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Costa Rica · North America
U.S. visas issued to nationals of Costa Rica
The reports below contain preliminary data which are subject to change. Beginning with FY 2020, individual monthly issuance reports should not be aggregated, as this will not provide an accurate issuance total for the fiscal year to date. Instead, refer to our annual Report of the Visa Office for final full Fiscal Year statistics.
In September 2025, 11,716 nonimmigrant visas were issued to nationals of Costa Rica, the 13th largest count among 203 nationalities that month; that is up 78% on September 2024 (6,573).
For the full fiscal year the Department's Report of the Visa Office lists 83,080 nonimmigrant visas issued to nationals of Costa Rica in FY2024, 0.8% of the 10,969,936 issued worldwide and the 19th largest nationality of 197. The previous year's figure was 80,503 (FY2023).
The largest classes in September 2025 were B1/B2 (temporary visitor for business and pleasure) with 11,453, H2A (temporary worker performing agricultural services) with 53 and H2B (temporary worker performing other services) with 51. 40 immigrant visas were issued to applicants chargeable to Costa Rica in the same month, led by IR1 (13) and IR5 (7).
The Department's adjusted refusal rate for B (visitor) visa applicants who are nationals of Costa Rica was 16.14% in FY2025, below the North America median of 38.12%; it was 12.66% in FY2024. The rate covers B visas only and is the Department's own calculation, counting each applicant once by their final status in the year.
In the Diversity Visa program, 99 entrants chargeable to Costa Rica were selected for DV-2026, 0.1% of all selectees that year; the count was 72 for DV-2025. Selection is not a visa; the Department's pages explain that selectees must still qualify and that more are selected than there are visas.
The U.S. post in Costa Rica (San Jose) issued 11,952 nonimmigrant visas in September 2025, to applicants of all nationalities.
Nonimmigrant issuances by month
Compared with the North America region and the world
| Measure | Costa Rica | North America (22 nationalities) | All nationalities |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nonimmigrant visas, FY2024, Report of the Visa Office | 83,080 | 3,215,329 | 10,969,936 |
| Median nationality, FY2024, Report of the Visa Office | — | 16,925 | 7,901 |
| Nonimmigrant visas, Sep 2025 | 11,716 | 251,623 | 823,557 |
| Change on Sep 2024 | +78% | — | -11% |
| Immigrant visas, Sep 2025 | 40 | — | 45,966 |
| B-visa adjusted refusal rate, FY2025 | 16.14% | 38.12% | 31.28% |
| DV-2026 selectees | 99 | — | 129,516 |
Fiscal-year rows are the Department's Report of the Visa Office tables; monthly rows are the September 2025 report alone. Region and world refusal figures are medians across the nationalities listed in the Department's table for that year; regions follow the Report of the Visa Office grouping.
Visa classes, FY2024, Report of the Visa Office
| Class | Description (State Department) | Issued, FY2024 | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| B1/B2 | Temporary visitor for business and pleasure | 78,579 | 94.6% |
| J1 | Exchange visitor | 1,067 | 1.3% |
| H2B | Temporary worker performing other services | 613 | 0.7% |
| F1 | Student in an academic or language training program | 544 | 0.7% |
| H2A | Temporary worker performing agricultural services | 438 | 0.5% |
| L1 | Intracompany transferee (executive, managerial, and specialized personnel continuing employment with international firm or corporation) | 317 | 0.4% |
| C1/D | Combined transit and crewmember visa | 294 | 0.4% |
| L2 | Spouse or child of intracompany transferee | 240 | 0.3% |
| A2 | Other foreign government official or employee, or immediate family | 162 | 0.2% |
| H1B | Temporary worker of distinguished merit and ability performing services other than as a registered nurse | 136 | 0.2% |
| K1 | Fiance(e) of U.S. citizen | 125 | 0.2% |
| G4 | International organization officer or employee, and immediate family | 80 | 0.1% |
| H4 | Spouse or child of H-1B/B1/C, H-2A/B, or H-3 | 78 | 0.1% |
| J2 | Spouse or child of exchange visitor | 75 | 0.1% |
| E2 | Treaty investor, spouse or child | 38 | 0% |
| K2 | Child of K-1 | 32 | 0% |
| C3 | Foreign government official, immediate family, attendant, servant or personal employee, in transit | 29 | 0% |
| B1 | Temporary visitor for business | 28 | 0% |
| O1 | Person with extraordinary ability in sciences, arts, education, business or athletics | 23 | 0% |
| R1 | Alien in a religious occupation | 19 | 0% |
| F2 | Spouse or child of F1 | 18 | 0% |
| C1 | Alien in transit | 17 | 0% |
| M1 | Vocational student and other nonacademic student | 17 | 0% |
| I | Representative of foreign information media, spouse and children | 16 | 0% |
| A1 | Ambassador, public minister, career diplomat or consular officer, or immediate family | 15 | 0% |
| H3 | Trainee | 11 | 0% |
| P1 | Internationally recognized athlete or member of internationally recognized entertainment group | 11 | 0% |
| G1 | Principal resident representative of recognized foreign government to international organization, staff, or immediate family | 10 | 0% |
| O3 | Spouse or child of O-1 or O-2 | 10 | 0% |
| R2 | Spouse or child of R1 | 10 | 0% |
From the Department's annual NIV detail table (nationality by class). Older symbol spellings in the table (B-1,2; H-1B) are shown in the current form.
