Immigration For Dummies

[Tangerine]

FIRM $8000 pesos Argentinos, .... not a penny less.

Whmmm, but the other Argentina living sabio thinks that sum is not enough, but either way, if taking my transcript pension figure to
Argentina consulate in San Fancisco, CA then can get it translated to Spanish when coming to Bs As.

Then what is the nex step?.. Go to Extranjeria Argentina and apply for a provisional Residence?

Not enough by 3 times....

What is next? Learn a little more Argentine Spanish... Extranjería is a Chilean word.

The Left Coast Argentine Consulate is in Los Angeles.....
BTW: Their favorite thing to say is “Por favor venga mañana”

 

[angelskywalker]

Great stuff!
Question: would you get a permanent DNI straightaway if you're married to an Argentine but your child was born abroad?

 

[ElQueso]

Great stuff!
Question: would you get a permanent DNI straightaway if you're married to an Argentine but your child was born abroad?

In that case it doesn't matter where your child was born, it's the marriage to an Argentine that would matter. Yes, you would get a permanent DNI.

 

[Patagone]

Great thread, thanks to all.

In that case it doesn't matter where your child was born, it's the marriage to an Argentine that would matter. Yes, you would get a permanent DNI.

As I needed a police check (with apostille) to get married (in Argentina), would I still need (another, new) one for the DNI/Residency? It's a real pain trying to get one from Argentina for EU citizens. Cheers!

 

[khairyexpat]

.......................................... ....................LAST UPDATE SUPERSEDES ALL PREVIOUS POSTS

..................................................... HOW MORE SIMPLE CAN IT BE ?
............................................................ (yet it took me over 9 years) #5
If I had to do it all over again today, knowing this, I could get my Precaria (from A to Z) in less than 3 weeks.


Citizenship and Residency are 2 completely separate processes (absolutely nothing to do with each other).
Citizenship can be acquired directly without Residency. (Unique to Argentina.)

NO DNI PROCESS will be started before successful completion of either Residency or Citizenship. #1.



____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
RESIDENCY: The Netty Gritty:

#1.
The Horse Before The Carriage.

#1.1. Your 1[sup]st[/sup] task is to select and identify the Residency Category you´re choosing to qualify under.​

#1.2. Then you start to gather the 7 Documents: the 6 standard + the ONE individual that supports your specific chosen category, e.g. PensionStatement or PreContractWorkOffer or UniversityAdmission or MonthlyRentalIncome … you get the picture.​

#1.3. Then you present your case at Retiro, and they grant or deny your Residency request.​

#1.4. If Residency is granted, then and only then you apply and get the DNI.​

#2.
Residency Categories Requirements:

#2.1. Pensionado. Retired Passive Income. Monthly Minimum UNSPECIFIED. (I took a gamble and passed with ~ $1100 US. ….. Does any one know?)​

#2.2. Rentista. Monthly Minimum very clearly specified (currently = $8000 pesos). ... it hasn´t changed since the Dollar was 3 pesos. This is an ANOMALY (in your favor, … welcome to Argentina!!!) that can not last for much longer, and may never happen again. Non negotiable $8000 pesos. Immigration Agents have no DISCRETION on it. They don´t estimate, asses or evaluate, what it SHOULD be on an individual basis, how many members in your family, cost of living, … nothing of the sort. … (even if you´re supporting a family with 13 children … still $8000 pesos). But they have to verify if the source is acceptable, if it´s laundry, ... etc. For Rentista .. MONTHLY PASSIVE INCOME is the criteria, e.g. Rent, Stock dividends, trust fund, interest, Capital Gains, etc (NO assets, NO Salary).​

If you have a million Dollar sitting in the Bank, only the interest is your Monthly Income. If the interest is below $8000 peso, then you have to convert some of your $1 million to a Trust Fund that will pay you Monthly Passive Income. Or buy a real state property that pays you Monthly Passive Income (rent). Set up a Panamanian company (they say it´s easy to do), with creative accounting it will regularly pay you a Passive Monthly Income in the form of stock Dividends (NOT Salary).​

#2.3. Work. Employee sponsored by an Argentine Employer (Certified to hire foreigners).​

Some employer will sponsor your Work Res if you accept min. wage. (Teach English, IT, .. etc).​

With Argie partner, you could legally register an Argentine Business Investment to get a Work Res. for your self as a Manager of that Business. ( notice you are not applying for or getting a Business Investor Res.).​

#2.4. Family.​

#2.4.1.. .Marriage to Argentine Permanent Resident. doesn't have to be Argentine Native or Citizen, (Perm. Res.). #15.​

