Costa Rica increased trafficking convictions in 2025 with sentences of up to 14 years in prison, reveals U.S. report

The requirement to travel to the capital to be interviewed restricted access for potential victims, while shelters and benefits aimed at adult men remained insufficient in the country (Illustrative image Infobae) Costa Rica remained at Tier 2 in the 2026 trafficking in persons report because, although the Government increased its efforts, it did not fully meet the minimum standards for eradicating this crime. The authorities convicted more traffickers, prosecuted an official for alleged complicity, and launched a protocol for the fishing and aquaculture sector, but investigated and prosecuted fewer cases than the previous year, according to the United States Department of State. Potential victims exploited outside the capital had to travel to San José to be interviewed and obtain the accreditation needed to access services. That requirement limited access to certification and assistance, while shelters and services for adult men continued to be insufficient. During 2025, the authorities investigated 86 cases: 53 linked to sexual exploitation and 33 to labor exploitation. The figure was lower than the 97 cases investigated in 2024. The Government prosecuted seven suspects, five for sex trafficking and two for labor trafficking, compared with 10 defendants the previous year. The courts convicted 10 traffickers, eight for sexual exploitation and two for labor exploitation, whereas in 2024 only two people had been convicted for labor trafficking. Article 172 of the Penal Code punished trafficking for the purposes of sexual and labor exploitation with sentences of six to 10 years in prison when the victim was an adult, and eight to 16 years when the victim was a minor. For the Department of State, those sentences were sufficiently serious and, in cases of sexual exploitation, proportionate to those applied for crimes such as rape. An employee of the Ministry of Labor faced a judicial process for alleged complicity in a sex trafficking case. (Illustrative image Infobae) The law, however, included within the definition of trafficking the illegal adoption without the purpose of exploitation, a scope that did not conform to the definition provided by international law. Officials also used related criminal offenses to prosecute these acts. Article 170, on aggravated pimping, and Article 171, on coercive pimping, provided for sentences of between two and 10 years in prison. Article 189 punished forced labor or services with sentences of six to 10 years. During the evaluated period, the country amended the Penal Code to criminalize the deliberate recruitment of minors to participate in the commission of crimes. The law established sentences of four to six years, which rose to between four and eight years if the perpetrator forced the minor through violence or coercion. Eight of the 10 convictions recorded in 2025 were handed down under the specific anti-trafficking legislation and the other two were based on different statutes. The sentences imposed on those convicted ranged from eight to 14 years in prison. Prosecutors also continued with 16 cases initiated in previous years, involving an undetermined number of suspects. Those files remained pending during the period under review. Corruption and complicity cases involved some government officials. The Government arrested and prosecuted an employee of the Ministry of Labor accused of paying for sexual acts with a minor who was a victim of sex trafficking. Charges filed in 2016 against a former mayor and two other former local officials, accused of allegedly running a child sex trafficking ring, also remained in place. The trial had not yet begun. The authorities investigated 86 cases linked to sexual and labor exploitation during the evaluated period. (Illustrative image Infobae) Costa Rica cooperated with other governments in police operations and joint investigations into trafficking cases. Domestically, it maintained specialized police and prosecutorial units, although the lack of funding and personnel reduced their capacity to investigate and prosecute crimes of this kind. Specialized prosecutors directly handled cases detected in San José and provided support to investigators and prosecutors in other parts of the country. In addition, 13 provincial working groups operated to coordinate local and national prosecutors and facilitate the handling of case files. Institutional capacity varied by region. Some local officials had not received sufficient training to identify potential trafficking situations or to request specialized assistance during case preparation. Frequently, law enforcement charged traffickers under offenses provided for in other laws, some with lower penalties than those established in the specific statute. The Government provided training to law enforcement officers, including specialized courses aimed at prosecutors in rural areas.