Costa Rica News – Costa Rica has seen a slight increase in the sending of remittances by the third quarter of last year. The increase in sending money abroad was 6%. Before that, the remittances amount had remained stable for about three years.
The two main destinations the money is sent to are Nicaragua and Colombia. Because of so many Nicaraguans living and working in Costa Rica, that country accounts for 79% of the total remittances leaving the country.
In 2016, the total amount of remittances was $312 million, $254 million of which went to Nicaragua. Nicaraguans living in Costa Rica send an average monthly remittance of $111 to their families. Colombians remit $227 per month, on average. Other foreigners send $136 a month, on average. These figures are from the “Socioeconomic Aspects of Family Remittances 2014.”
BCCR determined that 81% of such transactions are made through remittance companies, 14% through banks, and 5% through other means. The company Gollo is often used. This company does not allow money to be sent to Venezuela, Russia, Jamaica, Cuba, the Middle East or the Congo. This is because sending money to these countries can be related to drug trafficking, money laundering, ivory trafficking, or government restrictions.
