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Writer's pictureRuben Vargas

What are the costs of buying and owning a car in Costa Rica?

Updated: Jun 23, 2020

When buying a car, besides the cost of the car itself and the mechanical inspection, the only other cost involved is the title transfer. Once those have been covered, you can drive away your new car.


Owning a car has 2 costs involved per year:


  1. Riteve: yearly technical inspection every car in Costa Rica has to go though. It is due on the month corresponding to the last digit of the license plate. The cost for this is around $35. You get a sticker that goes on the windshield.

  2. Marchamo: taxes paid once per year that allows a vehicle to circulate on the public roads of Costa Rica. It's due since the last week of November up to the last business day of the year. The cost for this is 5% of the car value as per the National register office. Also a sticker is given for this one.


These last two goes with a car when you buy it, meaning you don't have to pay for them at the moment of buying a vehicle.


Note: the license plate dies with the car, it never changes when it is sold.



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