The short answer
Budget roughly 3.5% to 5% of the purchase price. That covers the 1.5% transfer tax, the National Registry's stamps and the notary's fee, which follows an official schedule. A survey, escrow and your own attorney's due diligence come on top of that.
- Transfer tax
- 1.5%
- Of the sale price or the registered fiscal value, whichever is higher
- Registry and stamps
- 0.5–0.8%
- Documentary stamps and recording fees
- Notary fee
- 1–2%
- Sliding official scale, plus VAT on the fee
- Typical total
- 3.5–5%
- Transfer, stamps and notary together
What each cost is
The transfer tax (impuesto de traspaso) is 1.5%, charged on whichever is higher: the price in the deed or the value the property already has on record. Declaring a low price does not lower it below that recorded value.
The National Registry charges documentary stamps and recording fees to register the deed in your name. Published estimates put these between 0.5% and 0.8% of the price.
The notary who prepares and records the deed is paid on a scale set by decree. It starts at 2% on the first few million colones and steps down as the price rises, so on most lots it works out between 1% and 2%, plus value added tax on the fee.
Who pays
There is no fixed rule. Buyer and seller commonly split the closing costs or negotiate them, and some sellers price a lot expecting the buyer to cover everything. Say who pays what in the written offer, before the deposit goes into escrow.
Costs that are not on the closing statement
These are separate from the transfer, stamps and notary, and they are why some guides quote 6% to 8% instead of 3.5% to 5%:
- Your own attorney's title study and due diligence
- The escrow agent's fee
- A surveyor, if the recorded survey needs to be updated or the boundaries re-marked
- Setting up a Costa Rican company, if you choose to hold the land that way
- Bank wire and currency costs
An example on a $30,000 lot
The transfer tax is $450. Stamps and recording run about $150 to $240. The notary's fee lands around $300 to $600 plus VAT. Together that is roughly $1,050 to $1,500, before your attorney, escrow and any survey work.
Treat it as an illustration. The notary schedule and registry fees change, so ask for a written closing estimate on the specific lot before you commit.
Questions buyers ask
No. A foreign buyer of titled land pays the same transfer tax, stamps and notary fee as a Costa Rican buyer.