COVID Test requirement for people under 12

Is it required for my child to have a COVID test to enter Costa Rica? Recently, there has been this question circulating around, and the answer is not simple.

As you know, in the land of Pura Vida, the left hand does not talk to the right hand. It is not strange for regulations and policies not to be consistent. With the intention to support the economy, the CR government decided to open the borders during the COVID pandemic to allow foreign tourists to visit the country. This has been done with mixed results. The measures the government has taken has not been very successful with keeping the spread under control.

Notwithstanding the COVID numbers, foreign tourists are still arriving to the country and many of them do so with children under the age of 12 and they wonder: “Is my child required to get a COVID test to enter the country?” The answer is: who knows?

Various CR Government agencies have issued various regulations and guidelines related to the arrival of foreign nationals either as tourists or residents.

• On July 28th , the Foreign Relations Department issued a Memo (not a decree) to all the CR Consulates around the world with Questions and Answers about entering the country during the pandemic. Please note that this memo was issued prior to the publication by the Department of Health or the Immigration Department of the official guidelines to enter the country. We published the English version of the Questions and Answers which you can read here. In addition, you can read the original version in Spanish of the memorandum by clicking here and an official translation in English here. 
• On August 2nd we published a story stating that the travel restrictions were going to be lifted. You can read the story here.  This was made official by the Department of Governance and Police (the Immigration Department or DGME is a dependency of the Department of Governance and Police) and the Department of Health who jointly issued a decree stating that foreign nationals can arrive as tourists. You can read the decree by clicking here.  The decree sets forth some requirements for people to enter the country which includes getting a negative COVID test. The decree does not make a distinction between children and adults for getting the test, which means that according to the decree everyone must get a test.

We have received reports from clients and friends stating two different stories. Some people have been required to produce a test for their children and some people were allowed into the country without any additional paperwork for children under 12.

Jennifer Turnbull a former attorney and mother of two children, now entrepreneur and co-founder of travel company Two Weeks in Costa Rica,  mentioned that a lot of tourists have this question as many of them travel with children. Our advice is to err in the side of caution and get the COVID test for children.

Legally, this is what we can say:

• Both agencies, the Immigration Department and the Foreign Relations Department can issue guidelines, memos, decrees and regulations.
• Decrees have a higher authority than memos.
• It is clear that the Immigration Department did not coordinate appropriately with the Foreign Relations Department in relation to the guidelines and requirements to enter the country.
• The Foreign Relations Department issued their memo prior to the publication of the decree issued by the Immigration Department (Department of Governance and Police).
• The memo stated that children under 12 are not required to obtain a COVID test.
• The decree does not exempt children under 12 from providing the COVID test.
• Considering that there is a discrepancy between the memo from Foreign Relations and the decree by Immigration, an immigration officer at the airport will have the authority to request the test according to immigration regulations and therefore deny entry to children under 12 (or anybody else for that matter) who do not have the test, as these regulations supersede the memo.

If you have experience in Costa Rica, at this point you know that when there is ambiguity the government wins. Thus, our best advice is to get the test and avoid hassle.

If you have further questions about this or other matters, please feel free to send us your question by completing the contact form.