Prostitution laws in Costa Rica
Prostitution itself is legal in Costa Rica: no law makes it an offence to sell sex, and paying an adult for sex is not a crime. What the Penal Code (Law 4573) punishes is third-party involvement. Anyone who promotes the prostitution of others, induces a person to engage or remain in it, or recruits for it faces two to five years (Art. 169, proxenetismo); four to ten years with aggravating factors such as a victim under 18, deception or violence (Art. 170). Coercively making a sex worker support you is punishable by two to eight years (Art. 171, rufianería), and promoting or facilitating a person's movement into, out of or within the country to carry out acts of prostitution is trafficking, six to ten years (Art. 172). Paying anyone under 18 for sexual acts carries two to ten years (Art. 160). In a 2023 case, a court convicted operators of nine bars of proxenetismo and trafficking.
Legal model
Legal, organisation banned. Selling and buying are legal, but brothels, procuring and organising are criminal offences.
Selling and buying sex between adults are not offences. The Penal Code criminalises promoting the prostitution of others, inducing or keeping a person in it, or recruiting for it (Art. 169, two to five years), coercively living off a sex worker's earnings (Art. 171), and moving people within or across the country for prostitution (Art. 172), so organised and venue-based sex work is criminal for third parties.[1][2]
At a glance
| Question | Status | In short |
|---|---|---|
| Selling sexual services | Legal | Selling sex is not an offence. The 'vagrancy' offence in Law 3550, which covered women habitually found in places of prostitution, was largely struck down by the Constitutional Chamber in 1994; a sex workers' organisation reports that police still use it as a pretext for detentions. HIV testing is voluntary and no compulsory health checks apply to sex workers.[1][2] |
| Buying sexual services | Legal | Paying an adult for sex is not an offence. Paying, or promising to pay, a person under 18 or a third party so that the minor performs sexual or erotic acts is punishable by four to ten years if the victim is under 13, three to eight years if aged 13–14 and two to six years if aged 15–17 (Art. 160).[1] |
| Brothels and managed venues | Illegal Criminal offence | There is no separate brothel offence, but running premises where others sell sex is prosecuted as promoting their prostitution or keeping them in it (Art. 169, two to five years). In 2023 the San Carlos criminal court convicted four people of proxenetismo, criminal association and in two cases trafficking over a network of nine bars; their lawyer argued that judges read 'facilitating' as any act that makes prostitution easier.[1][3] |
| Third parties profiting (procuring / pimping) | Illegal Criminal offence | Promoting the prostitution of others, inducing someone to engage or remain in it, or recruiting for it: two to five years (Art. 169); four to ten with aggravating factors such as a minor victim, deception, violence or abuse of need (Art. 170). Coercively living off a sex worker's earnings: two to eight years (Art. 171). Moving a person into, out of or within the country for prostitution is trafficking, six to ten years, with no requirement of force (Art. 172).[1][4] |
| Advertising sexual services | Restricted | No offence specifically targeting advertisements for adult sexual services was found. A sex worker advertising their own services commits no offence on the text checked, but advertising on behalf of others can amount to 'promoting' their prostitution (Art. 169), and publicising a person's travel for prostitution can fall under the trafficking offence (Art. 172).[1] |
The law in detail
Selling sexual services
Selling sex is not an offence. The 'vagrancy' offence in Law 3550, which covered women habitually found in places of prostitution, was largely struck down by the Constitutional Chamber in 1994; a sex workers' organisation reports that police still use it as a pretext for detentions. HIV testing is voluntary and no compulsory health checks apply to sex workers.[1][2]
Confidence: medium. The vagrancy ruling and the HIV-law position come from an NGO legal mapping (2020) and were not checked against the judgment or the HIV law. Municipal rules on street soliciting were not reviewed.
Checked 30 October 2026
Buying sexual services
Paying an adult for sex is not an offence. Paying, or promising to pay, a person under 18 or a third party so that the minor performs sexual or erotic acts is punishable by four to ten years if the victim is under 13, three to eight years if aged 13–14 and two to six years if aged 15–17 (Art. 160).[1]
Confidence: medium. Checked against a consolidated copy current to about 2009; no later change making the purchase of sex from adults an offence was found, but the official consolidated text could not be read (see sources).
