COMEX Explores Incentives to Attract Innovative Businesses

First reported July 1, 2011 · Updated October 28, 2026

SAN JOSÉ, Costa Rica, July 1, 2011. Costa Rica’s Ministry of Foreign Trade, known as COMEX, is examining whether new incentives could encourage businesses engaged in research, development and innovation to establish or expand operations in the country. The proposal, described in contemporary reporting, reflects a wider effort to attract investment beyond traditional manufacturing and services.

Foreign Trade Minister Anabel González has been associated with the review, which is described as an exploration of policy options rather than an enacted incentive program. According to the original reporting, the ministry was considering approaches used in countries including Brazil, Chile and Mexico, where fiscal and other measures had been used to encourage specified forms of research and technological development.

The central question is how Costa Rica could encourage work that generates new products, processes or specialized knowledge while accounting for the fiscal cost of public incentives. A business investment that creates sophisticated technical jobs or research capacity can provide benefits beyond its immediate operations, but tax benefits and subsidies must still be evaluated against public revenue and spending priorities.

Innovation covers more than technology companies

Research and development incentives are often associated with software, electronics and advanced manufacturing. In Costa Rica, however, innovation can also be relevant to agriculture, environmental technology, medical devices, logistics, industrial processes and the adaptation of existing technologies to local circumstances.

The original 2011 discussion included differing views about what ought to qualify as innovation. One company might invest in a laboratory developing new materials or diagnostic equipment. Another might improve agricultural varieties or introduce new manufacturing techniques. Policymakers face the challenge of distinguishing meaningful technical improvement from ordinary operating expenses.

Possible policy tools include tax deductions, training support, help with specialized facilities or incentives linked to verifiable research activity. Each mechanism works differently. A tax incentive benefits a company with tax liability, while training support can address the cost of building a skilled workforce. Rules defining eligible activity, documentation and oversight are central to the design.

Costa Rica’s investment strategy in 2011

COMEX was already involved in coordinating investment promotion with PROCOMER and CINDE, the agencies responsible for export development and foreign investment attraction. The country’s objective was not simply to increase the number of companies operating in Costa Rica, but also to strengthen the capabilities and business connections that could help firms move toward higher-value activity.

In its 2010-2011 reporting, the ministry described work on international business connections, manufacturing capability and investment attraction. Around the same period, Costa Rica’s PROPYME rules were updated to support innovation and technological development among qualifying small and medium-sized businesses. That existing program was not the same as the specific new COMEX incentive idea described in this story.

The government’s investment-promotion discussions unfolded against a broader regional competition for companies capable of conducting engineering and research activity. Comparative policy design mattered because incentives might work well in one fiscal or industrial context but be inappropriate for another.

What happened next

Later in 2011, COMEX, PROCOMER and CINDE formally coordinated investment promotion. Much later, Costa Rica expanded programs aimed at building specialized workforce capacity. In July 2026, COMEX and PROCOMER announced an expanded training incentive for exporting companies and their suppliers. These later policies illustrate continued interest in high-value investment; the available records do not establish that they resulted from, or implemented, a specific 2011 draft law. The introduction and passage of that particular proposed bill have not been verified.

Questions and answers

What was COMEX considering in 2011? Policy incentives to attract firms undertaking research, development and innovation in Costa Rica.

Had the proposal become law by July 1, 2011? The original account described it as exploratory, not enacted.

Did Costa Rica later adopt exactly that proposed bill? The reviewed records do not establish its enactment or identify a matching final law.

Sources