Administrative Procedures
Legalization of Documents
If issued in a country that is not a member of the Apostille Convention, it shall be legalized at the Consulate of Costa Rica for the document to take effect in Costa Rica.
To certify the document by the authentication officer of the country as a pre-requirement. The document shall also identify the country of origin and if it is a private or public document.
Kenya is not part of the Apostille Convention, so the procedure is the legalization of documents. In order to legalize a document in Kenya, it must authenticate at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kenya, and finally, be legalized by the General Consul of Costa Rica in Kenya.
For more information about the process of legalization of documents in Kenya, as well as to schedule an appointment for the legalization of documents, please email: concr-ke@rree.go.cr
Legalization of Diplomas and Certifications of Notes<
If a person has studied abroad and requires documents to be recognized by the Costa Rican academic authorities or by a university, school or other institution in Costa Rica, the diplomas and grades certificates must be legalized by the Consulate of jurisdiction.
The document shall be duly endorsed by the national educational authority and by the competent authority for legalizations, then it can be submitted to the corresponding Costa Rican Consulate. Please contact the Consulate for more information about procedures, requirements, duration and costs at the email: concr-ke@rree.go.cr
Legalization via Third Country
The legalization via third country applies when the country that issues the documents is not part of the Apostille Convention.
Likewise, the legalization of a document via a third country carries out when issued by countries in which Costa Rica does not have diplomatic or consular representation.
The procedure to follow is as follows:
1- The interested party must present a country of their convenience (taking into account distances, costs and facilities to carry out the procedure) as an intermediary nation or "third country", which must contain diplomatic or consular representation in the nation that issues the document. Costa Rica must also have a diplomatic or consular headquarters in that nation chosen as an intermediary or "third country".
2- Once chosen the "third country", the document that requires legalization must be presented at the Ministry or Secretary of Foreign Relations and, it is afterwards presented at the Embassy or Consulate of the "third country" of issue.
3- Subsequently, the document must be presented at the Ministry or Secretary of Foreign Relations of the "third country" to legalize the consular official’s signature. Finally, the document is presented at the Costa Rican mission in that country for the respective authentication.
4- Finally, the document is presented to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Costa Rica for its final legalization, after which it takes effect in our country.
Note: Kindly keep in mind that the interested party is here to think about the third country, according to their convenience for the process. It is also responsible for communicating with the diplomatic or consular representation of the selected third country, in the nation where the document was issued, in order to confirm whether, indeed, they did this process to legalize said documents). Some nations do not accept legalizations via third countries.
Transfer of human remains to Costa Rica
Submit the following documents to the Consulate of Costa Rica for legalization (if applicable). If apostilled documents, the procedure is carried out directly by the funeral home:
1. Original death certificate.
2. Letter indicating that the person did not die from a contagious disease, issued by the Hospital or the Department of Health.
3. Affidavit of the embalmer.
4. Cremation certificate (when applicable).
5. Copy of the identification document of the deceased person.
If the deceased person was Costa Rican, the legalization of the documents is exempt from the payment of the consular fee. If the deceased person was a foreigner, the cost is $40 per document. All documents must come with the authentication of the corresponding competent authority.