🇨🇷 Hire in Costa Rica: cost, rules and best EOR options
Bilingual workforce, a US-aligned time zone with no DST and an established nearshore services and tech sector. Employer social charges are on the high side regionally.
- Employer on-costs: 26.83–35.2% of gross salary (on a $60,000 salary, about $76,098–$81,120 total)
- EOR onboarding: Deel claim: a few days; not independently verified; own entity: Deel claim: LATAM entity set-up can take 3-12 months; Costa Rica-specific figure not verified
- Probation: Three months (Labour Code art. 28; general knowledge, not fetched).
- Currency: Costa Rican colon (CRC)
- Data confidence: medium, verified 2026-10-05
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What it costs to employ someone in Costa Rica
Employer on-costs run roughly 26.83–35.2% on top of gross salary. Low = employer CCSS/social charges per PwC (26.83% of monthly pay, itemised below). High adds the mandatory aguinaldo (13th month, 8.33% of annual pay) - derived. Excludes the mandatory INS work-risk insurance premium (rate varies by activity), paid vacation, and severance (cesantia) accrual.
| Contribution | Rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| CCSS - Sickness and maternity (health) | 9.25% | Employer share. |
| CCSS - Disability, old age and death (IVM) | 5.58% | Scheduled to rise gradually to 5.75% by 2029 per PwC. |
| Banco Popular contribution | 0.50% | |
| Family allowances (Asignaciones Familiares / FODESAF) | 5.00% | PwC describes as child support payments. |
| Employee capitalization fund / Labour Protection (Fondo de Capitalizacion Laboral and related) | 3.00% | PwC lists 3% for the employee capitalization fund. |
| INA (National Institute of Learning) | 1.50% | |
| IMAS (health clinic/other institutions per PwC) | 2.00% | PwC labels this line health clinic/other institutions; in practice commonly IMAS. Label to be confirmed. |
Employee contributions total about 10.83% per PwC and are withheld by the employer along with salary income tax (progressive brackets; rates not verified here).
Mandatory benefits
- Aguinaldo (13th month salary), paid in December
- Annual vacation (minimum two weeks per 50 weeks worked)
- INS workers' compensation insurance (employer-paid)
- Paid maternity leave (general knowledge: 4 months)
- Cesantia (severance) on certain dismissals
Employment rules at a glance
| Payroll | Monthly or bi-weekly (common practice); aguinaldo paid by 20 December |
|---|---|
| Probation | Three months (Labour Code art. 28; general knowledge, not fetched). |
| Notice & severance | Notice (preaviso) is typically one week for 3-6 months' service, 15 days for 6-12 months and one month after one year; cesantia severance accrues up to 8 years of service on dismissals without cause. Figures from general knowledge; not verified against the primary text. |
| Working time | Daytime shift 8 hours a day and 48 hours a week; overtime at 150% (general knowledge; not fetched). |
| Paid leave | Minimum two weeks of paid vacation for every 50 weeks of continuous service (general knowledge, Labour Code art. 153). Roughly 11 paid public holidays; confirm the current list. |
| Minimum wage | Private-sector minimums are set by occupational category (MTSS decree 45303-MTSS from 1 January 2026; +1.63% general adjustment). Unskilled generic worker: CRC 373,092.30 monthly per secondary sources; confirm at mtss.go.cr. |
Termination
Dismissal without just cause triggers preaviso and cesantia. Just-cause dismissal requires documented grounds and a process. Special protection applies to pregnant workers and union leaders.
Employee or contractor in Costa Rica?
Contractor use is possible, but Costa Rica applies a primacy-of-reality test and the CCSS audits misclassification, which can lead to back-contributions. Local counsel advised.
Compare contractor vs employee cost →
Hiring through an EOR in Costa Rica
Foreign companies need a Costa Rican entity or an EOR to employ locally. Deel advertises onboarding in a few days in Costa Rica.
Typical onboarding: EOR Deel claim: a few days; not independently verified; own entity Deel claim: LATAM entity set-up can take 3-12 months; Costa Rica-specific figure not verified. UTC-6 all year, equal to US Central standard time and no daylight saving.
Providers worth shortlisting
| Provider | Best for | EOR pricing | Coverage | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deel | Companies that want one platform for contractors, EOR and a US PEO, with transparent per-seat list prices. | $599 per EOR employee per month (public list price, checked 2026-10-05) | 150+ countries (vendor claim, per Deel's own and third-party descriptions) | Visit Deel |
| Remote | Teams that want a published price for each product (EOR, global payroll, contractors, contractor of record, US PEO) and an affiliate program with 12-month revenue share. | $699 per employee/month (public list price, checked 2026-10-05) | 90+ countries for EOR (vendor pricing page claim) | Visit Remote |
| Rippling | Companies already running (or willing to adopt) a unified HR, IT and finance platform who want global hiring as an add-on module. | — | Visit Rippling | |
| Oyster | Distributed teams that want published EOR and contractor prices and a long-running affiliate program with tiered revenue share. | $699 per employee/month (public list price, checked 2026-10-05); annual discounts available; refundable deposit required | 120+ countries EOR; contractors in 180+ countries (vendor claim) | Visit Oyster |
| Papaya Global | Mid-size and larger companies that need multi-country payroll orchestration and workforce payments, and will go through a sales process. | 160+ countries (vendor claim as repeated on FlexOffers listing and third-party pages) | Visit Papaya Global | |
| Multiplier | Cost-conscious teams that want EOR priced below $500 per employee with an annual discount. | Third-party summary of Multiplier's pricing: EOR from $459/employee/month on annual contracts and $499 on monthly contracts (not confirmed; multiplier pricing page returned 403 to our fetch) | — | Visit Multiplier |
| Remofirst | Small teams that want the lowest published EOR starting price and a free contractor tier. | Starting at $199 per person/month (public list price, checked 2026-10-05); 'no hidden fees, setup fees, or minimum contract terms' per vendor page | 185+ countries for EOR (vendor claim) | Visit Remofirst |
| Pebl (formerly Velocity Global) | Companies that want an EOR with a tiered reseller/partner program and are comfortable with a recently rebranded vendor. | Third-party reports a flat $399 per employee/month (not confirmed on vendor page; hellopebl.com/pricing returned 404) | 185+ countries (third-party report) | Visit Pebl (formerly Velocity Global) |
Paying and covering your team in Costa Rica
Related
FAQ
What are the employer social security rates in Costa Rica?
PwC lists employer contributions of 26.83% of monthly pay across CCSS health and pension, Banco Popular, family allowances, capitalization fund, INA and other items.
Is there a 13th month salary?
Yes. The aguinaldo is mandatory and paid by 20 December.
Do I need a local entity?
To hire employees directly, yes. An EOR provides an alternative.
What is the probation period?
Generally three months under the Labour Code, based on general knowledge rather than a fetched source.