Primary education in Costa Rica is both free and compulsory so the number of educated and qualified natives is extensive. In fact, the literacy rate in Costa Rica is the highest in Central America. This often makes jobs in Costa Rica difficult for foreigners to to find outside of the following select fields.

Teaching English. Since education is so important, and tourism is the biggest revenue source, this is the most common job in Costa Rica available to foreigners. You must be fluent or often a native English speaker in order to teach English in Costa Rica, and a TEFL/TESOL certification, bachelor’s degree, and up to three years of experience may be required. English teaching jobs are available all across Costa Rica, and there are some programs that offer in-country certification. Teaching jobs generally require a six to 18 month commitment.

Tourism is extremely important and prominent throughout Costa Rica, creating a variety of job openings for foreigners. Waiting tables, bartending, or guiding tours in resort towns are the most common jobs in Costa Rica in the tourism industry. A proper educational background and bilingual abilities make even more opportunities available.

Environmental & Conservation Work. Its peaceful reputation and pura vida lifestyle aren’t the only things that attract tourists to Costa Rica; it is incredibly biodiverse and has the highest number of species per square kilometer in the world (an astonishing 615). Costa Ricans are very passionate about their green landscape, a quarter of which is protected by their constitution making environmental and conservation work high-demand fields where foreigners can find jobs in Costa Rica. Environmental jobs in Costa Rica often revolve around the seasons. Turtle conservation, for example, is a controversial but extremely important effort currently in Costa Rica, but the workload can experience a lull from November to February when the turtles are not nesting.

Despite the slow pace of the Tico lifestyle, punctuality is expected in the business world. A formal handshake is appropriate when meeting colleagues, though close friends may greet one another with a kiss on the cheek.

Basic Spanish is preferred but not always required. There are some job opportunities in Costa Rica, especially in the tourism field, that require being bilingual or will only accept foreign applicants from certain countries.