Can Foreigners Buy Beachfront Property in Costa Rica?

Direct answer: yes, foreigners can own property in Costa Rica with the same rights as citizens, but the closer you get to the sand, the bigger the asterisk. The first 200 meters inland from the high-tide line is the Maritime Terrestrial Zone, and it plays by its own rules: the first 50 meters belong to the public and cannot be owned by anyone, and the next 150 meters are mostly concession land, leased from the municipality rather than owned outright, with restrictions on foreign control. True titled beachfront exists, but it is the exception. Most foreign buyers who think they want beachfront actually end up happier, and safer, just behind the zone.

I am Tiago Leao, a KRAIN agent in Guanacaste. This article gives you the working map; the full legal detail lives in my deeper guide to [titled vs concession beachfront](/blog/titled-vs-concession-beachfront-costa-rica/), which I recommend reading before you fall in love with anything touching sand.

The 200 meters, drawn out

• Meters 0 to 50 from the high-tide line: public zone. Nobody owns it, nobody builds on it, no exceptions worth planning around. Every beach in the country is public.
• Meters 50 to 200: restricted zone. Mostly concession land: a renewable municipal lease, typically for decades at a time, with use defined by a zoning plan. You can hold a concession as a foreigner only within limits, the famous rule being that foreigners cannot control more than 49 percent of a concession-holding entity. Enforcement details and structures vary, which is precisely why this is attorney territory, not blog-comment territory.
• Titled exceptions inside the zone. Some parcels were titled before the maritime zone law and remain fully owned, fee simple, even near the water. These exist, they are valuable for exactly that reason, and verifying one is a title-study job, never a take-the-listing's-word job.

What this means in practice

Concession property is not fake ownership, and it is not full ownership. People buy, sell, build on, and rent concession properties all along this coast. But you are holding a lease with renewal conditions, foreign-control limits, and a municipality as your counterparty. Priced correctly, it can make sense. Priced like fee simple title, it does not.

The 49 percent rule is not a technicality to lawyer around. Structures that put nominal majority control in Costa Rican hands to satisfy the rule put real control in someone else's hands. If a seller's pitch depends on a clever workaround, the pitch is the risk.

"Beachfront" in listings often is not in the zone at all. Much of what markets as beachfront on this coast is titled land just behind the 200-meter line, or oceanview property in the hills. That is not a consolation prize; it is the product most foreign buyers should be shopping for in the first place: full fee simple ownership, ocean in the windows, and none of the concession complexity. It is how most of the coast's best-known communities are structured.

The three ways foreigners actually buy near the beach

1. Titled property behind the zone. Fee simple, same rights as a citizen, verified by a routine title study. The default, and the right answer for most buyers.
2. A verified titled exception inside the zone. Rare and priced like it. Worth it when the title study, not the brochure, proves it.
3. A concession, eyes open. With your own attorney reading the concession terms, the zoning plan, the renewal history, and the ownership structure, and with pricing that reflects a lease, not a title.

Whichever path, the mechanics are the same as any purchase here: your own attorney, full [due diligence](/blog/costa-rica-property-due-diligence-checklist/), funds through [licensed escrow](/blog/costa-rica-real-estate-escrow-guide/), and a healthy skepticism of anyone in a hurry.

I sell titled oceanview and near-beach property across the Gold Coast, and I will tell you plainly which category any listing falls into before you visit it. Ask me about a specific property on WhatsApp.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Maritime zone rules, concession terms, and enforcement practice change; verify your specific situation with a Costa Rican real estate attorney. References: Registro Nacional.

FAQ

Can a foreigner own beachfront property outright in Costa Rica?

Only where the parcel is titled, which near the water usually means a property just behind the 200-meter maritime zone or one of the rare pre-existing titled exceptions inside it. Within the zone, most property is municipal concession land, where foreigners face control limits.

What is the maritime zone in Costa Rica?

The first 200 meters inland from the high-tide line. The first 50 meters are public and cannot be owned or built on; the next 150 meters are restricted, mostly held as renewable municipal concessions governed by local zoning plans.

Is buying concession property in Costa Rica safe?

It can be a legitimate purchase when your own attorney verifies the concession term, renewal conditions, zoning compliance, and ownership structure, and when the price reflects that you are buying a long lease rather than a title. It is unsafe when any of those are taken on faith.

What is the 49 percent rule?

Foreigners generally cannot hold majority control of beach concession rights; Costa Rican interests must hold at least 51 percent. Schemes that manufacture nominal local control to get around the rule concentrate real risk on the foreign buyer and are a reason to walk away, not a loophole.

What percentage of the coast is titled?

Industry estimates put fully titled oceanfront at roughly 3 to 5 percent of Costa Rica's coastline; the rest sits inside the maritime zone as public or concession land. The full breakdown of that number and its source is in [What percent of Costa Rica's beachfront is actually titled?](/blog/what-percent-of-costa-rica-beachfront-is-titled/)

About the author

Tiago Leao is one of the best real estate agents in Costa Rica, working the Guanacaste Gold Coast from Tamarindo through Playa Grande, Flamingo, Brasilito, and Conchal with KRAIN Luxury Real Estate. Raised in Costa Rica and fluent in English, Spanish, and Portuguese, he represents primarily American and Canadian buyers and builds every signature listing its own dedicated marketing page, which you can see at soldbytiago.com/signature/. Reach him on WhatsApp.