In Costa Rica, approximately 864,000 households, representing 50% of the country's families, are reported to carry some form of debt, as indicated by the latest Financial Survey of Households conducted by the National Institute of Statistics and Census.

This widespread debt issue prompts inquiry into the legal process available for debt prescription, which refers to the expiration of the lender's right to collect the debt after a specified period.

Under Costa Rican law, the prescription of debts does not occur automatically and requires a formal request from the debtor, as stipulated in Article 973 of the Commercial Code.

Affected individuals must engage a lawyer to initiate this process, as there is no provision for free legal representation in judicial collection cases, according to the Consumer Support Office.

To determine if a debt qualifies for prescription, certain conditions must be met.

The judicial prescription process requires that a case has entered the court system, typically occurring when a payment is more than three months overdue.

If the debt has not entered judicial collection, a process called "jactancia" can be initiated, provided there is an active collection procedure in place.

If a judicial process is already underway, the borrower is required to access the debt's case file.

This can be done by waiting for a personal notification from the court, which cannot be sent via electronic mail, text message, or WhatsApp.

Alternatively, individuals can request the file directly from the court, triggering a five-day working period for presenting the prescription request.

It is also possible to check the case file online through the Judiciary website.

The timeframes for debt prescription vary according to the type of debt:
- Commercial debts (including promissory notes, bills of exchange, or credit cards) have a prescription period of four years.

- Mortgage debts are subject to a ten-year prescription period.

- Claims for interest, rent, and rights related to movable property must be acted upon within one year.

For a debt to be considered prescribed, no interrupting actions can occur during the statute of limitations period.

Interrupting actions include any payments made, acceptance of payment arrangements, or judicial notifications.

When a debtor believes they meet the prescription requirements, they must file a request in the judicial collection court.

The submission must include the applicant's name, signature, authentication, legal basis for the request, and the petition itself.

Upon receipt, the creditor has three days to respond.

The judge subsequently reviews whether the stipulated conditions are satisfied and issues a ruling.

There is no predetermined timeline for the duration of this process, as it varies according to the workload of individual courts.

Recommendations from the Office of Financial Consumer Protection suggest that it is often most advisable to negotiate a payment arrangement with the creditor.

A legal advisor from the Consumer Support Office indicated that the optimal time to seek legal advice is once the debtor believes that the repayment deadline has passed without any interrupting events.

In such instances, reviewing the case file with a professional can help identify other legal options if the prescription requirements are not met.