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Norkent

Last updated: 09/08/2026

Norkent for Costa Rica

Labor Code of 1943. PRODHAB requires reinforced consent for biometric data in work records.

ISOCR
CurrencyCosta Rican colón (CRC)
LanguageSpanish
Weekly hours48 h (daytime) / 36 h (nighttime)
Overtime50% additional; max. 12 h/day
Vacation2 weeks for every 50 weeks worked

Working hours and overtime

Maximum weekly hours: 48 hours on daytime shifts; 36 hours on nighttime shifts (art. 143 of the Labor Code).
Maximum daily hours: No single daily cap was found in the official sources consulted for daytime workdays; ordinary overtime hours may not exceed a total of 12 per day.
Limit (overtime): No person may work more than 12 overtime hours per day, nor exceed the weekly limit (arts. 143 and 145 of the Labor Code).
Overtime premium / compensation: 50% additional over the ordinary hourly wage for each overtime hour; 100% additional when overtime is worked on the weekly rest day (art. 145 of the Labor Code).
Night work premium: 20% additional over the ordinary hourly wage when the shift is nighttime (between 7:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., art. 144 of the Labor Code).

Breaks and leave

Weekly rest: At least one full rest day after five consecutive workdays (art. 147 of the Labor Code).
Rest between shifts: No single general minimum for rest between workdays was found in the official sources consulted at the Labor Code level.
Vacation: Two weeks of paid rest for every 50 weeks of continuous service (art. 153 of the Labor Code).
Maternity: Four months of paid rest: one prenatal month and three postnatal months (art. 95 of the Labor Code).
Paternity: Paid leave equivalent to 100% of salary for 8 calendar days counted from birth (art. 95 bis of the Labor Code, added by Law No. 10179 of 2022).

Personal data protection

Data protection law: Law No. 8968 on the Protection of the Person against the Processing of their Personal Data (2011).
Competent authority: Agency for the Protection of Data of the Inhabitants (PRODHAB).
Geolocation: Considered sensitive data; its processing requires prior, express and informed consent from the data subject, under Law No. 8968 and PRODHAB Resolution 029-2026-RF.
Biometric data: Considered sensitive data; they require explicit and reinforced consent (PRODHAB Resolution 029-2026-RF on the use of biometric data).
Workplace monitoring: It must respect the principles of necessity, proportionality and purpose; case law holds the employer responsible for proving the hours worked (burden of proof).

Digital attendance systems

Digital recording allowed: Yes. There is no specific technical regulation of the MTSS for digital attendance systems.
QR recording: Yes, allowed, as a valid alternative to the traditional attendance book.
Mobile device recording: Yes, allowed, with the general requirements of Law No. 8968.
Manual recording: Yes, allowed (traditional attendance book).

Status of Norkent in Costa Rica

Allowed with conditions
Norkent is compatible with the Costa Rican labor framework, which has no specific technical regulation for digital attendance systems. The tool is especially useful because the case law of the Sala Segunda holds the employer responsible for proving the hours worked, and Norkent generates accurate, verifiable and traceable records. Before its implementation in Costa Rica, a company should consider: 1. Information to the worker: the employer must inform workers about the purpose and scope of the data processing carried out in Norkent (arts. 5 to 9 of Law No. 8968). 2. Right to digital disconnection: in telework regimes, respect the right to disconnection provided in Decree 44756-MTSS. 3. Registration with PRODHAB: assess registering the attendance database with PRODHAB, according to the agency's criteria. 4. Biometric data: since Norkent does not use biometric data, the reinforced regime of PRODHAB Resolution 029-2026-RF is avoided; if biometrics were incorporated in the future, explicit and reinforced consent would be required. 5. Integration with wage books: Norkent can operate as an internal workday control system, but must be coordinated with the wage books and payroll to correctly distinguish overtime (art. 144 of the Labor Code).