#2.4.2... Parenting an Argentine Child. (Perm. Res.). #15.​

#2.4.3... Being a Child of an Argentine Parent. (Perm. Res.). #15.​

#2.4.4... Family re-union. (Temp. Res.).​

#2.5.....Investor: Minimum of $300,000 pesos (latest figures) investment to employ and Create Work for Argentines. .​

#2.6.....Student. Certified institution will give you the 1 Individual document.​

#2.6.1. Full Program will grant you a Temp. Res.​

#2.6.2. Short minor programs only lead to Trans. Res.. (even studying Spanish will qualify).​

Student Residency is outstanding. If you comply with all it´s conditions, you could work legally and on 3[sup]rd[/sup] renewal you qualify for Perm. Res. #13., #19.​

#2.7......Medical Purposes.
#2.8......Religious Members.
#2.9......Artists.
#2.10....Sports.
#2.11....Political Asylum.
#2.12....Refugees.
#2.13....Scientists.
#2.14....Academics.
#2.15....Diplomat.
#2.16....Humanitarian.
#2.17....Special.​

#3.
Retiro: I booked my 1 week ¨Turno¨ online. Went by myself, ... all alone.
With the expectation: "Here we are ... My first day in a long grueling bureaucratic 6 months nightmare ".
Aside from answering few questions, paying $600 peso here (Res. fee) and $40 peso there (DNI fee), there is nothing else to do but wait while they do all the work.
He asked 2 questions:
Q: "Why are you here?".........…...... ....A: "Pensionado."
Q: "Why so many passports?"..…...... A: "Canadian passport expires every 5 years."
In less than 2 hours I walked away with my PRECARIA. I was shocked.

#4.
PRECARIA + Passport = DNI
Instantly on the spot you get a PRECARIA until they mail your DNI when it's ready.
(Or instead of waiting for the mail, you can go pick it up yourself from RENAPER).
Instantly on the spot you can do anything & everything: (Driver License, Bank Account, Cross Borders, .. etc)

#5.
What took so long and caused 9 years of confusion? .. 3 things:

#5.1. Getting to understand the law took me 8 years. A complete Immigration process is mandatory, regardless if I'm living here as a tourist .. (don't work, drive with my own Canadian License, etc ...) .. It is the written law, (even if currently Argentina is NOT enforcing its own laws, . creating the illusion that it is OK to do the Colonia Run). Draw of the luck, 1 in a 1000 will enforce the law, ... and it WILL be GRAVE ( ultimately … court order to leave the country within 10 days, .. OR .. deportation on the spot at the airport .. ). Understand The Perma-Tourist Saga here. See also #18.​

#5.2. Figuring out the process. Putting the million pieces of the puzzle together to get the full picture. Sorting out the myth and misinformation. Pinning down the requirements (I got my Precaria, without knowing the Monthly Minimum .. still till this day .. don't know). Finally you know that it is NOT the mystery or the nightmare horror it´s made to be.​

#5.3. Understanding and gathering Documents. A FOREIGN Document or a LOCAL Non Governmental Document, can NOT be accepted at face value (Worldwide standard bureaucracy). Has to be Legalized OR Apostlled. ( AND translated if not in Spanish). Passport is a WORLDWIDE document (is exempt .. only needs a Legalized Translation). I wasted few months and a lot of money trying to do it the hard way, before I knew that there is a better way.​

#6.
Canada is NOT a signatory of the Hague, (Apostle is not an option for Canucks)

#7.
Criminal Record [Canadian], is NOT required, .. if resided in Argentina the last 5 years, …… WASTE OF TIME & MONEY.
Criminal Records from ALL countries you resided in, in the Last 5 years. Say you left [Canada] to Argentina 4.5 years ago. During which you went to Uruguay for 1.5 years. You will need 3 Criminal Records: [Canada] + [Uruguay] + Argentina Atecedentes.
RCMP Criminal Record could be obtained in less than 1 week, like this:
Your comesaria here, will take your ink fingerprints.
You FedEx that to one of the hundreds of certified agents in [Canada], they will digitize it and send it to RCMP, Receive the result (3 days regular, 1 day rush), Legalize it and FedEx it back to you here.

#8.
I don't think there is a similar service for digital FBI background check for Yankees.
May be you can have a digital live scan if you're in the US and get your FBI report in 3 days.
But you can not FedEx your comesaria ink fingerprint from BA.
(I could be wrong, .. it is a new digital world .. things are changing).

