Countries › Costa Rica › Guide › 7. Labor and employment › Working hours and overtime in Costa Rica: 8 hours by day, 6 by night, 48 a week, overtime at 150% and a 12 hour daily ceiling

Working hours and overtime in Costa Rica: 8 hours by day, 6 by night, 48 a week, overtime at 150% and a 12 hour daily ceiling

Last verified: 2026-10-29 · Status: Stable

The ordinary working day in Costa Rica is at most eight hours by day, seven for mixed shifts and six by night, with a 48 hour week; non hazardous work can be organised in days of up to ten hours if the week stays within 48. Overtime is paid at 50% above the agreed salary and ordinary plus overtime hours may not exceed twelve a day. Managers and people working without direct supervision are outside the hour limits but may not be kept more than twelve hours a day, and a worker who is denied the weekly rest day is paid double.

USD figures use the Banco Central de Costa Rica reference selling rate of ₡454.82 per US dollar published for 29 October 2026 (indicator 318 on bccr.fi.cr), rounded to the cent. Fines use the 2026 salario base of ₡462,200 (Circular 246-2025 of the Consejo Superior del Poder Judicial, under Ley 7337 art. 2).

Key facts

Maximum ordinary daytime hours a day	8 hoursCódigo de Trabajo art. 136, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Maximum ordinary night hours	6 hoursCódigo de Trabajo art. 136, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Maximum ordinary hours a week	48 hoursCódigo de Trabajo art. 136, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Overtime premium over the ordinary rate	50 %Código de Trabajo art. 139, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Maximum ordinary plus overtime hours a day	12 hoursCódigo de Trabajo art. 140, as of 2026-10-29 · in force

The rule

1. Ordinary effective work may not exceed eight hours in the day, six at night and forty eight a week; for work that is not unhealthy or dangerous, a daytime ordinary day of up to ten hours and a mixed day of up to eight may be agreed if the week does not exceed forty eight hours.Ley 2, Código de Trabajo, art. 136, 1943-08-27 official text · verified 2026-10-29

2. A mixed shift may not exceed seven hours, and it counts as a night shift if three and a half hours or more fall between 19:00 and 05:00.Ley 2, Código de Trabajo, art. 138, 1943-08-27 official text · verified 2026-10-29

3. Work beyond these limits, or beyond a shorter agreed day, is overtime paid at 50% above the minimum or the higher agreed salary; time spent fixing errors attributable only to the worker is not overtime.
Example: Monthly salary ₡1,500,000: hourly rate ₡6,250 (240 hours a month), overtime hour ₡9,375; 10 overtime hours ₡93,750. / Overtime hour about US$20.61; 10 hours about US$206.13.Ley 2, Código de Trabajo, art. 139, 1943-08-27 official text · verified 2026-10-29

4. Ordinary plus overtime work may not exceed twelve hours a day, except in emergencies where people, plant or crops are at risk and workers cannot be replaced.Ley 2, Código de Trabajo, art. 140, 1943-08-27 official text · verified 2026-10-29

5. Managers, administrators, agents with powers, employees working without immediate supervision, positions of trust, travelling commission agents and discontinuous jobs are excluded from the hour limits, but may not be required to stay more than twelve hours a day and have at least one and a half hours of rest within that day.Ley 2, Código de Trabajo, as reformed by Ley 2378, art. 143, 1960-09-29 official text · verified 2026-10-29

6. Employers must record overtime pay in the payroll books separately from ordinary pay.Ley 2, Código de Trabajo, art. 144, 1943-08-27 official text · verified 2026-10-29

7. Every worker has one day of absolute rest after each six days of work, paid in commercial establishments or where agreed; an employer that does not grant it pays double the ordinary salary for that day.Ley 2, Código de Trabajo, as reformed by Ley 859, art. 152, 1947-05-02 official text · verified 2026-10-29

Shift	Daily limit	Weekly limit
Day (05:00 to 19:00)	8 hours, or up to 10 if non hazardous	48 hours
Mixed	7 hours, or up to 8 if non hazardous	48 hours
Night	6 hours	36 hours (6 x 6 days)

Ordinary working time limits (Código de Trabajo art. 136 and 138)

Worked example

A worker on ₡1,500,000 a month (US$3,298.01) who works 10 overtime hours in a month earns ₡93,750 extra (US$206.13), using 240 hours a month (thirty days of eight hours, the convention in Decreto 45303-MTSS art. 7).

Step by step

Define the shift type (day, mixed or night) and hours in the contract (Código de Trabajo art. 24(e)).
Track hours worked; record overtime separately in the payroll (art. 144).
Cap ordinary plus overtime at twelve hours a day.
Use the art. 143 exclusion only for real managers and unsupervised roles.

Common traps

The 36 hour night week in the table follows from six nights of six hours; a night worker on more hours accrues overtime.
Labelling someone a manager does not exclude them from hour limits if they are supervised in practice.
Work on the weekly rest day without the art. 152 exceptions costs double pay.

Sources

← Minimum wage in Costa Rica: the 2026 decree table from ₡373,092.30 a month, the 1.70% increase for 2027 and the switch to daily minimumsAguinaldo, vacations and public holidays in Costa Rica: a thirteenth month paid by 20 December, two weeks of vacation and nine paid holidays →

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