Costa Rica as a Destination for Migrants in Need of International Protection: IMR Country Report

Abstract

In this IMR Country Report, we draw attention to Costa Rica as a strategic location for expanding research and theory on migrants in need of protection (MNP), who have migrated abroad primarily to evade an imminent threat to their survival. MNP constitute an increasing share of all international migrants in Costa Rica and worldwide, yet research on these migrants and their migration dynamics remains comparatively underdeveloped relative to research on migrants who relocate abroad primarily in pursuit of material gains, social status, or family reunification. As we highlight, Costa Rica is an instrumental site to deepen understandings of MNP populations and migration dynamics because its large and rapidly growing MNP population is incredibly diverse with respect to national origins, demographic characteristics, and underlying motivations for migration. This diversity presents ample opportunities to better understand heterogeneity in the different types of threats MNP seek to evade; how and why MNP incorporation is shaped by individuals’ demographic attributes and pre-migration threats; and how the social networks of various MNP subpopulations develop and overlap with time. Moreover, the geographic concentration of MNP in two regions in Costa Rica lends itself to primary data collection among this population and generates opportunities for estimating local MNPs’ demographic characterization, even in the absence of a reliable sampling frame.

Design and implementation of an intensive panel survey with refugees and other migrants in need of protection in Costa Rica

“…These individuals reflect a combination of north- and south-bound migration ( Fig 2 ), owing in part to Costa Rica’s geographic location, which is nestled between South America and northern Central America. Though its migration politics are beginning to change [ 52 ], Costa Rica has historically been considered a hospitable destination for MNP [ 16 ]. For instance, Costa Rica possesses only one small detention center and rarely detains migrants, including when they have irregular status [ 67 ].…”

“…Likewise, rather than being deported, applicants who are denied asylum can appeal their denial and have historically been encouraged to find an alternative means of obtaining legal immigration status [ 68 ]. Beyond these policies, Costa Rica’s strong public education and healthcare systems, political stability, and relatively egalitarian gender norms also contribute to its appeal [ 16 ].…”

“…Costa Rica offers a strategic location to investigate these issues because it is a middle-income country and a new migration destination for hundreds of thousands of MNP [ 16 , 17 ]. Both the number of Nicaraguan and Venezuelan MNP in Costa Rica have skyrocketed in the last five years, alongside steady increases in Colombian, Cuban, Salvadoran, and Honduran MNP populations ( Fig 2 ).…”