Child Custody in Costa Rica 🏛️ Parental Rights.
Child custody in Costa Rica is one of the most sensitive and important issues in family law. When parents separate or divorce, the law must decide who will exercise custody (guarda), how parental responsibilities are shared, and how the child’s best interests will be protected.
Costa Rican child custody laws are not based on old ideas of “winning” or “losing” a child. Today, the legal system focuses on the best interests of the minor, the child’s right to be heard, and the principle of shared parental responsibility (autoridad parental / responsabilidad parental).
In practice, this means that shared custody in Costa Rica is now the legal priority, and sole custody is the exception. However, every case is different, and courts must analyze the real family situation before making a decision.
This page explains, in clear terms, how child custody in Costa Rica works, what the law says, and what parents should expect when facing a custody process.
Child Custody in Costa Rica: How the Law Really Works
To understand child custody in Costa Rica, it is important to first understand how the law defines parental responsibility (autoridad parental / responsabilidad parental). Under Costa Rican law, this is not a privilege. It is a legal duty toward the child.
For many years, custody (guarda), child-rearing (crianza), and education (educación) were treated as if they were a single legal concept. That approach no longer reflects how the law is applied today. Courts now clearly recognize that these are different aspects of parental responsibility, even though they are closely connected in daily life.
This distinction is not theoretical. It has very practical consequences. A custody case in Costa Rica is no longer about taking a child away from one parent and giving the child to the other. It is about organizing parental responsibilities in a way that protects the child’s emotional stability and long-term development.
Shared Custody in Costa Rica is now the Legal Priority:
In modern Costa Rican family law, shared custody in Costa Rica is no longer an exception. It is the starting point. Since the reform of the Family Code, judges are required to prioritize shared custody whenever there is no serious reason to rule it out.
This does not mean that the child must physically live half the time with each parent. What the law prioritizes is the shared exercise of parental responsibility, not a rigid or mechanical schedule. The goal is to ensure that both parents remain actively involved in the child’s life in a meaningful way.
Courts have been very clear on this point. Today, assigning sole custody is no longer the neutral decision. On the contrary, granting custody to only one parent requires specific legal justification, because the law assumes that, in normal circumstances, the child benefits from the active presence of both parents.
What Custody means under Costa Rican Law. (Guarda vs Crianza y Educación)
In Costa Rica, the word custody does not mean what many foreign parents expect. Legally, custody (guarda) refers mainly to with whom the child lives and who provides the daily care. It answers a very practical question: with whom does the child live, and who is responsible for the child’s day-to-day routine?
However, custody is only one part of parental responsibility (autoridad parental / responsabilidad parental). The law clearly distinguishes it from child-rearing (crianza) and education (educación). These other two duties normally remain shared by both parents, even when the child lives primarily with only one of them.
This is a crucial point in child custody in Costa Rica. A parent who does not have physical custody does not stop being a parent. That parent keeps the right and the duty to participate in important decisions about the child’s life, unless a court has issued a very specific ruling limiting those rights.
Alternating Custody is a type of Shared Custody
In Costa Rican family law, shared custody does not always mean that the child lives part of the time with each parent. That specific arrangement is known as alternating custody (guarda alterna).
Alternating custody means that the child physically lives with each parent for defined periods of time. For example, one week with one parent and one week with the other, or any other similar schedule adapted to the child’s needs. This is only one possible form of shared custody.
The law is very clear on this point. What is legally required is the shared exercise of parental responsibility, not necessarily a 50/50 physical schedule. In many cases, the child will live mainly with one parent, while both parents continue to share the responsibilities of child-rearing (crianza) and education (educación).
When can a Family Judge grant Sole Custody in Costa Rica?
Although shared custody in Costa Rica is now the legal priority, the law also recognizes that there are situations where this model is simply not in the child’s best interest. In those cases, a judge may grant sole custody (guarda exclusiva) to one parent.
This is not a routine decision. Today, Costa Rican courts are very clear that sole custody is an exception, not the rule. A judge must explain, in concrete and specific terms, why shared custody or alternating custody would harm the child’s emotional stability, safety, or development.