Visa classes, September 2025
| Class | Description (State Department) | Issued | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| B1/B2 | Temporary visitor for business and pleasure | 11,453 | 97.8% |
| H2A | Temporary worker performing agricultural services | 53 | 0.5% |
| H2B | Temporary worker performing other services | 51 | 0.4% |
| J1 | Exchange visitor | 32 | 0.3% |
| L1 | Intracompany transferee (executive, managerial, and specialized personnel continuing employment with international firm or corporation) | 30 | 0.3% |
| L2 | Spouse or child of intracompany transferee | 20 | 0.2% |
| H1B | Temporary worker of distinguished merit and ability performing services other than as a registered nurse | 14 | 0.1% |
| F1 | Student in an academic or language training program | 12 | 0.1% |
| H4 | Spouse or child of H-1B/B1/C, H-2A/B, or H-3 | 12 | 0.1% |
| C1/D | Combined transit and crewmember visa | 9 | 0.1% |
| A2 | Other foreign government official or employee, or immediate family | 6 | 0.1% |
| G4 | International organization officer or employee, and immediate family | 5 | 0% |
| J2 | Spouse or child of exchange visitor | 4 | 0% |
| K1 | Fiance(e) of U.S. citizen | 4 | 0% |
| C1 | Alien in transit | 2 | 0% |
| I | Representative of foreign information media, spouse and children | 2 | 0% |
| O1 | Person with extraordinary ability in sciences, arts, education, business or athletics | 2 | 0% |
| A1 | Ambassador, public minister, career diplomat or consular officer, or immediate family | 1 | 0% |
| B1 | Temporary visitor for business | 1 | 0% |
| H3 | Trainee | 1 | 0% |
| M1 | Vocational student and other nonacademic student | 1 | 0% |
| R1 | Alien in a religious occupation | 1 | 0% |
Immigrant visa classes, September 2025 (foreign state of chargeability)
| Class | Description (State Department) | Issued | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| IR1 | Spouse of U.S. citizen | 13 | 32.5% |
| IR5 | Parent of U.S. citizen at least 21 years of age | 7 | 17.5% |
| IR2 | Child of U.S. citizen | 6 | 15% |
| CR1 | Spouse of U.S. citizen (conditional status) | 4 | 10% |
| CR2 | Child of U.S. citizen (conditional status) | 3 | 7.5% |
| FX | Family second preference, exempt from country limitations: spouse or child of lawful permanent resident (FX1, FX2, FX3, CX1-CX3, BX1-BX3) | 3 | 7.5% |
| F1 | Family first preference: unmarried son or daughter of U.S. citizen, and child (F11, F12, B11, B12) | 2 | 5% |
| DV | Diversity immigrant (DV1, DV2, DV3) | 1 | 2.5% |
| F2B | Family second preference (2B): unmarried son or daughter of lawful permanent resident, and child (F24, F25, C24, C25, B24, B25) | 1 | 2.5% |
Nonimmigrant issuances by fiscal year, Report of the Visa Office
| Fiscal year | All classes | Visitors (B) | Students, exchange (F, M, J) | Temporary workers | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2015 | 61,248 | 58,167 | 1,091 | 1,069 | — |
| FY2016 | 75,116 | 71,731 | 1,255 | 1,149 | +23% |
| FY2017 | 79,171 | 75,546 | 1,285 | 1,208 | +5% |
| FY2018 | 74,249 | 70,305 | 1,467 | 1,434 | -6% |
| FY2019 | 69,753 | 65,416 | 1,651 | 1,777 | -6% |
| FY2020 | 39,387 | 36,817 | 1,228 | 975 | -44% |
| FY2021 | 27,024 | 24,846 | 767 | 924 | -31% |
| FY2022 | 52,620 | 48,784 | 991 | 2,166 | +95% |
| FY2023 | 80,503 | 76,153 | 1,732 | 1,840 | +53% |
| FY2024 | 83,080 | 78,609 | 1,721 | 1,976 | +3% |
Fiscal years run October to September. Every row is the Department's final annual detail table for that year; the visitor, student and worker columns add the table's class columns within one year. No monthly reports are summed.
