Our car got 'nationalized'

We waited as long as possible hoping we would not have to pay to get the car nationalized. When we decided to ship the Subaru, we were under the impression that we would not have to pay the tariff on the car because of a law passed in 2007 that gave handicapped people a waiver. Unfortunate for us, the government had difficulty defining who is eligible under that law. By taking the car out of the country in April, it gave us a final 90 days before they either gave us the waiver or we had to get the car ‘nationalized’. As it happened, we ended up paying $5000 for the taxes, RTV, plates, inscription, registration and insurance on our 97’ Subaru Outback. Seems strange to see Costa Rican plates on our car with the “Sugarloaf” and “Brunswick Lacrosse” stickers on the back window!