Residency Continued

I am always so proud of myself when I go into a bank or government building here in Costa Rica to conduct business. Every time I step inside the doors my heart starts pounding plus I have pretty big eyes already, but I think they double in size. I do not speak Spanish, and sometimes it is very hard to find a person that speaks English. At places like this there is usually one who speaks enough. Even knowing that I enter hoping I do not have to mime my way through it.

Before I moved to Costa Rica I had to get my birth certificate, Social Security letter, and a background check then send them all to Austin to the Secretary of State to have them notarized and an Apostille attached. All of these items had to then be translated into Spanish before filing my request for Residency. My attorney, Roberto Umana, took care of all this and the filing.

My request was approved and now to complete getting my Residency I had to go to the Bank Of Costa Rica today and purchase my Warranty and pay the cost of credentials and over staying penalties. These are for the final resolution. The "Warranty" money is to be used in case anything "goes wrong with me" there will be funds to purchase a one way ticket back to the states without Costa Rica having to use "public funds." What a novel idea! If the immigrant gets in trouble or does not keep all the laws of the country they send them back to where they came from on the immigrants dime. The other deposits were for the cost of credentials which would be my "Cedula" or card of proof that I live here legally. This has to be renewed every two years until qualifying for a permanent residency. The "over staying" penalty is a $3.00 charge in the case of having been here more than the 90 days allotted without permission.

Next I will need to gather my rental contract and all cost of living expense receipts and take them to the Caja to qualify for health insurance. Without it I do not qualify for residency. In other words, there is some financial responsibility for immigrants to pay for their own health care. The exact monthly cost I do not have yet, but with my income and cost of living it will probably be between $80.00 and $100. a month! That is for everything, plus most meds are free. This is a very big difference in what it would be costing me in the US for my medical insurance. The Caja does not include dental or vision insurance.

The business end of moving here is a little confusing but not terrible. You are much better off if you have a Costa Rican attorney to guide you. It is worth every penny. Roberto has been such a help plus the fact that his fee in one flat rate. I can call him or email him as many times as I need, and he does not charge a penny extra. He also speaks excellent English. Serves a great cup of Costa Rican coffee, too!

Pura Vida!

Filing for Residency

Yesterday was a very exciting and surreal day. I signed all my papers with my attorney, Roberto Umana. Now he will file them with immigration. Everything is in Spanish. There is no way I could have done this by myself. In about 3-4 months I will officially have my Costa Rican residency!

It has been a lot of work starting in March when I began getting all the required paperwork together. Birth certificate, background check and proof of a pension that is no less than $1,000 a month. For most people that is their Social Security income. Once I had everything together they had to be sent to the Secretary of State for an Apostille to be attached to each document. Then off to Roberto's office and translated into Spanish.

In my case, getting my paperwork together was pretty easy. I was born and raised in the same state. If I had been married I would have been required to get a copy of the Marriage Certificate. If all your life was spent in different States it will take you a little longer to gather all your information. But it is worth it.

Pura Vida!

Nature in Costa Rica

I have been trying to get pictures of nature's beauty in Costa Rica that is literally in my yard. It is not easy. Nature here is so fast! I am inspired and in love with everything I see daily.

I have a flock of parrots that fly over my house almost everyday, but I have yet to get a picture of them. They are beautiful. A brilliant green. If you know me you know how much I love birds. I have had them all through the years. I had, Lady Bird, a white Cockatiel for 10 years. I got another wonderful and smart Cockatiel, Fella, about a year ago. I was not able to bring him to Costa Rica with me, so my daughter, Meleese, took him. She and her husband love him. He loves to "wolf whistle" to get your attention. I miss him.

I have also seen a couple of Toucans, but again have not caught them on film, either. My yard is covered up in butterflies and hummingbirds. It's been difficult to get a good picture. They are like Speedy Gonzales! I will keep trying.

Here are a few shots that I have been able to catch.

Pura Vida!

My First Full Week

What an exciting week this has been for me. My first full week in my new home in Costa Rica!

I opened my bank account, got my CR phone and phone number, grocery shopped, started cooking homemade meals for the first time in 15 years. Truth be known, if you can call scrambled eggs, bacon, fruit and toast and a homemade chicken and vege soup cooking then I cooked! I have so much to relearn in that category! I went to San Jose with my friend, Cathy Klein, and to two parties where I was able to meet other Americans who have made Costa Rica their home.

