Traveling to Costa Rica – Entry Requirements in COVID times
First of all, it is to indicate that the borders of Costa Rica are open both by air, sea and land. Any other requirement established prior to the Covid pandemic must be met, such as a visa when required. Now, with regard to sanitary provisions, let’s see what is necessary and what is not necessary.
Negative test and confinement
Costa Rica was one of the first countries to open borders to tourism during the pandemic, all this under a process where a negative covid test was requested less than 72 hours prior to arrival in the country. However, this measure is no longer necessary, and it can be entered without the need for a COVID-19 detection test, nor is it necessary to carry out a confinement.
Health Pass
The Health Pass can only be completed from the moment that 72 hours are missing before entering the country. It must be accessed in updated browsers with the exception of Internet Explorer. One form must be completed per person, including people under 18 years olds, without exception.
The health pass must be completed at the following site: https://salud.go.cr/
Once the pass is generated, a QR code is generated that can be used to consult it. It is important to indicate that in the process of generating the health pass, you will be asked for information such as complete vaccination scheme documents and other data, which must be real.
Travel insurance
As part of the first stage where the borders were opened, one of the mandatory requirements to enter the country was to present an insurance or travel policy. However, as of August 1, 2021, the policy is no longer necessary for all tourists with the complete vaccination scheme against COVID-19 and inoculated with “Moderna”, “Pfizer-BioNTech”, “AstraZeneca” or “Johnson & Johnson” can enter the country without a travel insurance. The last dose of the vaccine must have been applied at least 14 days before arrival in Costa Rica.
In other words, travel insurance is still mandatory for those over 18 years of age, who do not have or can not proof that they have a complete vaccination scheme. In the case of the United States of America, the “COVID-19 vaccination record card” is accepted as proof of vaccination.
The characteristics of the travel policy are:
- Valid during the entire stay in Costa Rica (coverage dates).
- $ 50,000 for medical expenses, including COVID-19 disease.
- $ 2,000 for lodging expenses in case of COVID-19 quarantine.
Vaccination Certification
As of January 8, 2022, all those over 12 years of age are required to present a complete vaccination certificate to enter commercial establishments. This restriction does not apply to essential establishments such as: Supermarkets and Pharmacies. But if it applies to:
- Hotels,
- Restaurants,
- Pubs,
- Casinos,
- Stores,
- Gyms,
- Art and dance academies,
- Museums,
- Spas
- and adventure tourism
This means, a foreign person over 12 years old without a vaccination certificate can enter Costa Rica, without a complete vaccination certificate, if he is over 18 years old a travel policy is required, but during his stay he will not be able to enter the places above. However, you can visit relatives, and enter supermarkets and pharmacies.
In the case of foreigners, the QR code generated by the completed Health Pass can be presented 72 hours before entering the country.
Enjoy Costa Rica
Once we are clear about the different health requirements and provisions, we hope that this information will be of great help to you to enjoy your visit to Costa Rica.
