Enforcement: How hard does the regulator enforce?

Costa Rica's Ministerio de Hacienda sanctioned ten land-based casinos in San Jose, Alajuela, Heredia and Puntarenas a combined CRC 361.5 million, approximately US$792,000, following September 2026 inspections conducted by the General Directorate of Taxation, the customs directorate and the Fiscal Control Police, announced 1 October 2026. Inspections identified missing electronic receipts for chip purchases, zero VAT and income-tax returns filed at some properties, and undeclared gaming tables. The action proceeds under general VAT and electronic-invoicing rules rather than the casino-specific licensing statute, so the exposure sits in tax compliance rather than in licence standing. As a civil-law jurisdiction, Costa Rica's enforcement architecture typically separates the licensing-offence stack from general fiscal obligations, and this action illustrates that separation directly: a casino can be in good standing under its gaming authorisation while facing a substantial fiscal sanction for receipt, VAT and gaming-table declaration failures. The finding is sourced to press accounts relaying a Hacienda statement; no independent Hacienda press-release URL was retrieved, which caps the claim below full confirmation despite corroboration across outlets.