Costa Rica Casino License
A data processing license is needed; the requirements for which include having a physical office located within Costa Rica. There are authorized consultants in the region which offer assistance in obtaining such a license. Due to a large number of gambling sites basing themselves in Costa Rica, an internet gaming license was introduced. Costa Rica licenses only cover brick and mortar casinos. It means that if a player suspects foul play, they can press charges and receive reimbursement from the site if proven right. Sadly, when it comes to online betting, no particular rules concerning the service are in place. The biggest casino in Costa Rica is the Irazu Hotel Best Western & Casino Concorde, located in La Uruca. They offer gamers 8 game tables and 166 slot machines and video poker machines, as well as other video terminal gaming machines from which to choose. While Costa Rica is only 51,100 sq kms, offers great nightlife, including many casinos that.
Costa Rica is a rugged, rainforested Central American country with coastlines on the Caribbean and Pacific. Though its capital, San Jose, is home to cultural institutions like the Pre-Columbian Gold Museum, Costa Rica is known for its beaches, volcanoes and immense biodiversity. Roughly a quarter of its area is made up of protected jungle, rich with wildlife including spider monkeys and quetzal birds.
Taxes
- Corporate Tax: TBA
- Gambling Tax: TBA
Who manages E-Gambling in Costa Rica?
Online Gambling Companies are self-regulated. Because there is no official organization to recognize license holders, there is no betting or gaming tax.
Overview
Due to the lack of legislation and oversight for online gambling, companies based in or registered through Costa Rica are not subject to monitoring or other regulations that many offshore companies are. This also means that since there isn’t a body to govern gambling, companies are self-regulated and aren’t required to pay betting or gaming tax.
Costa Rica is a popular place to establish online gaming business. Although there is no specific gambling license for gaming activities, corporation may execute online gambling or online casino activities under a “data processing license”. To obtain this license the corporation must have a physical location in Costa Rica.
The license indicates only that the company is able to process data. This is so because there is no specific gambling license in Costa Rica, so all corporations that conduct gambling activities use this “data processing license” or most recently some of them operate using a “marketing license”.
In order to obtain a license in Costa Rica the company must have an office in Costa Rica.
There are two gambling license options:
1. Permanent: This option is used when you need to keep the license permanently up to date. In this case the leasing of the office should be paid annually to keep the office space.
2. Temporary: The same license as in the permanent case, but once the license is issued the client does not rent the office space anymore thus saving the expenses. The office is leased for six months only in order to obtain the license.
Minimum Share Capital for an iGaming Company:
A minimum of 25% of the issued capital must be paid up on incorporation
Licence Fee:
Licenses are only required for land-based operations; i.e. if the corporation has an office within the country.
In order to acquire a license, power of attorney authorizing Costa Rican staff to do the processing is needed. The price of a permanent license is $5,000 USD in legal fees, $500 for administrative and legal costs, $3,600 for yearly lease, and $5,000 for renewal at the end of the year. Temporary licenses are also available, costing similar amounts. Administrative and legal costs are $500, legal fees $5,000, yearly lease $1,200, and a $2,000 renewal fee at the end of the year.
Licence Length:
One year
Reporting Requirements to Regulators:
Costa Rica does not employ a body which oversees the online gambling operations in business there. As a result, there is no regulatory authority, neither is there any third party for players to turn to, should they encounter a problem with one of the casinos based there
Anti-Money Laundering Policy:
All operators must comply with AML legislation in force
Contact Details:
Costa Rica Commerce
Industry and Economy Ministry
Edificio del IFAM
San Jose
Costa Rica 10216-1000
Telephone: +506 235 2700
Website: www.meic.go.cr
Email: uie AT meic.go.cr
Online casinos licensed in Costa Rica
10xaction.com
123 Vegas Win
123Bingo Online
1S Poker
1Spin.com
21 Dukes
3PigsCasino
5Dimes Casino and Sportsbook
724Sports.com
777 Kazino
7Reels Casino
7Spins
95fun.com
ABC Islands Casino and Sportsbook
Ace Live Casino
For more information:
Get in touch:
FURTHER INFORMATION ON CURACAO GAMBLING LICENSES
We wrote an article on Curacao Gambling License which may be of interest to you should you be looking for alternative casino licensing information.
Download Free Gaming Law Guide
With more direct experience in legal online gaming companies than any other firm in Costa Rica and Central America, GLC Costa Rica Gaming Law Attorneys is a regional Gaming Law authority based in Costa Rica. Directed by Online Gaming Law expert attorney at law Augusto Arce, our firm has more than 14 years of experience in offshore gaming legal structures and companies operated from Costa Rica.
