Looking For Advice: Border Hopping, 90 Day Visa Extension, or Overstay?

JacksonR

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Hello all! I am a United States student that is spending a year abroad in Argentina for a school. So far its been a great experience! I have been here for 2 months already and I am approaching the end of my 90 day visa. I am under the impression that my options are to border hop, apply for the 90 day extension, or overstay the visa. (side note: I do plan on traveling to other countries during this year). I have heard that in the past people will border hop with no problem. My concerns with this option is that I hear the borders are more strict on this post-covid. Also concerning border hopping, are you more likely to get in trouble/stopped at customs the more you do it, and is there a recommended time limit to stay out of country? Also is it better to hop through several different countries before returning? (i.e. Argentina -> Uruguay -> Chile -> Argentina) In regards to the 90 day extension, I hear that the process to get it is easy. However I have an American friend that I met here that said 90 day extension comes with a unique stamp in your passport. This stamp caused some problems for him when he tried re-entering because the stamp is not very common so the border agent noticed it and had problems with it. I am concerned this may happen with me as well, especially if I end up overstaying or border hopping in the future, after obtaining the extension. Lastly, I can overstay my visa. This would affect travel plans, which would not be Ideal, however school comes first so I can push off the traveling until I don't need to re-enter. My main concern with this plan is that I am worried that the overstaying may make it harder for me travel to other countries in the future, as I hear countries may deny my entrance. Ideally I would like an option that lets me keep my ability to leave and re-enter Argentina for the next year, and I would like to prevent as many problems at the border or with costumes as possible. Any help is appreciated!
 
I think 90 day extension might mean, you can't comeback that soon. In other words you can't get a 90 day extension and then do a border run and not get a concerned look at the customs. I would think the same would apply to overstay and then a border run. However, I did exit after an overstay and after paying a fine at EZE, and stayed only 3 weeks abroad and returned via EZE with no problems. But I had my wife with me who is a resident, maybe that helped.

I would avoid land border crossings. They are less likely to have experienced people like us and might be more reluctant to grant a 90 day visa.

If I were you, I would not travel to other countries until after you are done with the year/school (that means overstay). If during your school breaks, you yearn for travel, there are many places within Argentina to explore.
 
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