QCOSTARICA – The Instituto Nacional de Seguros (INS) – National Insurance Institute – indicated that the collection of the 2023 right of circulation or Marchamo will begin, as usual, on November 1, despite the fact that the new vehicular inspection operator has not yet started operations.

Currently, the vehicular inspection is not up to date with the majority of vehicles in the country, that is vehicles with license plates ending in 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 0.
This, in addition, vehicles with license plates ending in 1, 2, 3, and 4 and whose owners did not submit to the mandatory inspection prior to July 15 when the Riteve SyC contract ended and are subject to fines and/or seizure of vehicle and/or plates.
According to the Ley de Reajuste Tributario y Resolución (Tax Readjustment and Resolution Law), the vehicle inspection is a requirement to be able to pay the Marchamo.
Sidney Viales, deputy chief of Compulsory Insurance and Health of the INS, indicated that they are not empowered to make an exception despite the delays in reactivating the vehicle inspection service.
Viales explained that they have had approaches with the Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Transportes (MOPT) – Ministry of Public Works and Transportation – to try to reach agreements regarding the start of the collection of the Marchamo, which includes among other items, the compulsory insurance and property tax on vehicles.
At the end of August, the MOPT announced it had selected the German company, DEKRA, to provide the required vehicular inspection service that would have started by mid-October.
Read more: German company Dekra will provide the vehicle inspection service
However, an appeal still in the process has placed the DEKRA selection and the start of the inspection service. At this time the Minister of the MOPT, Luis Amador, has not offered any hint as to if and when that will occur.
Read more: Dekra’s election as operator of the RTV is appealed
Meanwhile, owners of vehicles with license plates ending in 5, 6 , 7, 8, 9, and 0 have their inspection deadlines extended as follows:
- 5 – one month after the start of the inspection service
- 6 – one month after the start of the inspection service
- 7 – two months after the start of the inspection service
- 8 – two months after the start of the inspection service
- 9 – three months after the start of the inspection service
- 0 – three months after the start of the inspection service

Owners of vehicles