With homicides occurring every 10 hours on average so far in 2023 versus every 14 hours last year, Zúñiga warned it was unwise to restrict OIJ’s capabilities. As the judicial police, we’ll do whatever is necessary,” Zúñiga said. “We have a moral obligation to ensure that residents of this beautiful Central American region feel safe. He called for exempting the OIJ from the fiscal rule that has left funds unused in recent years, arguing the agency’s budget must match the severity of the situation. In his inaugural press conference, Zúñiga stressed the need for more resources to combat worsening violence. The climbing death toll comes as veteran OIJ agent Randall Zúñiga was appointed as the agency’s new director on Monday, replacing Wálter Espinoza who passed away last November. Puntarenas follows with 90 murders, while Alajuela has seen 67, making it the only province with fewer killings than last year. The provinces of Limón and San José have been hardest hit, recording 148 and 146 homicides respectively. Authorities estimate the year could conclude with 850 to 900 total murders if current trends persist. We will continue to seek that the rights of foreigners are respected, as indicated by the Costa Rican Political Constitution,” concluded Mario Rodríguez.Costa Rica continues to grapple with escalating homicide rates, with official statistics showing a 40% increase in murders so far in 2023 versus the same period last year.Īs of Monday, the Judicial Investigation Agency ( OIJ) has registered 587 homicides since January 1, up from 411 at this point in 2022. We’re committed to helping the immigrant population in Costa Rica. We have clients who benefit from our service but see it as a general contribution to the expat community. As a firm, they’re committed to supporting the immigrant community. Then, we consulted CONAPAM to look for an alternative solution to the situation, and we were able to obtain a positive result,” he elucidated.įor Outlier Legal Services, helping their clients is always a pleasure however, their motivation goes beyond. We consulted Costa Rica’s Constitutional Court and the National Directorate of Regulatory Improvement. “We knew not all immigrants could access legal services, and we had to seek solutions. In addition, the Social Security Fund also mentioned that the contribution to the Disability, Old Age, and Death Insurance Regime (IVM) for the non-pensioned elderly population could be “voluntary”.Īccording to the Immigration expert, this was an extensive process that was possible thanks to a fantastic team. This means that all those who have residency in Costa Rica under the ‘retired’ (pensionado) category do not have to pay this fee thus, their disbursements will be significantly reduced. Outlier’s efforts led to a pronouncement by the Financial Management Office, which stated that “retired people should not be forced contribute for IVM insurance, only for health insurance”. But the problem was that many were never going to get a pension,” explained Mario Rodriguez, Regional Immigration Manager at OLS, and attorney in charge of filing the complaint. Afterward, they were required to contribute to the IVM to get a pension. Before the reform, they only paid health insurance. “For most foreigners, paying the IVM was very expensive. This meant foreign residents’ fees almost doubled. Since this past March, residents have been obliged to pay insurance coverage specifically for Disability, Old Age, and Death Regime (IVM). It was not for immigrant workers, this is only for voluntary insurances for pensionados, so they do not get charged with the IVM fee that was added as obligatory back in September 2021 and was applied on March of this year. Mario Rodríguez Bonilla, Regional Immigration Manager at Outlier Legal Services (OLS), raised a complaint about applying a reform to the regulation of affiliation of immigrant workers. This is yet to come, but it is not applicable as of now. This is not applicable yet to those other categories with no income produced in Costa Rica. Excellent news for immigrants: thanks to Outlier Legal Services’ work, the Costa Rican Social Security Fund has reduced its fees for residents under the ‘pensionado’ (retiree) category and other categories with no income produced in Costa Rica.
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