Costa Rica Foreign Investment Statistics

Costa Rica is a great country to invest in different areas from subcontracting call center agents to having small businesses running. The options are unlimited and you can explore the possibilities to check which one is better for you. 

The statistics do not only include new foreign investments but also a fusion between local and outlandish enterprises, purchase of local businesses made by foreigners and investment for the workforce. 

Here’s a graphic showing the percentage of GDP in Costa Rica related to foreing investment from 1970 to 2020. 

During Covid-19 pandemic, the investments dropped but in the middle of 2021 it was reported that Costa Rica is still very attractive for foreign investments and it is the country that’s receiving more foreign investment in comparison to its total economic size. 

Costa Rica is one of the smallest countries in Latin America. Even during the pandemic, 96 international commerces invested to based operations here. The strongest area is assembly lines for medical devices, software, IT services and call centers. Also, Intel committed to keep investing in the making of microchips in the country.

This country offers a great workforce, trained in languages and skills. Besides, there are special government treatments in Free Zones like tax exemptions, low-cost rent, new markets, new production methods, high environmental standards, lower rates in services like water, electricity and internet. In exchange, Free Zones provide ticos with fair salaries, good benefits, growth opportunities, and fairness in hiring processes with no discriminations. Some companies get involved with communities and do projects like painting schools, picking trash from public parks, collecting and giving away groceries or Christmas gifts for poor children, among other projects beneficial for the country.

Right now, it is estimated that Free Zones in Costa Rica provide jobs for 200.000 people which translates to around 11.4% of the total of the country’s formal employment. There are around 350 companies based in Free Zones.

Currently, there’s been an increase of interest to work in cybersecurity in the country and provide those softwares to international clients as well as global services clusters.

Tourism in Costa Rica suffered a lot during the pandemic but, since May 2022, with the government change, all the protocols related to covid-19 were lifted, so economic and touristic activities have been going good for the country. 

With 4% of the world’s flora and fauna, Costa Rica offers a lot of options for different types of vacations and since it’s a small country, you can be hiking and going to the beach on the same day without any problem. Rates for food and lodging go from very cheap to very expensive, depending on the location and kind of luxury you’re looking for. 

Costa Rica has a very stable politics and it is committed to environmental subjects, it also invests a lot of money in quality health, education and road infrastructure. All together, this is a country in constant development and that can be very appealing for foreign investments.