Costa Rica News – A new security control has been put in place at the Juan Santamaría airport which resulted in a 100 meter line of passengers waiting hours to get through security on Tuesday afternoon. The delay was between 2 and 3 hours.
The passengers were very impatient and rightfully so as some of them missed flights.
The Directorate General of Migration and Immigration admitted the problem but said it was not caused by the new control rather by a slowness in the database system.
The change in security was to replace a form filled out with a personal interview in which authorities try to identify suspicious behavior in travelers and confirm they are able to travel.
Migration suggests that the long lines can also be attributed to the holiday season and high season for tourism as well as that the planning of flights concentrates passengers in peak times in spaces that have already exceeded their capacity.
It confirms that national security is non negotiable and the new controls will remain in place despite the discomfort of long lines.