Costa Rica and Honduras imposed visa requirements on each other’s travellers on Monday, with Costa Rica the first to do so, citing security concerns.
Costa Rica first announced the measure last week, but later postponed it. Honduras called the move “surprising” at the time.
Costa Rica’s security minister, Mario Zamora, told journalists that the visa requirement had been adopted “at an opportune moment… for security reasons”.
Costa Rica’s foreign minister told his Honduran counterpart that the visa requirement came after ‘an increase in criminal groups’ in the coastal city of Limon and ‘the arrival of Honduran hitmen’, according to Honduran Foreign Minister Enrique Reina.
Hours after Costa Rica introduced the measure on Monday, Honduras imposed a similar requirement ‘based on the principle of reciprocity’.
Both countries’ demands will take effect on Tuesday.
So far this year, 25,900 Hondurans have entered Costa Rica, according to government figures. However, most do not stay in the country: only 353 Hondurans applied for asylum last year.
The visa will not be mandatory for Hondurans in transit, Costa Rica’s migration institute said in a statement.
