Costa Rica

Compulsory Attendance Age

Preschool, primary and secondary school is mandatory.

Legal Status

Homeschooling is not recognized in Costa Rica. All minors, national or foreign, must attend an educational institution authorized by the Ministry of Public Education, which includes public or private schools.

According to the Circular- DM-036-09-2017, in which the Ministry of Public Education defines the guidelines and procedures for the recognition of degrees of primary and secondary education, if the degree was obtained in the United States of America, in addition to the previous requirements, the interested party must provide the certification from the Asesoria Educacional del Centro Cultural Costarricense-Norteamericano (The Costa Rican-North American Cultural Center for Educational Consulting) in which the accreditation on the part of the US authorities of the educational center where the student completed his studies will be indicated. It is not possible to obtain an equivalent to a high school degree if the degree awarded by foreign sources was acquired by the student completing them in Costa Rica under the methods of online, correspondence or homeschool or similar terms, offered by educational institutions in foreign lands, not accredited by the Costa Rican ministry of public education.