This could be good news for Costa Rican Skype users. Mega online retailer, EBay Inc. is trading control of the online telecommunications service Skype for about $2 billion, reversing a 2005 acquisition that many analysts considered a head scratcher from the beginning. The company famous for its online marketplace said Tuesday it is selling a 65 percent stake in the business to a group of … [Read more...]
Costa Rica’s Government Gets Sue by Villalobo Brothers Investors
08/24/2009 by Leave a Comment
One of the things the Free-Trade Agreement opened up was lawsuits. Somehow, you knew the attorneys also had to take advantage of this Free Trade thing. Canadian investors have sued the government of Costa Rica. If you are new to Costa Rica, starting back in the mid 1990s just about every Costa Rican knew of the Villalobo Brother's high-interest borrowing operation or just a good old fashion, … [Read more...]
A New Internet and Phone Service Providers?
08/22/2009 by 1 Comment
Back in June, 2009 the government did something somewhat unbecoming, they gave approval, or should I say, offered the rights to six companies to provide Internet and voice-over-Internet telephone services. Until then, the Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) a government run monopoly controlled just about every form of communications in Costa Rica, among other things like electricity. … [Read more...]
Costa Rica Real Estate Fraud
08/14/2009 by 290 Comments
Yesterday I had a meeting with an account who was involved in a huge development project on the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica. Anyway, to make a long story short, he asked me if I knew the guy who he had meant in Costa Rica. I shook my head, and my account proceeds to go to this guy’s website. The website was professionally done, looked legit etc etc. Then my account took me to a … [Read more...]
Shipping, Importing a Car, Truck or SUV to Costa Rica
08/09/2009 by 24 Comments
Importing a car, SUV or truck is very expensive, one of the biggest drawbacks and mistakes many make. The government has this "Black Book" of value (which changes all the time) to value a vehicle's import fees. But to get a general idea, expect to pay between 40-70% ON TOP of what your vehicle is worth (and here is the catch), depending on year/make/model at its new car value. And who is to say, … [Read more...]
Twitter and Costa Rica – News, Events and Info
08/07/2009 by 1 Comment
When Twitter crashed and Facebook had problems yesterday, the Blogs exploded with it. When Twitter finally came back online, the Tweets peppered the Social Media website of crying, bitching and blab blab blab. So how does this effect Costa Rica? It is pretty simple actually; the Tweets go to the profiles of the Twitter, who nonchalantly ask people to follow them. Their links they usually … [Read more...]
Is Skype Shutting Down In Costa Rica?
08/04/2009 by 3 Comments
When Skype voice over-the-internet system was offered in Costa Rica, it was a welcome alternative to ICE's monopoly on phone services. For a flat rate, Costa Ricans could call just about anywhere for a fraction of the cost … now that may change due to a legal spat over a licensing agreement. Online retailer eBay bought Skype in 2005 for about US$2.6 billion. HOWEVER, that deal didn't include … [Read more...]
Sending a Letter or Package to Costa Rica
08/02/2009 by 14 Comments
With email and attachments nowadays sending a message to Costa Rica is just the push of a few keys. However, the other day I had to send four tutorial DVDs to a account in Santa Ana. I guess you can say I was a little skeptical. The last time (many years ago) I sent a package it arrived in about 60 days and cost an arm and a leg, not including the hassle of dealing with a lost item that I still … [Read more...]
Costa Rica Biofuels – ICE vs RECOPE
07/27/2009 by 1 Comment
Last month an interesting ecology deal was proposed. New Generation Biofuels Holdings, Inc., signed a letter of intent with the Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE or Costa Rica dominant monopoly on utilities, like electrical, internet, and phone service) to start testing biofuels for power generation in the Central American country. It seems logical, Costa Rica known for being a … [Read more...]
Buying Property In Costa Rica – Taxes, Capital Gains, Corporation
07/25/2009 by 5 Comments
The cool thing about Costa Rica, a foreigner can buy real estate and pass that title down, unlike Mexico where foreigner can only lease, and cannot buy, which as caused numerous disputes when titles suddenly change and/or were fraudulently made. The best way to buy real estate is set up a anonymous corporation instead of putting the property in an individual name. You will need a good … [Read more...]
Costa Rica Squatters – Legal Procedures
07/19/2009 by 3 Comments
We got a couple of emails this week on US residents who own property in Costa Rica and suddenly were informed that their property was claimed by squatters rights. Well, we do not give out legal advice, nor do we get involved in stuff like this - all we could do is refer them to several Costa Rica attorneys who might help them. However, we did some online searching from several government … [Read more...]
Costa Rica Residency – Paperwork, Process, Cost
07/13/2009 by 4 Comments
"Costa Rica's Residency Laws change all the time, so it is best to hire a residency and immigration attorney or you can file the paperwork on your own (which is a real hassle and time consuming) meaning you can fill out the forms and gather the necessary documents yourself, and, as some do, hire and/or pay a tramitador to stand in line for you. You will be doing a lot of that! The whole … [Read more...]
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