USD a month for Rentista, 1,000 USD a month for Pensionado.
Two fine print clauses that matter. Exempted assets must be held for 10 years, offload the car early and the waived taxes can come due. And the package does not make you a Costa Rican tax resident by itself, immigration status and tax residency are separate tests.
The strategic read: Costa Rica priced its post-COVID recovery as a 5-year promo window and is letting it lapse on schedule. Jurisdictions increasingly treat residents like customers, and promotional pricing always ends.
Opt in before July 14. After that, the 9996 package is gone and new applicants fall back to ordinary tax and customs treatment. Which country quietly retires its incentive next?
Data from GeoCompass, the jurisdiction intelligence layer I build at Lucky Nomads.
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