Performing, contesting, and resisting internal bordering of refugee rights in Costa Rica

Abstract While Costa Rica has witnessed an increase in refugee claimants, its policy responses have not been sufficiently studied. This article begins to fill this gap by documenting and analyzing the treatment of displaced people in search of protection in this country. Based on the fieldwork conducted in 2023 with refugee claimants and representatives from NGOs and international organizations, combined with the analysis of media coverage, reports, and available official statistics, the article analyzes the impact of Costa Rica’s internal bordering measures and practices on asylum seekers. As documented in the article, refugee claimants find themselves in an ‘eternal’ wait, lacking access to jobs and social protections, and pressured to abandon their claims. The article also highlights the dynamics of resistance and negotiation among various actors and nonperformance of internal bordering practices by state officials. We conclude that internal refugee bordering is a complex, inconsistent, and contradictory process reflective of tensions between hospitality and hostility toward displaced people in search of protection.