Bringing or Buying a new car in Costa Rica

[KATHY BARTH]

Advice for bringing a car to Costa Rica or buying a new car upon arrival in Costa Rica? What to do to save $$$ & taxes?

Thank you Kathy

[DAVID HAFELE]

[DAVID HAFELE]

Should I choose to bring my car to Costa Rica what is the procedure and what would be the expected costs?

[JASON HOLLAND- COUNTRY EXPERT]

Bring a car to Costa Rica or buy one when you move down… great question. And a hard one to answer. It’s really a very individual answer, depending on your specific situation. But I can give you some guidelines and things to ponder. I would also recommend you contact a reputable importer/shipper – one based in Costa Rica – to answer any specific questions you have about bringing your car and/or household goods into CR.

When bringing your car from the U.S. to Costa Rica you do have to pay import taxes, as well as the cost of the shipping. Even legal residents don’t get a tax break on importing a car. Shipping from Miami to Limon, Costa Rica’s main port, will only run you about $1,000. The expense comes in when you have to pay Customs. Taxes are assessed based on the car’s value in Costa Rica, not what you paid for it in the U.S. For a car six years or older, you pay up to 79% of its value in taxes. Between four and five years, the rate is 63%, and three years or less is 52%. To calculate your car’s value, you can check out the official government calculator online: http://www.hacienda.go.cr/autohacienda/autovalor.aspx The website is in Spanish, so I recommend you contact a shipper to help you navigate that site.

That’s importing your car from home. As you can see, whether it make sense for you depends on the value of your car, the taxes, and the cost of shipping.

Another consideration is that parts and mechanics are most common for Asian imports like Toyota, Nissan, Mitsubishi, etc. If you have an American or European made car, you might have to wait longer for parts. I would not recommend bringing a vintage car.

As far as buying a car, keep in mind that dealerships have to pay those same high import taxes you would, so cars are expensive. Often almost double what they would cost in the United States. Keep in mind that cars really hold their value here, so even used cars will be more expensive than the U.S. The way to get the best deals is to become active in an expat community – someone going back to the U.S. will often sell their car for a good price. You should also check Craiglist in Costa Rica and http://www.crautos.com, which is local auto sales website.

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