Moving to Costa Rica

Costa Rica is living up to its meaning as the “Rich Coast,” endowed by rain forest wilderness, a spring-like climate, astonishing landscapes, majestic volcanoes and idyllic beaches. It is nature at its best.

This tropical paradise ranked as the greenest and happiest nation by Happy Planet Index; Costa Ricans have the best ecological footprint, the highest life satisfaction in the world and high life expectancy (currently at 79.1 years).

With a total land area of 51,000 square kilometers, Costa Rica is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea. It is straddled between Nicaragua to the north and Panama to the south. A total of 25% of Costa Rica's land area is protected, as it contains 5% of the world's biodiversity. Being the most visited nation in Central America, Costa Rica is the pioneer in eco-tourism. It also boasts of a pleasant climate all year long, which is a treat for all nature lovers.

Costa Rica's thriving economy heavily depends on tourism, agriculture and electronic exports. The country is known as the principal producer of bananas and coffee. Today, Costa Rica's diverse industries are primed on electronics, pharmaceuticals, financial outsourcing, software development and eco-tourism. It's the home to companies like Procter & Gamble, GlaxoSmithKline, Intel Corporation, Abbott Laboratories and Baxter Healthcare.

Classified as a middle-income country, Costa Rica is politically stable under a democratic republic government. Costa Rica has been army-less since 1948, and no history of terrorism has been reported since the abolition. Since Costa Rica's declaration of neutrality, only the police and the coast guards are retained to perform their respective duties.

As a developing country, Costa Rica has a high inflation rate and ranks fourth in Latin America. The Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INEC) reported the inflation rate at 5.66% in 2010.

Costa Rica attracts foreign investments due to the country's high literacy rate and the government's tax exemption to investors. Having the same time zone as the central part of America resulted in a two-way trade agreement between Costa Rica and the US. In 2007, the trade between the two countries exceeded US$8 billion.

Roman Catholicism is the official state religion. With a population of 4,563,539, 70 to 90 percent of Costa Ricans are Catholics; other religions include Protestantism, Judaism and Islam.

A typical trait for Costa Ricans is their love for their country, and democracy is their most treasured institution. Most Costa Ricans are referred to as Ticos (male) and Ticas (women), derived from hermanticos or hermanticas, which means little brother or sister. Expats will be pleasantly surprised to find that most locals are friendly and loyal.

In Latin America, men have a reputation for "machismo," defined as an inflated masculinity. Traditionally, it still exists in the Costa Rican culture, although one can say it has been replaced by modern day liberalism. Still, women expats are advised to dress appropriately and to act like typical ticas.