Citizenship - Was advised not to leave Argentina

[inspectorlow]

Hey there,

I just contacted a lawyer who said that your 2-yr citizenship clock restarts the moment you step foot outside the country.

This...feels incredibly strict and unreasonable to me. While it does seem like a valid legal interpretation of the law ("Los estranjeros mayores de 18 años, que residiesen en la República dos años continuos y manifestasen ante los jueces federales de sección su voluntad de serlo.") it also...like, do I not have the right to go on vacation? The right to travel? What if time abroad is tied to my income?

Surely people here have naturalized based on residency requirements and have traveled abroad. I'd love to hear about your experience, if that was the case.

 

[rob0001]

I've been in Argentina for 2.5 years as a temporary resident...I was advised by my attorney, who is used by many here and many corporations from the USA that I could leave for up to 6 months a year. I have only been gone 2-4 weeks a year however. I applied for citizenship at the 2 year mark...no issues and no problems, period. My attorney is Gabriel Celano of Celano and Associates and he is well trusted in immigration. There are however 100s of idiot attorneys doing immigration in this country and I've encountered a dozen of them giving ridiculous advice...

 

[MarshallE]

You can maintain a residence permit with 6 months per year presence, however you are not likely to be approved for citizenship by the fiscal with such an absence

 

[camel]

They used it against me when I left for 1 month after being in Argentina for 1.5 years. In the end it took me 6 years to get citizenship. Just sneak out via Uruguay, Paraguay, or Bolivia.

 

[Lanick]

This is my experience. It’s not me but been part of it indirectly from the beginning until the citizenship granted. One thing I have to mention, which is very important; this guy holds permanent residency, married to an Argentine and got kids born in Argentina. So he’s both a husband and father of citizens. Came to Argentina for a few weeks each year. Never lived there. Got kids there. Been out of the country for 11 months almost each year. Applied for citizenship himself and got granted in months. Everyone was saying it’s because he’s a father and spouse of Argentines and he is holding permenente. 6 months whatever was no issue at all. It may be different for people with different status.

 

[inspectorlow]

I've been in Argentina for 2.5 years as a temporary resident...I was advised by my attorney, who is used by many here and many corporations from the USA that I could leave for up to 6 months a year. I have only been gone 2-4 weeks a year however. I applied for citizenship at the 2 year mark...no issues and no problems, period. My attorney is Gabriel Celano of Celano and Associates and he is well trusted in immigration. There are however 100s of idiot attorneys doing immigration in this country and I've encountered a dozen of them giving ridiculous advice...

Oh, incredible. I'll have to reach out to Celano. I was like, surely maintaining proof of residence (lease, gym memberships, utilities, affadavits from landlord) and societal integration (attending classes at UBA, gym memberships, DELE-accredited C1 Spanish) is enough to justify being a normal person with a history of travel who wanted to move/domicile in Argentina and continue doing do! Congrats on your citizenship

You can maintain a residence permit with 6 months per year presence, however you are not likely to be approved for citizenship by the fiscal with such an absence

Right, of course 6 months is less than the baseline recommended for any residency anywhere (as 183 days/minimum is typically the floor, and for citizenship, you obviously want to clear that floor). For me, looking at 2024 when I lived in NYC, I was only present ~265 days of the year, so I have a pattern of absenting myself for ~100 days/year to point to. Obviously international travel is easier from NYC than BA (3 airports, lower prices, shorter distances, more demand, etc) but the point is this is my established pattern. I wouldn't call myself not having maintained continuous residency in NYC due to that travel; I paid my rent every month and so on. But even were I absent for ~90 days per year (family visits/holidays, discretionary vacations, work trips to San Francisco) surely that's still reasonable.

They used it against me when I left for 1 month after being in Argentina for 1.5 years. In the end it took me 6 years to get citizenship. Just sneak out via Uruguay, Paraguay, or Bolivia.

Wait, that's wild. Which court did you file in? And what do you mean, sneak out? I've taken the boat to Montevideo and they check you leaving/coming back in iirc.

This is my experience. It’s not me but been part of it indirectly from the beginning until the citizenship granted. One thing I have to mention, which is very important; this guy holds permanent residency, married to an Argentine and got kids born in Argentina. So he’s both a husband and father of citizens. Came to Argentina for a few weeks each year. Never lived there. Got kids there. Been out of the country for 11 months almost each year. Applied for citizenship himself and got granted in months. Everyone was saying it’s because he’s a father and spouse of Argentines and he is holding permenente. 6 months whatever was no issue at all. It may be different for people with different status.

This is a completely different universe of scenarios from my life. I am single, childless, very gay, and planning to spend most of my time in Argentina.

 

[inspectorlow]

Slightly askance of the original topic, but what's the general chatter about Milei's yet-to-be-proposed citizenship law reform?

 

[Johngwyn]

It may varies. I remember I read a post in this forum last year. Someone filed citizenship application but rejected by the judge because of 3 days holiday visit back home in states out of something like continuous 5 years residence? So it depend on the judge how to interpret the timeline. But staying 2 years straight sound fair and easy in most cases, if that won't bother you or so.

 

[inspectorlow]

It may varies. I remember I read a post in this forum last year. Someone filed citizenship application but rejected by the judge because of 3 days holiday visit back home in states out of something like continuous 5 years residence? So it depend on the judge how to interpret the timeline. But staying 2 years straight sound fair and easy in most cases, if that won't bother you or so.

Yeah, but I imagine there are lots of particulars around maintaining residency that influenced that decision. Or you simply research which judges/courts to avoid filing in. I would hope a good lawyer is tuned into these things.

That also doesn't make sense—3 days placed anywhere in a 5-yr continuum still leaves you with 2 years. of unbroken residency.

In my case, I would be required to travel to the States for 2-4 weeks/year for work, so a strict "lock yourself in Argentina for 730 days straight" policy isn't practical to me, nor do I feel it's a valid, defensible legal interpretation.

So in cases like the one you described, there must be more to the story or I have to believe the details as reported by that poster aren't fully accurate.

 

[Johngwyn]

Yeah, but I imagine there are lots of particulars around maintaining residency that influenced that decision. Or you simply research which judges/courts to avoid filing in. I would hope a good lawyer is tuned into these things.

That also doesn't make sense—3 days placed anywhere in a 5-yr continuum still leaves you with 2 years. of unbroken residency.

In my case, I would be required to travel to the States for 2-4 weeks/year for work, so a strict "lock yourself in Argentina for 730 days straight" policy isn't practical to me, nor do I feel it's a valid, defensible legal interpretation.

So in cases like the one you described, there must be more to the story or I have to believe the details as reported by that poster aren't fully accurate.

One lawyer I've spoke to said the courts are randomly assigned to avoid 'unfair practices'. So you can't pick to court. But I agree, you can travel as much as you like but this is Argentina. If you already living here, you would find so many things that doesn't make sense but exist anyway.