Checked 30 October 2026
Brothels and managed venues
There is no separate brothel offence, but running premises where others sell sex is prosecuted as promoting their prostitution or keeping them in it (Art. 169, two to five years). In 2023 the San Carlos criminal court convicted four people of proxenetismo, criminal association and in two cases trafficking over a network of nine bars; their lawyer argued that judges read 'facilitating' as any act that makes prostitution easier.[1][3]
Confidence: medium. Whether simply renting rooms or running a bar where sex workers meet clients is prosecuted depends on case law that was not systematically reviewed.
Checked 30 October 2026
Third parties profiting (procuring / pimping)
Promoting the prostitution of others, inducing someone to engage or remain in it, or recruiting for it: two to five years (Art. 169); four to ten with aggravating factors such as a minor victim, deception, violence or abuse of need (Art. 170). Coercively living off a sex worker's earnings: two to eight years (Art. 171). Moving a person into, out of or within the country for prostitution is trafficking, six to ten years, with no requirement of force (Art. 172).[1][4]
Art. 169 (Proxenetismo), as worded by Law 7899 of 3 August 1999: 'Quien promueva la prostitución de personas de cualquier sexo o las induzca a ejercerla o las mantenga en ella o las reclute con ese propósito, será sancionado con la pena de prisión de dos a cinco años.' Art. 171 (Rufianería) requires that the offender 'coactivamente' makes the sex worker support them. In the version checked (Law 8720 of 2009), the trafficking offence in Art. 172 lists deception, violence and similar means only as aggravating circumstances (eight to sixteen years), not as elements of the basic offence.
Confidence: medium. Wording of Arts. 169–171 is consistent across a consolidated copy current to about 2009 and an NGO legal mapping from 2020. The official consolidated text on SINALEVI loads its content by script and could not be read, so amendments after 2009 (notably to the trafficking offence in Art. 172) were not checked.
Checked 30 October 2026
Advertising sexual services
No offence specifically targeting advertisements for adult sexual services was found. A sex worker advertising their own services commits no offence on the text checked, but advertising on behalf of others can amount to 'promoting' their prostitution (Art. 169), and publicising a person's travel for prostitution can fall under the trafficking offence (Art. 172).[1]
Confidence: low. Inference from the Penal Code; advertising, media and telecommunications laws and any case law on online advertisements or platforms were not reviewed.
Checked 30 October 2026
Key legislation
| Law | What it does here | In force |
|---|---|---|
| Código Penal, Ley No. 4573 (texto con reformas) Penal Code (Law No. 4573, as amended) Art. 160 · Arts. 169–172 | Proxenetismo (Arts. 169–170), rufianería (Art. 171), trafficking (Art. 172) and paid sexual acts with minors (Art. 160).[1] |
Timeline
- 3 August 1999Law 7899 against the sexual exploitation of minors gives the proxenetismo offence (Art. 169) its current wording.[1]
- 18 July 2007Law 8590 rewrites the aggravated proxenetismo, rufianería and paid-sex-with-minors offences (Arts. 160, 170, 171).[1]
- 26 June 2023The San Carlos criminal court convicts four people of proxenetismo, criminal association and trafficking over a network of nine bars (case '4 Stops').[3]
Sources
- Código Penal, Ley No. 4573 (texto con reformas) (Penal Code, Law No. 4573 (text with amendments)). Organización de los Estados Americanos (copia del texto del SCIJ). legislation · accessed 30 October 2026
- Marco legal sobre el trabajo sexual y participación política de las mujeres trabajadoras sexuales en Costa Rica (Legal framework on sex work and political participation of women sex workers in Costa Rica). RedTraSex / La Sala Costa Rica, November 2020. ngo · accessed 30 October 2026
- 31 años de cárcel por red de explotación sexual en Costa Rica (31 years in prison for a sexual exploitation network in Costa Rica). CRHoy.com, 6 July 2023. news · accessed 30 October 2026
- Código Penal, Ley No. 4573 – Sistema Costarricense de Información Jurídica (SINALEVI) (Penal Code, Law No. 4573 – official consolidated text (SINALEVI)). Procuraduría General de la República de Costa Rica. legislation · accessed 30 October 2026