Onward ticket for Costa Rica: written into the law

What Costa Rica and your airline may ask for

• A ticket back to your country of origin, or an onward ticket out of Costa Rica.
• At least US$100 for each month, or part of a month, you will stay.
• A passport valid for at least 180 days.
• A Costa Rican consular visa, or a multiple-entry US or Canadian visa or residence valid at least 90 days from your arrival.
• If you arrive one-way, hold a return more than 90 days after arrival, or plan to fly out of another country: a ticket for return or onward travel.

What the directive and the tourism board say

The Dirección General de Migración y Extranjería’s visa directive, in force since 28 March 2023, sets out the entry requirements for foreigners by reference to article 42 of Law 8764 and article 30 of the migration control regulation. Two of them concern this page: proof of economic solvency of at least US$100 per month or part of a month of legal stay, and a ticket back to the country of origin or for continuing the journey.

Costa Rica’s tourism board puts the same rule in plain English: “In order to enter Costa Rica, you will need a ticket for a return flight, which the immigration official will ask to see when you arrive.” It names three situations that call for a return or onward ticket: arriving one-way, holding a return more than 90 days after arrival, and flying into Costa Rica but out of a different country.

Visa or exemption for Indian passport holders

India sits in the directive’s third group, entry with a consular visa: single entry, used within 60 days of being stamped, a passport valid for 180 days, and a stay of up to 30 days that can be extended. Whether a Costa Rican consulate in India issues these visas could not be confirmed. The same directive exempts nationals of visa-required countries who hold a multiple-entry visa or residence of the United States or Canada, in any category, valid for at least 90 days counted from the day they intend to enter. US C1, C2 and C3 transit visas are not accepted.

Residence permits from the UK, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and EU countries also qualify, but Schengen visas are not on the list, even though older guides say they are. Exempt visitors receive the stay allowed to their group. Costa Rica’s tourism site now shows longer stays for some groups than this directive does, which suggests a newer text exists, so check migracion.go.cr for India’s current position before you fly.

Getting there: transit visas on the way

No direct service between India and San José (SJO) or Liberia (LIR) is known, so you connect, and each connection has its own rules. A US hub needs a US visa, which, if it is multiple-entry with 90 days left, is also your Costa Rica exemption. Mexico requires a visa even to transit unless you hold an exempting visa. Colombia lists India among the nationalities that need an airport transit visa. European hubs such as Madrid, Frankfurt and Amsterdam have transit rules of their own.

Costa Rica itself requires Indians to hold an airport transit visa when changing planes there, and one of its requirements is a reservation of the onward flight that proves your final destination. If San José is only a stop on the way to Panama or South America, that is the rule to read, not the visitor rule.

Timing the onward reservation

Order the onward reservation for the day you leave India, and check the names and route as soon as it arrives. The airline sets how long an unpaid hold lasts and can release it whenever it chooses, so after a journey of a day or more through Europe or the US it may be gone before you reach immigration in San José. If you want a document that certainly exists at that desk, a paid, refundable ticket is the stronger choice. Carry the funds evidence too: a ten-day trip counts as part of a month, so US$100 is the floor.

Flying from India to Costa Rica

Your reservation should follow a route you could realistically fly. These are common options; schedules change, so the desk confirms what is bookable for your dates.

Mistakes to avoid with a Costa Rica trip

• Relying on a Schengen visa; the 2023 directive lists US and Canadian visas, not Schengen ones.
• A US visa with fewer than 90 days left on the day you land in San José.
• Using a single-entry US visa or a C1, C2 or C3 transit visa, which the directive does not accept.
• Planning to fly home from a neighbouring country without showing how you will leave Costa Rica.
• Routing through Mexico City or Bogotá without the transit visa those countries ask of Indians.
• Showing too little money; the law sets US$100 for each month or part of a month.

Dummy ticket and hotel bookings, matched to your itinerary

We do not send one loose document. The desk matches the flight reservation and every hotel booking to your itinerary: the same dates, the same cities, and no night left uncovered. These are the real documents of one order for a Switzerland visa file, issued on 5 November 2026: one flight reservation and four hotel bookings that cover all 9 nights between the two flights. Personal details are blacked out; everything else is as issued.

• Flight reservationEtihad, Hyderabad (HYD) to Zurich (ZRH), status Confirmed
• Hotel booking, ZurichMEININGER Hotel Zürich Greencity, 3 nights
• Hotel booking, GenevaB&B HOTEL Geneva Airport, 3 nights
• Hotel booking, LucerneSeminarhotel Romerohaus, 2 nights
• Hotel booking, Zurich AirportLeonardo Hotel Zurich Airport, 1 night

Open the full documents and the day-by-day table: flight and hotels matched date by date

How to get your Costa Rica onward ticket

Costa Rica questions, answered