#9.
Birth Certificate is NOT required, if you have Canadian Passport, ……. WASTE OF TIME & MONEY.

#10.
Documents DO EXPIRE. So plan the chronological order in which you gather them.
RCMP expires in 90 days.
Antecedentes Argentina expires in 90 days.
Certificado de Domicilio expires in 30 days.

#11.
Certificado de Domicilio can be substituted by a Bill in your name. For example "Luz", "CableVision", "Telefonica" or "Agua". .... "Luz" or "Agua" bill is more stronger than "CableVision". "Certificado de Domicilio" from Police is the strongest (most official of them all). It is very easy to get. Cost only $10 peso. In Capital Federal it will be delivered to your door steps within 48 hours, and will eliminate any doubt. In Provencia the Registro Civil gives you Declaracion Jurada de Domicilio $20 pesos. (Don't understand why would anyone bother to recommend a bill in your name instead of the Police "Certificado de Domicilio").
Argentine Atecedentes is digital ( $40 pesos/4 days …... $100 pesos/1 day …… $150 pesos/6 hrs ).

#12.
LAST entry Date (not 1st entry Date ) will be the official IMMIGRATION "DNI Fecha Ingreso al Pais", … (e.g. for tax purposes, .. etc…).
Previous entries are considered tourist entries, (even though they count for IMMIGRATION Requirements & processing purposes).

#13.
DNI = a permit to live and work.
DNI´s have NO distinction of the Residency Category.
ALL DNI´s (including DNI obtained as a Student ) will allow you to live & work, and transition to Perm. Res. on 3[sup]rd[/sup] renewal.
DNI number remains the same when you transition from temporary to permanent & will always be marked in red "EXTRANJERO" & will also identify your nationality, and the number will be prefixed with "9". (as opposed to Mercosur DNI or Native DNI, or DNI acquired through Citizenship, .. these will not be marked as such).
Temp. DNI expires each time Temp. Res. expires.
Temp. DNI has to be renewed each time you renew your Temp. Residency.
Perm. DNI also expires, but not for 10 or 15 years.
Temp. or Perm. Resident = a citizen/national of another country.

#14.
Bank Account needed?
Never the issue been raised or discussed [in my case].
(On a side note, I previously managed to have a bank account/purchase and register a car in my name .. etc .. as a tourist with my passport only).

#15.
Marriage to a PERMANENT RESIDENT (doesn't even have to be an Argentine Native or Citizen) or fathering a child will lead directly to PERMANENT Res. directly right away (no PRECARIA no 3 years of temporary Res. ). (Tempting .. No? ... In my desperation I briefly contemplated the idea, but thank God didn't do it). Extremely complicated nightmare and dangerous tramite. They will find out if you were married before, even if you say you were not. They will ask for divorce papers (and even previous marriage certificate). Even if you decide to go ahead anyway, are you gonna fight for 2 years to get divorce after? No "Prenuptial" in Argentina. Your spouse will have the right to 50% of what you accumulate during marriage. Crazy stupid idea, to put it mildly. Playing with fire, you might get burned.

#16.
Citizenship is very hard to be lost or revoked. It's even difficult (next to impossible), to renounce ones own existing citizenship. It's perfectly normal to acquire dual and multiple citizenships. Only very few countries prohibit dual citizenship (e.g. Germany, Singapore.. etc). Argentine Permanent Residency could be lost if you live somewhere else for more than 2 years. Residency could be revoked,... for example if indicted in a crime. US Permanent Residency could be revoked, for merely having INTENTIONS to live or acquire Residency in another country. Rules differ from one country to another. An [Argentine/Canadian] dual citizen will be under Argentine law while in Argentina, under Canadian law while in Canada, but while in any other country, can choose which citizenship to use.
Temp. or Perm. Resident = a citizen/national of another country.

#17.
Overstaying tourist visa earns you IRREGULAR STATUS punishable by $300 pesos fine. Best paid at Migraciones, OR at Ezeiza 24/7, (if you prefer adrenalin), OR online (if the site is up and running). Even if Migraciones rejects your residency application officially, you´re still IRREGULAR, and you still can overstay for years, while appealing in courts. Up until when you get a court order to leave the country within 10 days (1 in a million chance), ONLY then .. that ultimately it becomes ILLEGAL. (Unique to Argentina). #18.
For most of the rest of the world, it'd earn you an ILLEGAL STATUS right from the start (punishable by jail & black listed not to re-enter the country again).

