(Services) (03)
Architecturaldesign
Your house or hotel drawn for its lot, its sun and its rain, in phases that each end with drawings you approve, finishing with the full set the permit and the builder need.
(At a glance)
- Time
- About 5 months of design for a 250 m² house, then about 3 months of permits
- Fee
- From 6% of the cost of the works, the CFIA minimum, plus VAT 1
- Changes
- Two rounds in each phase
- You approve
- Each phase, before the next begins
(Who it is for)
- A house to live in or to come back to
- A villa to rent
- A small hotel or a group of cabins
(How it runs)
-
(01)
Preliminary studies
2 to 3 weeksCFIA: Estudios preliminares, 0.5%
We write the brief with you, read the rules of the lot and consult the institutions.
You receive
- The programme: rooms, areas and how you will use the house
- The rules and limits of the lot
- The technical studies the project needs
-
(02)
Concept
About 1 monthCFIA: Part of the anteproyecto
Two or three ways to place the house on the lot, tested against the sun, the wind and the views.
You receive
- Plans and sections of each option
- Images of the house in its place
- A first cost range
-
(03)
Anteproyecto
1 to 1.5 monthsCFIA: Anteproyecto, 1%
The option you choose, developed with the structure and the services in mind.
You receive
- Floor plans, sections, elevations, roof plan and site plan
- The structural and services approach
- Images of the main spaces
- A preliminary cost estimate
-
(04)
Construction drawings
2 to 2.5 months for 250 m²CFIA: Planos y especificaciones, 4%
The full set, coordinated with the structural, electrical and mechanical engineers 2.
You receive
- Location, site and levels
- Floor plans, sections and elevations
- Storm and waste water
- Foundations, structure and details, backed by calculations
- Roof plan
- Electrical and telecoms, plumbing and mechanical
- Construction details and specifications
-
(05)
Cost estimate
With the drawingsCFIA: Estimación global de costos, 0.5%
Quantities taken from the drawings and priced at market rates.
You receive
- A cost estimate to read the builders' quotes against
(Fees)
Four services are compulsory in every building project in Costa Rica: preliminary studies, anteproyecto, construction drawings and a global cost estimate 2. Their minimum fees add up to 6% of the estimated cost of the works: 0.5%, 1%, 4% and 0.5% 1. The Constitutional Court made those minimums binding again in 2024 3, and the estimate they are applied to cannot be lower than the CFIA's own valuation of the works.
Each stage is paid before it starts. The drawings are adjusted to the builder's contract if it is signed within six months, a remodel pays one and a half times the rates, and professional services carry 13% VAT 4. Asking for more options, or reopening a phase you approved, is billed as extra 2.
(Not included)
- Topographic and soil studies, paid to the surveyor and the engineer 2
- What the institutions charge for the permit: the municipal tax, the CFIA charges and the INS policy
- Shop drawings by suppliers
- Interiors beyond the architecture, which are their own service
(Questions)
What do architects charge in Costa Rica?
At least 6% of the cost of the works to design a new building: 0.5% for preliminary studies, 1% for the anteproyecto, 4% for the construction drawings and 0.5% for the cost estimate, plus 13% VAT 1,4. Supervising the works is separate, 3% or 5%. These minimums are mandatory again since a ruling of the Constitutional Court in September 2024 3.
What exactly do I receive with the drawings?
The set the CFIA requires: location and levels, floor plans, sections and elevations, storm and waste water, foundations, structural plans and details, roof plan, electrical and telecoms, plumbing and mechanical, and construction details, backed by the engineers' calculations and with the specifications on the sheets 2.
How many changes are included?
Two rounds of changes in each design phase. A phase counts as approved if you do not object within ten working days of receiving it; asking for more options, or reopening a phase you approved, is billed as extra under the CFIA rules 2.
How long from the first meeting to the permit?
For a 250 m² house, about five months of design and about three of permits. SETENA, a condominium committee or the ICT add time, and municipalities differ: in 2025 the CFIA measured an average of about 10 days to approve in Liberia and Santa Cruz, and 35 in Quepos 5.
Do I need to be in Costa Rica?
No. Most of the design runs by video, with a visit to the lot at the start and on site whenever a decision needs the place.
How are the fees paid?
Before each stage, on the estimated cost of the works. The drawings are adjusted to the builder's contract, and supervision to the final cost of the works, extras included 1.
(Sources)
- Arancel de servicios profesionales de consultoría para edificaciones (Decreto 18636-MOPT). CFIA, 1988, reformed 2010.
- Reglamento para la contratación de servicios de consultoría en ingeniería y arquitectura. CFIA, in force since 3 February 2020.
- Sala IV anula decreto de Rodrigo Chaves sobre honorarios de CFIA. La Nación, 29 September 2024.
- ¿Cuál es la gradualidad que establece el Transitorio V Bis a la Ley 9635?. CFIA, centro de ayuda, 2021.
- Ranking municipal 2024-2025, memoria técnica. CFIA, August 2025.