Monthly Archives: November 2011

Both Tom and I have now been notified that our residency application has been approved.  Now we just have a bit of clean up work to do and then we will be able to go to immigration and get our cedulas!!    The cedula is the identity card that all residents have and allows you to open up a bank account as well as get the residency rate to enter national parks.  I’m sure there are many other benefits but those are two I know of off the top of my head.  The biggest benefits for us will be that we will be able to join the national health plan which is one of the reasons we moved to Costa Rica.  Before we can be issued our cedulas, we will have to pay for two airplane tickets that will take us out of the country in the event we are deported.  I am not planning on that happening   We also will have to go visit our nearest medical clinic in Hone Creek and get signed up for the national health plan.  The system here is heavily geared toward preventive medicine so, once we join, we will have to make an appointment for a complete physical.  Then you are expected to go back at least once a year to ensure good health.  For this we will pay around $60 a month for the two of us.  Not a bad deal!!