{"id":1668,"date":"2020-05-28T13:32:28","date_gmt":"2020-05-28T19:32:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crtn.cr\/?p=1668"},"modified":"2023-10-23T11:10:32","modified_gmt":"2023-10-23T17:10:32","slug":"make-work-great-again-costa-rica-is-perfect-for-remote-workers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crtn.cr\/make-work-great-again-costa-rica-is-perfect-for-remote-workers\/","title":{"rendered":"Make Work Great Again<\/b>: Costa Rica is Perfect for Remote Workers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Costa Rica offers the ideal base for post-COVID-19 digital nomads<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Telecommuting, telework, remote work\u2026 no matter how you say it, business as usual has changed for good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The remote workspace offers a new frontier of sorts, ripe with possibility for companies to cut costs and diversify, and digital nomads are the pioneers taking the concept to the highest level. It is not just about working from home, but from a home-away-from-home. The flexibility to choose one\u2019s \u201coffice\u201d will set today\u2019s employees free. Unchained from their desks, they\u2019ll be provided an opportunity to travel the world AND<\/em> make a living.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And what better place to remote work is there than Costa Rica?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Already, most multinationals have a percentage of their workforce operating remotely. The COVID-19 pandemic has proven that it works to a degree never imagined before. Companies are further discovering that not only do they save on office expenses, but staff working overseas adds cultural diversity to business production.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Based on conservative assumptions, we estimate a typical employer can save an average of $11,000 per half-time telecommuter per year. The primary savings are the result of increased productivity, lower real estate costs, reduced absenteeism and turnover, and better disaster preparedness. <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n— <\/strong><\/em>GLOBAL WORKPLACE ANALYTICS<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Costa Rica offers the ultimate opportunity for remote professionals<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Why Costa Rica? Big improvements in infrastructure and communications have transformed the country from third-world digital status to a competitive force quite capable of holding its own in the international market, especially in the capital city, San Jos\u00e9, and major beach towns. The government is at the forefront of making serious remote working a reality, and entrepreneurs are developing strategies to attract skilled professionals interested in making the move.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back in 2007, the Costa Rican Electricity Institute, ICE<\/a>, launched a $59 million project called Frontera a Frontera,<\/em> “from border to border,” and began laying a fiber-optic network to provide high-speed internet technology across the nation.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"https:\/\/melissadivietri.com\/remote-working-costa-rica\/\"
Photo: Melissa Divietri, Social Media Blogger<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Today, the service is supported by submarine cable networks from both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. Individuals and companies can acquire service with U.S.-grade up and download speeds from ICE, and several private companies offer high-speed packages with comparable bandwidth and quality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Costa Rica already offers the citizens of most countries 90-day tourist visas, which can be extended every three months by leaving the country briefly\u2014commonly known as the \u201cborder-run\u201d\u2014or requesting a temporary residence permit. What is further needed to make the country the ultimate worker\u2019s hub is being implemented as we speak \u2013 even faster internet at the coasts and more hotels setting up good co-working spaces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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the remote workforce has grown 173% since 2005, 11% faster than the rest of the workforce.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n— <\/strong><\/em>GLOBAL WORKPLACE ANALYTICS<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n

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Slidebean CEO Caya<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

When asked if he thought Costa Rica was a potential hotspot for a remote worker revolution, Caya, the founder of a multi-million dollar tech startup company, Slidebean<\/a>, answered that attracting big businesses to the country is a good beginning for “putting the startup ecosystem on the map.” The 30-something Costa Rican entrepreneur has operating headquarters in Costa Rica and New York City, in addition to a remote workforce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“What’s needed is for the government to really get behind promoting the concept of attracting remote professionals [to Costa Rica]. With a clearly defined policy that’s supported and promoted by the ministries [Immigration; ICT; Health, etc.].”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new business paradigm<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

By doing what young adults do best\u2014challenge the status quo\u2014Millennials and Generation Z (piggybacking on the bold and brave Generation Xers) are redefining work productivity and the hierarchical pyramid model of business by introducing a new paradigm that encourages more creativity and innovation from employees. Take Google or Apple for example. And it so happens that remote working is a big part of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The lure of living in big cities may be losing its shine, leading more younger people to being open to living in smaller communities, or even other countries. “Why would an employee working in an office in New York City or San Francisco fork over the bulk of their pay in rent to do a job in an office which they are perfectly capable of doing elsewhere? Forget that $600,000 studio in the Bay Area and go rural if your job allows it,” says Niall McCarthy in Why Higher Remote Working Rates Should Be One Of The Things We Keep After The COVID-19 Crisis<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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But even after the coronavirus no longer requires it, working from home is likely to retain a significant presence in corporate life<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n— DAVID STREITFELD, NEW YORK TIMES (WHITE-COLLAR COMPANIES RACE TO BE LAST TO RETURN TO THE OFFICE<\/em><\/a>)<\/em><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Why Costa Rica?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n
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2 bed, 2 bath, $990 in San Jos\u00e9 (brcr.co<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n