On Tuesday, Costa Rica’s Congress (Legislative Assembly) in San José approved a bilateral prisoner transfer treaty with El Salvador, clearing the way for inmates to serve the remainder of their sentences in their home countries.


Lawmakers voted 37–20 in a second and final debate to pass Bill No. 24,857, formally known as the "Bilateral Prisoner Transfer Treaty Between Costa Rica and El Salvador."


Under the agreement, Costa Rican nationals currently incarcerated in El Salvador and Salvadoran inmates held in Costa Rican prisons may be transferred to complete their sentences in their home countries.

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The treaty is intended to facilitate social reintegration by allowing inmates to finish their prison terms in an environment that is culturally, socially and family-wise closer to them. It also aims to strengthen bilateral cooperation on security and criminal justice.

Transfers will be voluntary and subject to a joint evaluation by authorities from both countries. The agreement explicitly excludes individuals convicted of political, military or state security crimes, applying only to common criminal offenses.

Transfer requests may be initiated by the inmate’s home country, the inmates themselves, their family members or their legal representatives. Final approval, however, will rest with the competent authorities of both nations.

The treaty also provides for the exchange of information, joint definitions of security mechanisms and guarantees that transferred inmates will not be prosecuted again for the same crime.

In cases involving prisoners with chronic or degenerative illnesses, the agreement requires authorities to expedite the review and resolution of transfer requests, while respecting the original sentence’s conditions and time limits.

El Salvador ratified the treaty in October 2023. In Costa Rica, the legislative process extended until its approval in February 2026.

The bill will now be sent to President Rodrigo Chaves Robles for his signature. If signed, it will become law once published in the government-owned official gazette, La Gaceta.

The approval results from security cooperation between Costa Rica and El Salvador. In January, President Chaves and Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele Ortez led the groundbreaking ceremony for Costa Rica’s future maximum-security prison, the Center for High Containment of Organized Crime, or CACCO, in Alajuela Province.

The facility is modeled after El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center, known as CECOT, a mega-prison that has become a cornerstone of President Bukele’s anti-crime strategy.

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What lessons, if any, could Costa Rica draw from El Salvador’s anti-crime approach? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments to news@amcostarica.com