Adjusted B-visa refusal rate by fiscal year
Dark bar: Costa Rica. Grey bar: North America median for the same year. The Department's rate covers B visas only; it counts each applicant once, in the status in which the fiscal year ended, so an applicant refused and later issued in the same year counts as an issuance. Source tables: FY2023, FY2024, FY2025.
Diversity Visa selectees by program year
| Program year | Selectees chargeable to Costa Rica | Share of all selectees | All selectees |
|---|---|---|---|
| DV-2016 | 50 | 0.1% | 91,563 |
| DV-2017 | 18 | 0% | 83,910 |
| DV-2018 | 66 | 0.1% | 115,968 |
| DV-2019 | 28 | 0% | 87,610 |
| DV-2020 | 12 | 0% | 83,884 |
| DV-2021 | 68 | 0.1% | 132,404 |
| DV-2022 | 8 | 0% | 119,021 |
| DV-2023 | 39 | 0% | 119,262 |
| DV-2024 | 68 | 0% | 142,947 |
| DV-2025 | 72 | 0.1% | 131,060 |
| DV-2026 | 99 | 0.1% | 129,516 |
Counts of selected entrants as published on the Department's "selected entrants" pages; no names are published or held. Selection is not a visa: the Department selects more entrants than visas available, and DV visas are issued only to selectees who qualify before the program year ends.
U.S. posts in Costa Rica
- San Jose: 11,952 nonimmigrant visas issued in Sep 2025, to applicants of all nationalities
Questions and answers
What is the U.S. visa refusal rate for nationals of Costa Rica?
The State Department's adjusted refusal rate for B (business and tourist) visas was 16.14% in FY2025 against a North America median of 38.12%. The Department publishes this rate only for B visas and only by nationality; it counts each applicant once, by the status in which the year ended.
How many U.S. visas were issued to nationals of Costa Rica last year?
83,080 nonimmigrant visas in FY2024, Report of the Visa Office, the Department's final annual figure. In September 2025, the latest monthly report, 11,716 were issued.
How does September 2025 compare with a year earlier for Costa Rica?
11,716 nonimmigrant visas, up 78% on September 2024 (6,573). Months are compared one to one; the Department says its monthly reports should not be added together.
Which visa classes do nationals of Costa Rica receive most?
B1/B2 (78,579), J1 (1,067), H2B (613), F1 (544) and H2A (438) in FY2024, Report of the Visa Office.
How many DV lottery selectees did Costa Rica have?
99 for DV-2026, 0.1% of all selectees. Earlier years: DV-2022 8, DV-2023 39, DV-2024 68, DV-2025 72. Being selected is not a visa; the Department selects more entrants than there are visas available.
Where do nationals of Costa Rica apply?
San Jose is the U.S. post in Costa Rica. Nationals may also apply at posts elsewhere, subject to each post's rules, so the nationality figures on this page and the post figures are different counts.
Where does this data come from?
The State Department's monthly nonimmigrant and immigrant visa issuance tables by nationality, the annual Report of the Visa Office detail tables, the annual adjusted B-visa refusal rate tables and the Diversity Visa selectee pages. Data through 30 Sep 2025.
Provenance
Source: U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs. Monthly Nonimmigrant Visa Issuances by Nationality and Visa Class; Monthly Immigrant Visa Issuances by Foreign State of Chargeability or Place of Birth and Visa Class; Report of the Visa Office NIV detail tables (workbook); Adjusted Refusal Rate, B-Visas Only, by Nationality; Diversity Visa selected entrants pages. All public domain. Data through 30 Sep 2025. See corrections.