Applied Materials expands procurement and project management services

The Executive Branch expanded the authorized activity of Applied Materials Costa Rica Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada within the free trade zone regime to include accounts receivable, procurement, order management, and project administration. The decision was formalized through agreement ACU-RZF-0090-2026-COMEX, signed on August 3, 2026, and published in La Gaceta No. 209 on Wednesday, November 4, 2026, pages 12 and 13, under management number IN202601136754.

The modification is based on articles 140, paragraphs 3) and 18), and 146 of the Political Constitution; numerals 25 paragraph 1, 27 paragraph 1, and 28 paragraph 2 subparagraph b) of the General Law of Public Administration; the Free Trade Zone Regime Law, Law No. 7210 of November 23, 1990; Law No. 7638 creating the Ministry of Foreign Trade and the Foreign Trade Promotion Agency of Costa Rica, and Executive Decree No. 34739-COMEX-H of August 29, 2008, Regulations to the Free Trade Zone Regime Law.

The company was granted the benefits and incentives of the regime through Executive Agreement No. 32-2025 of February 7, 2025, published in La Gaceta No. 57 on March 25, 2025, under the category of service company, pursuant to paragraph c) of article 17 of Law No. 7210. The now-published agreement does not replace that concession: it only rewrites clause 2.3.1 regarding the authorized activity.

The request and the process before PROCOMER

The company submitted its request for activity expansion to the Foreign Trade Promotion Agency of Costa Rica in a file built over more than a year:

• Documents submitted on September 25, 2025.
• Contributions on February 12 and 17, 2026.
• New documents on April 1, 14, 17, and 29, 2026.

The internal administration instance of PROCOMER reviewed the request and, based on the report from the PROCOMER Special Regimes Directorate No. 128-2026 of April 29, 2026, agreed to recommend the modification of the original executive agreement to the Executive Branch.

What changes in the authorized activity

The new wording of clause 2.3.1 maintains the CAECR classification 8211, “Combined office administrative service activities,” and details two blocks of services:

• Accounts receivable, procurement, and order management.
• Project administration and management.

The published text records a score of 102 on the Strategic Eligibility Index (IEES) for the authorized activity. The signing of the agreement was delegated by President Laura Fernández Delgado to Alexander Astorga Monge, Director of the Office of the Presidency, according to Presidential Agreement No. 040-P of July 14, 2026, published in La Gaceta No. 133, Scope No. 91, of July 17, 2026. The document also bears the signature of the Minister of Foreign Trade, Indiana Trejos Gallo.

Validity and Scope

Article 2 of the agreement establishes that, in everything not expressly modified, the provisions of Executive Agreement No. 32-2025 remain in effect, including the commitments and conditions under which the company operates within the regime. Article 3 provides that the modification takes effect upon its notification.

Consequently, the concession published this Wednesday does not set new investment amounts or employment goals: these parameters remain those of the 2025 agreement, subject to oversight by PROCOMER and the obligations of the Operations Contract.

The relevance for readers lies in the scope of the permit: the Costa Rican subsidiary of Applied Materials will be able to invoice financial and purchasing back-office tasks—accounts receivable, procurement, and order management—as well as project management under free trade zone incentives, activities that until now remained outside the authorized classification. This is an administrative adjustment with a direct effect on the range of services the country can export from the regime and on the surveillance that COMEX and PROCOMER exercise over the investment and employment commitments assumed by the company.

Source: La Gaceta No. 209, Wednesday, November 4, 2026, Agreements Section (Ministry of Foreign Trade), pp. 12-13 (official reference: ACU-RZF-0090-2026-COMEX, IN202601136754).