#18.
Deportation: Very Few Lucky Ones will get caught overstaying their tourist visa and will have their passport stamped "Ultima Prórroga" (Last Extension). Also, Very Few of the Above Very Few will once again get lucky one more time, when trying to re-enter the country with "Ultima Prórroga" stamp in their passport and will be denied entry visa. If you paid the $300 peso overstay fine before you left, .. next time on your entry they most probably will ignore the law and give a new 90 day stamp, even if you have the "Ultima Prórroga" stamp in your passport. ( yes .. yes … it all depends on immigration officer mood at the moment). 1 in 1000 WILL get lucky. It certainly DOES happen. 3 cases have been reported on this forum in the last few months. #22. … WARNING: If you did not pay the $300 pesos overstay fine before your exit, don´t try to re-enter without legal counsel pre planned before arrival. Rest assured you will be in big trouble, .. 100% guaranteed !
Also be aware of the reciprocity fee. Eye for an eye retaliation fee, … you could be back on the same plane you arrived on, if you don´t adhere to the letter.

#19.
Prórroga: To renew Temp. Res. each year, you ask for a "Prórroga turno",
Radicacion: To change Residency (Cambio de Categoria), from Temp. to Perm. OR from Tourist to Temp. Res. OR from Tourist to Perm. Res., you ask for a different turno: "Radicacion turno". .. (They will throw you out if you book the wrong turno).
Each Prórroga they´ll stamp your passport with ONE year. NO Precaria and NO photos. But, you´ll have to apply and get the new DNI seperately yourself.
Each Radicacion they give you a Precaria, so you need to supply the fotos, but they will process the DNI for you seamlessly.
Perm. Res. can be obtained after accumulation “Tener Arraigo” of THREE (3) previous ONE year Temporary Residences (No Transitory Res. allowed), regardless of the Temp. Res. Category or combinations of Temp. Res. Categories you accumulate, e.g. (1 year Student + 1 year Rentista + 1 year Pensionado), with a minimum of 6 month stay in the country for each year, with an UNINTERRUPTED renewal each year. You start the renewal process sixty (60) days before the end of each of the 3 years. By letting one Temporary Res. expire, ALL previous accumulation will be lost. You'll have to re-start all over again ANEW.

#20.
The 1 INDIVIDUAL Document is a collection of ALL the components required to support the specific Res. Category applied for.
For example: The 1 INDIVIDUAL Document of a Student Res is a LOCAL LEGALIZED Document composed of 3 components:
………………Certficado de Alumno Regular,
.....................Certificado Analítico con Materias Aprobadas (transcript),
.....................and a "note" from your Master's or Doctoral program.

#21.
For 80%......of straightforward average cases, ... that is all you need to know.
....................Everyday, thousands are processing their own immigration at Retiro without specialized legal representation.
10%............special cases may need extra info, ... dig deeper in the OP by SteveInBA, .. OR .. seek professional counsel
10%............are severely complicated acute cases ( + those who couldn't be bothered), .. definitely seek professional counsel.

#22.
IMMIGRATION OFFICER DISCRETION AT THE BORDERS … is far reaching. … Almost absolute, for so many countries around the world (Argentina is no exception). He and he alone, (.. and yes depending on how he feels at the moment) can decide to deport you on the spot right there and then, … put you back on the same plane you arrived on. He/she can deny you entry even the FIRST time you visit the country. The only difference is that in Argentina 1 in a 1000 will exercise this power, in the rest of the world the opposite, 999 out of 1000 you will get caught. Better be honest, even if you overstay, don´t make him feel like a fool.

#23.
A very special thanks and gratitude to @kettle for his meticulous guidance and tremendous valuable input.
I have ZERO legal background.
For 9 years as a permaTourist I did not know any of this, till I came across BAExpats by accident.
I sifted through few selective posts of SteveInBA's Mammoth thread "Argentine Citizenship for Foreigners", to figure out my case.
Other posts skimmed over my head..... SEVERAL YEARS worth, .. 1000´s of posts .. heated arguments and legal jargon.
I'm not soliciting anything or giving any advice. Just offering my time to share my own personal experience.
Hoping it may be useful to someone who doesn´t know, the same way SteveInBA's OP was helpful to me.
I get a kick & a sense of satisfaction when I learn how to do something new. (fix my car {when I was younger}, do my Int´l taxes {when I worked in the US}, .. ). Even if at the end I hand it over to a professional, it's comforting, .. I'm not totally in the dark.
Says who .. an old dog can't learn a new trick?

