Quick answer: Law 6043 governs the 200 metres inland from the high-tide line along the entire Costa Rican coast. The first 50 metres is public and cannot be owned by anyone. The next 150 metres is the restricted zone, available not by ownership but by concession — a lease from the municipality. Foreigners are limited to a maximum 49% of a concession, and a foreigner must have been a legal resident for at least five years to hold one.
This single body of law explains most of the confusion and a fair share of the disappointment in the Costa Rican beachfront market.
The two zones
The public zone: first 50 metres. Measured horizontally from the average high-tide line. It cannot be owned, built on or fenced by anyone. It is public, permanently. Any structure you see within it is either an exception under separate rules or a problem waiting to be enforced.
The restricted zone: the next 150 metres. Not privately owned outright, but available for occupation and use by concession granted by the local municipality. Concessions are typically granted for terms between 5 and 20 years and are renewable, and are recorded in a dedicated Concession Registry within the National Registry. The municipality charges an annual fee for the term.
The foreign ownership limits
Two constraints operate together and neither is negotiable at the counter. A foreigner may hold a maximum of 49% of a concession. And to hold a concession at all, a foreigner must have been a legal resident of Costa Rica for at least five years. For corporate holders, at least 50% of the company capital must be owned by Costa Rican nationals.
Structures are sometimes used to work around the corporate threshold. We would flag rather than recommend this: arrangements designed to defeat a statutory nationality requirement carry real risk, and the party bearing that risk is the buyer. Any such structure should be examined by independent counsel who is willing to tell you plainly what could go wrong.
Titled beachfront does exist
An important qualification. There are titled properties near the coast — land that was validly titled before the maritime zone regime applied, or that sits outside the 200-metre band. These are owned outright, on the same terms available to any foreigner, with no concession, no municipality and no nationality limits.
The distinction between titled coastal property and concession land is the single most important thing to establish about any beachfront listing, and it is established by a registry search, not by asking the seller.
A single large coastal property can also contain all three statuses at once, which is exactly why parcel-level diligence matters. A 126-hectare oceanfront estate at Playa Bejuco, Nandayure, for instance, runs from a public strip at the tide line, through a concession band behind it, to titled land further inland — so "what you own" is a different answer in different parts of the same deed. On any property like this, the only way to know which metre falls into which category is to map the surveyed boundaries against the registry and the concession records before you commit.
What diligence on coastal property must cover
- Is it titled or concession? Confirmed in the National Registry and the Concession Registry, by your own attorney.
- Where exactly does the 200 metres fall? Against the surveyed plano and the official high-tide line, not an approximation.
- What is the concession term and remaining duration? A concession with three years to run is a very different asset from one with eighteen.
- Is there an approved municipal zoning plan? Concession grants and renewals depend on it.
- Are fees current, and is the structure compliant? Arrears and nationality-threshold defects both surface at transfer.
How to tell what you are actually being offered
Listings do not always make the distinction clear, and some agents genuinely do not know it. Four checks settle it.
Ask for the folio real number. Titled property has one, recorded in the National Registry. If the seller cannot produce it, you are almost certainly looking at concession land or something worse.
Ask for the concession number and registry entry. Concessions are recorded in a dedicated Concession Registry. A concession that is not properly registered is not an asset you want.
Measure from the high-tide line against the plano. The 200 metres is measured horizontally from the average high-tide line, and the surveyed plano should show where the boundary falls. Eyeballing it from the beach is not diligence.
Ask when the property was titled. Land validly titled before the maritime regime applied is owned outright. That history is verifiable and it is the difference between an asset and a lease.
What a concession is worth, and to whom
Concessions are genuinely different assets from titled property and should be priced accordingly. Three factors drive value.
Remaining term. Concessions run typically 5 to 20 years. One with three years remaining and a renewal application pending is a materially riskier proposition than one with eighteen years to run.
Municipal zoning plan status. Concession grants and renewals depend on an approved regulatory plan for the coastal sector. Where no plan is approved, or where one is being revised, concessions become harder to grant and renew.
Financing and liquidity. Lending against concession rights is more limited than against titled property, which narrows the buyer pool on resale. Assume a longer sale process and a smaller market.
None of this makes concessions bad. It makes them a different instrument, and buyers who pay titled-property prices for concession rights have simply overpaid.
On structures used to circumvent the nationality rules
We want to be direct here because it is common and rarely discussed honestly. The rules cap foreign holding at 49% of a concession and require at least 50% Costa Rican ownership of a corporate holder. Arrangements exist that place nominal Costa Rican ownership over effective foreign control.
Our position is that this is a risk the buyer bears, not the promoter. Structures designed to defeat a statutory nationality requirement can be challenged, and the consequences fall on the person holding the asset. If you are shown such a structure, take it to an independent attorney — not the one who proposed it — and ask specifically what happens if it is challenged, and what your position would be. A lawyer unwilling to put that answer in writing has told you something.
Frequently asked
Can I build on a concession?
Construction within the restricted zone is subject to the concession terms, municipal zoning and permitting. It is not equivalent to building on titled land, and permitted uses can be narrower than buyers expect.
Is a concession mortgageable?
Financing against concession rights is more limited than against titled property, which affects both purchase and eventual resale. Factor it into liquidity expectations.
What happens at the end of the term?
Concessions are renewable, but renewal runs through the municipality and is subject to compliance and prevailing rules rather than being automatic.
Does the five-year residency requirement apply to my spouse?
The requirement attaches to the foreign concession holder. How it applies to couples with mixed nationality or differing residency histories is fact-specific — confirm with counsel rather than assuming a favourable reading.
Can I inherit a concession?
Transfers of concession rights, including on death, run through the municipality and are subject to the eligibility rules — including the nationality caps and residency requirement. Succession planning for concession assets needs specific advice.
What happens if the municipality does not renew?
Renewal is not automatic and depends on compliance and prevailing rules. Improvements you have made do not create an entitlement to continue. Understand the renewal history of the specific sector before buying.
Does the 50-metre public zone get enforced?
Enforcement has varied over time and by municipality, but the legal position is unambiguous — it is public land. Structures within it exist at risk, and buying one means buying that risk.
Talk it through with someone who has done it
MOFU decisions like these turn on details that vary by property, by family and by the month you file. Our team at Golden Visa Costa Rica works alongside Costa Rican counsel every week on exactly these questions, and we will tell you plainly where your situation is straightforward and where it is not. Book a private consultation to get specifics for your circumstances.
This article is general information, not legal, immigration, tax or investment advice. Costa Rican rules change and are applied to individual facts; figures cited were accurate at the time of writing and should be confirmed. Engage a qualified Costa Rican attorney and your own tax adviser before acting.