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Nicaraguan Exodus From Costa Rica Begins This Weekend

Next week is Christmas and and estimated 70.000 Nicaraguans living and working in Costa Rica are expected to make the trip to the homeland for the holidays.

Nicaraguan ambassador to Costa Rica, Harold Rivas, says that is the number his officials are estimating will cross the land border crossing at Peñas Blancas beginning this weekend.

The estimate is based on the number of people lined at the Nicaraguan embassy in San Jose requesting a temporary passport and registering children born in Costa Rica so that they obtain documents to travel from Costa Rica.

Rivas added that in line with the thousands of Nicaraguans are also Costa Ricans and other nationals who are looking to travel with the Nicaraguan spouse or significant other to celebrate the Christmas and New Year’s holiday north.

“We are attending some 1.200 persons daily for visas and passports”, said Rivas.

All Nicaraguans travelling to their homeland must obtain a travel document, according to Rivas, who confirmed that the embassy has been processing requests since November.

Nicaragua has several consulates in Costa Rica. In addition to the embassy and consulate in San José, Nicaraguan nationals can go to consulates located in Liberia, in the province of Guanacaste and Ciudad Quesada (San Carlos) and Los Chiles in the province of Alajuela.

Rivas rejected that more Nicaraguans enter Costa Rica in January that those left in December. The Nicaraguan ambassador rejects the idea that Nicaraguans leave their country following the holidays to look for a better economic situation in Costa Rica.

However, the reality is different, as Costa Rican immigration officials see the large number of Nicaraguans enter Costa Rica in January, usually more than those leaving in December, many coming with relatives and friends who have been living and working in Costa Rica, seeking employment opportunities in domestic work for the women and construction for the men.

The exodus begins this Friday and Saturday, as bus operators with direct travel to Nicaragua being sold out beginning this weekend and well into the first week in January.