In practice, sole custody is usually considered only when there is serious evidence of neglect, abuse, severe parental conflict, addiction, violence, or other situations that place the child at real risk. Even then, the decision must always be based on the best interests of the child, not on punishment of one of the parents.
Child-Rearing (Crianza) and Education (Educación) are not decided like Custody:
One of the most misunderstood aspects of child custody in Costa Rica is the difference between custody (guarda) and the other core duties of parental responsibility: child-rearing (crianza) and education (educación).
In a normal custody case, the judge is not deciding who “keeps” or “loses” parental rights. The court is only deciding whith whome the child will live. The duties of child-rearing and education remain legally shared by both parents by default.
Costa Rican courts have been very clear on this point. Crianza and educación cannot be assigned exclusively to one parent inside an ordinary custody case, because they are not disposable rights. They are part of parental responsibility (autoridad parental / responsabilidad parental) and can only be limited or suspended in a separate and specific legal process aimed at suspending or removing parental authority.
In other words, a custody case is not a punishment process. Unless there is a formal judgment suspending or restricting parental authority, both parents continue to share these responsibilities, even if only one of them has physical custody.
The Child´s right to be heard in Custody Cases:
In every child custody case in Costa Rica, the child is not treated as an object of the process, but as a person with rights. One of the most important of those rights is the right to be heard.
Costa Rican courts are required to listen to the child and to seriously consider the child’s opinion, taking into account the child’s age and level of maturity. This does not mean that the judge must always follow what the child says, but it does mean that the judge must explain in the decision how the child’s opinion was evaluated.
This principle comes not only from Costa Rican law, but also from international treaties such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child. In practice, this means that in many custody cases, especially with older children, what the child says can carry significant weight in the final decision.
Why the Child´s Best Interest is not a Slogan
In child custody in Costa Rica, the concept of the best interests of the child is not an abstract or emotional slogan. It is a legal standard that judges must apply in every decision.
This means that custody cases are not decided based on what is more convenient for the parents, or on who “deserves” to win. They are decided based on what actually protects the child’s emotional stability, development, and well-being at the present moment.
Courts have been very clear that this analysis must be concrete and specific. A judge cannot simply say “this is in the child’s best interest” without explaining why. The decision must refer to real evidence, psychological evaluations when appropriate, the child’s own opinion, and the actual living conditions offered by each parent.
Can Parents Agree on Custody in Costa Rica?
Yes. Parents can reach their own custody agreements in Costa Rica, and in many cases this is not only allowed but encouraged.
When both parents agree, they may decide together how custody (guarda) will be organized, including whether it will be shared, alternating, or primarily exercised by one parent. They may also agree on how they will exercise child-rearing (crianza) and education (educación).
However, even when there is full agreement, the court will still review the arrangement to make sure it does not harm the child’s best interests. If the agreement respects the child’s rights and well-being, judges normally approve it. If it does not, the court has the authority to modify it or dismiss it.
When can Parental Authority be Suspended or Lost?
Suspension or loss of parental authority (autoridad parental / responsabilidad parental) is not part of a normal custody dispute. It is an exceptional legal measure that can only be ordered in a specific and independent judicial process.
Costa Rican law allows parental authority to be limited or removed only in serious cases, such as abuse, severe neglect, abandonment, or situations that place the child in real danger. Even in those situations, the law requires full due process, including formal accusations, evidence, and the right of the parent to defend themselves.
This is an important distinction in child custody in Costa Rica. A custody case decides where the child lives. A parental authority case decides whether a parent keeps or loses fundamental parental rights. They are legally different processes with very different consequences.
How we can help you with Child Custody in Costa Rica
Child custody in Costa Rica is not a mechanical or automatic process. Every case depends on facts, evidence, and the real-life situation of the child and the parents.
A properly prepared case requires much more than filing a form. It involves gathering evidence, preparing psychological or social evaluations when necessary, presenting a coherent legal theory, and ensuring that the court focuses on what truly matters: the best interests of the child.
Whether you are seeking shared custody, alternating custody, or sole custody, or whether you need to defend your parental rights, having an experienced family lawyer in Costa Rica can make a decisive difference in the outcome of your case.
Dr. Christopher Pirie Gil.
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