Is voting compulsory in Costa Rica?
Compulsory (not enforced)
Costa Rica has a legal duty to vote, but sanctions are not applied, evidenced by high absenteeism.
Costa Rica is one of 10 countries classified “Compulsory (not enforced)” for compulsory voting — 4% of the 236 with data. (Also searched as mandatory voting.)
Source
- Taken from
- Wikipedia: Compulsory voting
- Last checked
- 17 September 2026
- How it was classified
- Classified by a language model from the source text, then checked against hand-verified reference countries.
Nearby countries
- Nicaragua
- Voluntary Voting is voluntary.
- Panama
- Voluntary Voting is voluntary.
- Honduras
- Compulsory (not enforced) Honduras constitution mandates voting but the Electoral Code lacks penalties for non-voters.
- El Salvador
- Voluntary Voting is voluntary.
- Guatemala
- Voluntary Voting is voluntary.
- Belize
- Voluntary Voting is voluntary.
Other laws in Costa Rica
Every law in Costa Rica → · Which countries have compulsory voting? →
A visual reference compiled from Wikipedia’s law-by-country articles, not legal advice. Laws change and summaries simplify — check a primary source before relying on anything here.