In a decisive step toward protecting Costa Rica’s natural heritage, the Legislative Assembly approved this Monday, in its first round of debate, a bill establishing severe financial penalties for individuals who illegally enter Protected Wildlife Areas (PWAs). The initiative arises in response to the exponential increase in clandestine “tours” and unauthorized visits to high-risk zones, particularly volcanic craters.

The new legal framework includes fines that could reach several million colones, depending on the severity of the offense and whether the violator is a repeat offender. Until now, authorities from the National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC) lacked an effective punitive tool, often limiting their response to the administrative removal of trespassers without significant financial consequences.

Under this reform, the following actions are specifically classified and sanctioned:

• Entry through unofficial access points: Evasion of control checkpoints and entrance fee payments.
• Presence in restricted areas: Access to properly marked zones of volcanic or biological danger.
• Promotion of illegal services: Aggravated penalties for individuals or agencies that profit from organizing expeditions to prohibited sites.

During the plenary debate, several lawmakers emphasized that illegal entry is not merely a matter of tax evasion but a serious safety crisis. “We have seen rescue teams risk lives and public resources to save people in areas where they should never have been,” the bill’s sponsors stated.

Reports from the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE) indicate that, in the past year alone, hundreds of individuals were intercepted on illegal routes leading to the Poás, Turrialba, and Arenal volcanoes. These incursions are often associated with the destruction of plant life, harassment of wildlife, and the accumulation of waste in fragile ecosystems.

After receiving majority support in the first debate, the bill must now undergo a second vote in the coming days. If ratified and subsequently signed by the Executive Branch, SINAC will have the legal authority necessary to immediately enforce the fines.

Environmental authorities called on both the local population and foreign tourists to use only official reservation channels and to respect authorized trails, warning that surveillance along park boundaries will be intensified once the law comes into force.

The new regulation establishes that sanctions will be determined based on the value of the current base salary. The approved scheme is structured as follows:

• For tourists and visitors: Those who enter through unauthorized access points or remain in restricted areas will face a fine equivalent to one base salary, which currently amounts to ₡462,200.
• For guides and organizers: Individuals or legal entities that profit from organizing illegal “tours” will be subject to a much more severe penalty, set at five base salaries, reaching ₡2,311,000.

In addition, the text specifies that in cases of repeat offenses, the fine will be automatically doubled, raising the cost of the infraction for organizers to more than ₡4.6 million.