The creation of Costa Rica gambling corporations through a gambling license is one big part of our expertise regarding Costa Rica gambling law. Knowing the Costa Rica gambling industry and the requirements for a company to get established in the Costa Rica online gambling environment is our specialty. Most of the gambling sites and gambling companies are located in Costa Rica, and most have looked us as a guide to setup online gambling licensed services.
We know every aspect of the Costa Rica online gambling law and the online gambling legal requirements to get a gambling license. It does not matter if you want to setup one gambling site or several gambling sites, GLC Costa Rica Gaming Law Attorneys provide guidance for a Costa Rica online gambling operation under the Costa Rica gambling law structure.
Gaming companies in Costa Rica
For many years GLC Costa Rica Gaming Law Attorneys have adviced hundreds of entrepreneurs of small, medium and large online gaming companies in all the related aspects required to install a legal gaming operation as an offshore platform in Costa Rica. Because of the special nature of the gambling industry GLC Costa Rica Gaming Law Attorneys analyzes every specific request individually. Clients from around the world are interested in setting up a lucrative Costa Rica online gambling operations, however based in our experience with individuals and companies from around the world we believe in a serious analysis of the best way to provide a legal structure to the gaming enterprise.
GLC Costa Rica Gaming Law Attorneys Managing Partner Mr. Arce is the author of 'The Legality of International Gaming in Costa Rican Law' of 1999 and his opinion on the ever growing industry of online gaming has been featured in all the main newspapers of Costa Rica, specifically La Nacion, The Tico Times, El Financiero and Al Dia, besides that we have provided legal counsel to some of the largest online gaming operations in the country and the world.
Mr. Arce's experience in the Costa Rica online gambling industry and of the online gambling law, led him to create also a reference guide to setup online gambling license in Costa Rica. Costa Rica gaming companies, under the costa rica gaming license structure, more than surely have required of Mr. Arce's services to get an online gambling license.
Gambling in Costa Rica is permitted under the Costa Rica gaming law, so online gambling legality is not at question when planning to establish an internet online gambling operation. Costa Rica gambling law allows companies to have a gambling license and gambling sites under current online gambling laws.
Costa Rica Casinos And Resorts
So if you are planning to setup online gambling in costa rica as a company or individual, let us explain how gambling online from Costa Rica can be done. GLC Costa Rica Gaming Law Attorneys are the gaming law experts in costa rica, as our legal online gambling expertise shows.
The following are the basic services that we can provide to the online gaming entrepreneur:
- Online Gaming Report: A customized legal analysis of the implications of installing an offshore gaming company. You will need to give us at least the following information: Nationality of beneficiaries, Location of Servers, Types of Games offered, Target Market, Size of Operation and other important details.
- Gaming Companies: GLC Costa Rica Gaming Law Attorneys provide Costa Rican Gaming Companies with an authorization in their articles of Incorporation which allows online gaming activities and online entertainment.
- Gambling License: Costa Rica offers the ideal online gambling license for start ups, some of the largest online gaming companies of the world started in Costa Rica. The gambling license offered in Costa Rica is known as a data processing license and is actually an equivalent to a gambling license per se that has a comparatively low cost if compared to other licenses available in Panama, Antigua, Phillipines or the EU.
- Offshore Banking: A very delicate matter requires special attention to detail and will be created based on the special requirements of each specific business group.
GLC Costa Rica Gaming Law Attorneys strongly suggest you to contact our Gaming Legal team before you embark in your gambling operation as it is not recommended to incorporate a gaming company, obtain a gambling license or open bank accounts from firms who merely act as intermediaries or incorporation agents.
Costa Rica Gambling License Steps
Please look at the following basic step by step procedure to obtain a Gambling License aka Data Processing License:
Installing an online casino or gambling operation step by step procedure using an offshore company:
Step 1: Request an Online Legal Gaming Report to fully understand the details and implications involved in operating an online gambling operation.
-Give us a nationality of the beneficiaries
-Location of servers
-Target Market
-Type of Games offered
- Other important aspects
Step 2: Incorporate a Costa Rica Gaming Company or Purchase a Ready-Made Costa Rica Gaming Company
-Give us personal details of legal representatives and beneficiaries of the corporation.
Costa Rica Gambling License
-Proceed with the incorporation
Step 3: Incorporate an Offshore Corporation for Offshore Banking
-Give us personal details of legal representatives and beneficiaries of the corporation.
-Proceed with the incorporation
Step 4: Opening offshore Bank Accounts
Step 5: Apply for Gambling License via the Costa Rica Gaming Company
-Select the ideal location in Costa Rica with our advice.
Jaco Costa Rica Casino
-Obtain necessary permits thru GLC Costa Rica Gaming Law Attorneys
-Obtain Gambling License
Step 6: Get introduced by GLC Costa Rica Gaming Law Attorneys to payment processing companies
Step 7: Go Live!