Consensus on Caja Enrollment for Residency Applicants
The good news is that according to La Nacion there is consensus on when those seeking legal residency should handle their enrollment in the Caja, which is the common term for the Costa Rican Social Security System.
Unlike the United States the Caja provides both pension benefits and Universal Heath Care. The system is universal in the sense that Caja owned hospitals do not refuse service or demand payment.
Those enrolled in the Caja also receive a national heath card, treatment at national clinics and if necessary surgical treatments.
The Caja pays the massive cost of the public medical infrastructure, including salaries for doctors and nurses. Funds are raised through a national payroll tax, which also supports pensions through a system similar to Social Security in the United States.
The issue is that a New Immigration Law requires foreign residents to enroll in the Caja, and there remains confusion with respect to implementation. When the law was first passed some Caja applicants were turned away because they lacked a cedula or identification card, which is issued only once legal residency is granted. Many were confused because they understood that Caja enrollment was a requirement prior to making their application.
La Nacion in a recent News Report cited statements from, Vice Minister of Government Mario Zamora, and Ileana Balmaceda who is the Executive President of the Caja. The consensus is that residency applicants must enroll in the caja only after receiving their Resolution from Immigration, and must bring proof of the enrolment back to the immigration offices when making the appointment for their cedula photo.
This consensus has been in effect since the first of May, and Caja officals will turn away applicants that do not have either a Resolution Letter from Immigration or the actual cedula in the case of those who received residency before the new law. Those lacking proof of Caja enrollment would be denied a cedula appointment just as those failing to pay the approximately $300 immigration tax.
Unfortunately there remains a great deal of confusion with the type of enrollment many residency seeks should receive at the Caja. This is because the Caja is different things to different people, and an applicant’s situation is supposed to be sorted out in an interview at the center of the enrollment processes. Indeed the report in La Nacion reiterates this problem.
We will tackle the question of which type of Caja enrollment you should have in an upcoming report, but for now we hope this latest news helps residency seekers.
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Filed Under: Expat Living
Ya gotta love it. They can't write a clear law to save their lives, then administrators botch up whatever was written in the law, and then when that doesn't work they just operate by "consensus".
BTW, the $300 "tax" is referred to as a security deposit. But, a tax it is, because no one has ever received a refund on their "deposit".
The system is similar in the U.S. system. Congress passes laws but sometimes leaves much to be sorted out by the executive branch in Federal regulations. The difference is the U.S. bureaucracy is better funded than in Costa Rica, so we come to expect more.
So why would people swarm to CR knowing there's so much bureaucracy and they're not exactly welcome?
I got my cedula in January and have been trying to get on the caja ever since. My husband had no problem but they don't know what to do with me because I am a spouse. We paid for both of us but then I was not given the medical card at the hospital where we have to go to get it. My husband got his. We were told that I needed a copy of our translated /certified/authenticated marriage license. We brought that and I still couldn't get it. One of these days I will but just like everything else here it has been frustrating.
Pura Vida!
Suzie, it depends on where you live, but the way it worked for us was that we knew before we went that they would need our marriage certificate (I did a lot of research), and we had just gone through the ordeal of getting those cedulas, so I went to the Social Security office with copies of everything (the pension letter that we had submitted to immigration, our marriage certificate, with translation, authentication, and seals and stamps, and so on). The lady didn't even ask for any of it. You mention going to the hospital, but didn't say where you signed up for the Caja. The process up here was first we signed up as voluntary members, essentially signing up for an insurance policy. That was at the local social security office. Then, the lady there gave us a piece of paper that we took to the Clinic, and there is an office there where our Carnets were typed up, and handed to us. You might want to consider joining ARCR in order to save a couple of bucks (depending, of course, on what you are now paying), and in order to get an Orden Patronal, which makes getting the Caja much easier.
John, you DO NOT want an Orden Patronal. That is for people who are earning an income either as independent workers or employees.
They keyword when dealing with the Caja is "Seguro Voluntario" or voluntary insurance. It is the class of caja program for students, unemployed and retirees. It provides just medical coverage and no credits for collecting a future Costa Rican pension.
http://www.ccss.sa.cr/html/linea/tramites_frecuen…
I'm working on an article to describe this in detail this week.
Well, I certainly don't know any way around this without feeling like I'm trying to get something for nothing. I had to prove my income in order to qualify for residency, and the lady at the social security office knows I have an income, and she doesn't care that it is a pension. I was immediately classed as voluntary, and she said I had to pay. I paid until it went up, and then I joined ARCR, because with their Orden Patronal, I at least get a bit lower rate.
Well I have permanent residency but when I went to renew it, I was told that I need the card from caja. So I went to the nearest “ebais” (not sure of the spelling !) which is the local clinic, up in the mountains in Escazu and they managed (over phone with the caja) to locate my registration number (I was employed in Costa Rica before) and gave me a temporary card. I must mention that the lady at the reception was extremely cooperative and spoke decent English. With the card, I went to the caja main office in downtown San Jose. There I had to first take an appointment and then answer about 100 questions on my expenses, travel and what not. Finally they concluded my income to be CRC 500,000 per month as a result of which I now need to pay CRC 62,500 every month to caja. Although I went for “seguro Voluntario”, I was asked to pay both for medical and for pension based on my “notional” income. Once I made the payment, I could get (fairly easily) an appointment with immigration for the photo / cedula. I am not sure if I would like to maintain my residency though, as I hardly live in Costa Rica anymore but will come to it when the current one expires.
I look forward to comments / article from expatcostarica as to how I can avoid paying for pension, if at all possible.