#24.
Your valuable input, .. (Info / Content / Value Added) UPDATES, ADDITIONS or CORRECTIONS are most welcome.
You will be helping someone who doesn't know and needs to know.

#25.
Important Addresses:
Direccion Nacional de Migraciones (Retiro)..........Av. Antartida Argentina 1355
Argentine Ministry of External Affairs....................Arenales 819
Colegio de Traductores Publico ...................... ....Av. Corrientes 1834
Registro Nacional de Reincidencia.......................Tucumán 1353
Registro Nacional de las Personas.......................Hipólito Yrigoyen 952
Registro Nacional de las Personas.......................Jujuy 468
Poder Judicial de la Nacion...................................Talcahuano 550

Tramite Migraciones.............................................http://www.migracion...ible/indexN.php
Turno Migraciones................................................http://www.migracion...ible/indexN.php
Antecedentes Penales..........................................http://www.jus.gob.a...es-penales.aspx
Antecedentes Penales..........................................http://www.dnrec.jus.gov.ar
Argentine Citizenship For Foreigners....................http://baexpats.org/...for +foreigners
Registro Nacional de las Personas ...................... http://www.mininteri...per/renaper.php



____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

[Napoleon]

I'm so glad that I don't have to worry about this bull-honkey anymore.

I met up with an amigo argentino in the States this past week and we were flying off in rioplatense castellano. There was a colombiano in the room as well, but he was having some trouble understanding us. It's like speaking Yiddish or something. Most people don't know exactly what you're saying if you don't want them to.

 

[khairyexpat]

Most people don't know exactly what you're saying if you don't want them to.

By now, ... my only hope is that it´s all as clear as mud.

 

[khairyexpat]

Not enough by 3 times....

$8000 Argentine Pesos is the law of the land as it still stands today.
(everyone knows that it´s ridiculously too little ..... nonetheless IT IS the law)

Till if and when a new law or a new decree, ... it stays in effect !

No, opinions please !
Please notify and update this Forum of any info on a new LAW. ... your help will be appreciated !

 

[sevi]

Your work was very helpful for my residency application. I used it as a starting point. Thank you for posting this here!

I have one comment re:

#15.
Marriage[background=rgb(252, 252, 252)] to a PERMANENT RESIDENT (doesn't even have to be an Argentine Native or Citizen) or fathering a child will lead directly to PERMANENT Res. directly right away (no PRECARIA no 3 years of temporary Res. ). (Tempting .. No? ... In my desperation I briefly contemplated the idea, but thank God didn't do it). Extremely complicated nightmare and dangerous tramite. They will find out if you were married before, even if you say you were not. They will ask for divorce papers (and even previous marriage certificate). Even if you decide to go ahead anyway, are you gonna fight for 2 years to get divorce after? No "Prenuptial" in Argentina. Your spouse will have the right to 50% of what you accumulate during marriage. Crazy stupid idea, to put it mildly. Playing with fire, you might get burned.[/background]

Marriage to a permanent resident or citizen does not lead directly to permanent residence without precaria. You still get your precaria residence first when you apply at migraciones. Once your application has been approved and signed then you receive your permanent residency (and after a while your DNI). I had the precaria for about 3 months before I received the permanent residency.

 

[khairyexpat]

Your work was very helpful for my residency application. I used it as a starting point. Thank you for posting this here!

I have one comment re:
Marriage to a permanent resident or citizen does not lead directly to permanent residence without precaria. You still get your precaria residence first when you apply at migraciones. Once your application has been approved and signed then you receive your permanent residency (and after a while your DNI). I had the precaria for about 3 months before I received the permanent residency.

I´m glad it´s been of some help to you, as much as it´s been of great help to me to find most of this info on BAExpats .

You´re absolutely correct that it´s missing on the chart .... but it has already been in Bullet #19 :
The next update already reflects this modification on the chart, also ¨without precaria¨ in Bullet #15 was deleted ... but I never got time to release it.

#19.
Prórroga: To renew Temp. Res. each year, you ask for a "Prórroga turno",
Radicacion: To change Residency (Cambio de Categoria), from Temp. to Perm. OR from Tourist to Temp. Res. OR from Tourist to Perm. Res., you ask for a different turno: "Radicacion turno". .. (They will throw you out if you book the wrong turno).
Each Prórroga they´ll stamp your passport with ONE year. NO Precaria and NO photos. But, you´ll have to apply and get the new DNI seperately yourself.
Each Radicacion they give you a Precaria, so you need to supply the fotos, but they will process the DNI for you seamlessly.