I have so much I want to do, but with no car it is more difficult. For a few minutes I was feeling sorry for myself this morning thinking how isolated I felt. Then in a second I told myself to hush up and take control of my life! I will figure this part out next week. (Scarlet and I have that in common. We will not worry about that today. We'll worry about that tomorrow!) It is a little more difficult than I first anticipated though. I was ready to walk to the end of the street and catch the bus when my neighbor told me it was not a great idea because there were some really mean dogs down that way. He told me if I took a large stick I'd probably be okay. HUM....5'2 (and 3/4's") 115 lbs. LOL...When you are this short 3/4" you take! I'm not liking those odds though! I do consider myself resourceful, but not stupid! It's time to make good relations with a taxi driver! I would love to get a car. Not a nice lovely car. Just one to get me from point A to point B. I don't feel I am in the financial position at this moment. It did cost a lot to move here with all my belongings. A somewhat reliable car can be bought here for $3,000 to $5,000. However, at that price it would be a bit of a "culture shock" car, but I am totally up for it!

There is so much beautiful nature around me. I wish I could catch it all on film. I'm a pretty good photographer, but nature shooting is tough! Everything moves so fast. I have dozens and dozens of butterflies and hummingbirds that cover a bush with purple flowers right outside my living room window. I still have yet to get a picture that captures it. I saw my first Toucan yesterday. Too fast to get my camera. Today I saw a flock of parrots flying over my house. Again, no camera in hand. This is the most naturally beautiful place I have ever seen on a daily basis. If any of you photographers have suggestions please do!

Did I mention the sounds of all the birds? Nature's pure band! I do want to learn what all these birds are called. I have not recognized any except for the Toucan and the Parrots.

Pura Vida!

Next

All of my Apostilles are in! Now all I have to do is get my birth certificate, Social Security papers and background check all with their apostilles to my attorney in Costa Rica, Roberto Umana, so we can walk them through immigration.

NEXT...I am now working with my shipper, Ship To Costa Rica S.A., Charles Zeller. It is not inexpensive to ship. It is also going to be hard work. Every box has to be numbered and marked with what is in it. Not each item, but for example "kitchen utensils." Every piece has to be named Ex. dining table, dining chair, dining chair, dining chair, dining chair. This is for customs. The shipping company will deliver a 20 foot container and leave it at my house for 4 hours for me to load. It is then trucked to Galveston and loaded onto a ship headed for Costa Rica. Once it gets to CR, customs unloads the entire container and checks the loading list with each item, box etc. that is taken off. Customs will access the amount of tax they are going to charge. This tax has to be paid before the container goes any further. Once the taxes are paid the container is reloaded and delivered to me at my new home. Thank goodness the shipper does unload the container and brings everything into the house. At this point it will be 4-5 weeks since my belongings left my home in Greenville and arrived in Puriscal.

If you decide you want to move to another country it is not really hard as long as you are organized and pay close attention to detail. You need to make a list and take one bite daily. Otherwise, you are sunk!

Pura Vida

Getting Your Paperwork Together For Your Move To Costa Rica

It has been a very busy couple of weeks for me. There is a lot of paper work that must be order, put together then sent off to the proper place to be authenticated.

I posted the different classifications that a person can move to Costa Rica under. I am moving there under Pensioner Resident. "The Pensioner Resident is required to show a verifiable minimum monthly pension of $1,000 US. The pension must be guaranteed for life. Only Social Security pensions, or similar, are permitted. No other kind of income will satisfy this requirement as it has to be a life time beneficiary to secure not less than $1,000, and petitioner should have to demonstrate that the issuance company has the ability to secure this monthly income for life. You can do this by certified copies of the financial status of the company. Expires every 2 years."

After meeting with my attorney in CR, Roberto Umana, I was told I must present my birth certificate with my mother's maiden name with the States Seal, my paper work from the Social Security Administration, and a background check from the State. All of these must be accompanied with a cover letter of authentication called an "Apostille." After pricing different companies I found on Google to get the Apostille I found that I can send it directly to the Texas Secretary of State office. The companies offering to do this cost anywhere from $55. an Apostille to over $125 per Apostille. The Secretary of States charges $15.00 per. What a difference! Just another example of DO YOU HOMEWORK! I had no one to instruct me where to look or the best way to do this. I just kept looking until I found the answer.

Another hint! For the background check...don't bother going to your local police department. I did that first and found they cannot do it. I went to a company called, Identogo, that the police dept. recommended, and for $25.63 they took my finger prints, took my picture and sent off to Crime Records Dept. at the Texas Department of Public Safety. They ran the background check and mailed me the official paperwork with the results.

I have sent all my paperwork to the Texas Secretary of State's office with a self-addressed pre-paid envelope, and am waiting on them to come back with their Apostilles attached.

Pura Vida!