My wife (Argentinian) claims you can live "well" on $1500 a month in Argentina. True?

[earlyretirement]

Hmm , if that's the case then maybe the parents of the cases I know didn't follow the proper procedures somehow, I'll have to see if I can ask more details...

If the child can easily get USA citizenship with one USA parent despite being born abroad then that'd be great though!!


Hopefully the OP can double check the details with the relevent US authorities etc.

Yes, they probably did something wrong because ALL of my friends that had one American and one Porteño that had kids born in Buenos Aires ALL got their kids US citizenship easily just as we did. After the child is born you just have to get the Consular Report of Birth Abroad form filled out. (https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/while-abroad/birth-abroad.html ) And at the US Embassy in Buenos Aires you can also apply to get their social security card for them as well as their passport. All was very efficient and quick. The US Embassy is really fantastic in Buenos Aires.

I got to know them well and I processed my wife's application for US Permanent Residency as well via their office and it couldn't have been easier on that as well. All of these things above didn't take more than a few weeks to get which I was amazed about! I got their social security cards super quick!

Of course if the child is born in Argentina he won't be able to be President of the USA!

That's true! Only my kids born in the USA can be president. We joke about that with our kids born in Buenos Aires.

 

[brandon]

It was very easy to get US citizenship for my son born here 3 years ago.
I found hospital care more personal and relaxed than US. Stay 3 or 4 days, not pushing you out the door after delivery.

 

[RichardP]

Not to be a spoilsport, but check the laws regarding custody of a child born in Argentina should you separate from your wife in the future. Your child may not be allowed to travel until adulthood if she does not allow it.

 

[earlyretirement]

Not to be a spoilsport, but check the laws regarding custody of a child born in Argentina should you separate from your wife in the future. Your child may not be allowed to travel until adulthood if she does not allow it.

Yeah but realistically even if your child gets US citizenship and the mother (Argentine) who lives with the child doesn't want the child to travel, you're going to have a really difficult time. That doesn't matter if the child is a US Citizen or not because they will also be an Argentine citizen and if she lives in Argentina she will have the upper hand. As I've mentioned many times, the judicial system there doesn't really work.

So keep that in mind as well. Really there is NO reason why you wouldn't immediately get US citizenship for your child ASAP they are born there.

 

[sergio]

Yeah but realistically even if your child gets US citizenship and the mother (Argentine) who lives with the child doesn't want the child to travel, you're going to have a really difficult time. That doesn't matter if the child is a US Citizen or not because they will also be an Argentine citizen and if she lives in Argentina she will have the upper hand. As I've mentioned many times, the judicial system there doesn't really work.

So keep that in mind as well. Really there is NO reason why you wouldn't immediately get US citizenship for your child ASAP they are born there.

Put your foot down and stay in the US.

 

[gimesalot]

That's true! Only my kids born in the USA can be president. We joke about that with our kids born in Buenos Aires.

Actually, natural-born U.S. citizens can be president. There is no restriction on where the U.S. citizen can be born. So yes, a child can be born in Argentina to U.S. citizen parents and still become president.

Back to the question at hand... I believe that if your wife's definition of good is a typical Argentine upbringing, yes you can live well on $1500 a month. Most of my family lives on far less than this. Most of my family lives on less than $1000 a month. Here's the thing, if you expect the EXACT same middle/upper class lifestyle as the U.S. there's no way to swing that on $1500 a month.

Just to give you an idea, my budget with no kids is approx $2300 a month. This includes $6000 a year for travel, over $5500 a year for hobbies, and tons of other luxuries like going out to eat, gifts, etc. What isn't included, health insurance as we pay out of pocket ($10 dentist visits, $25 emergency doctors visits, since we are too lazy to go to the FREE public hospital), private schooling (no kids), unlimited taxis, getting trashed at expat bars, fancy imported food, house cleaning services, etc. At $1500 a month, we would be living okay, but there would be little to no travel and much less hobby spending. There would still be money to go out to eat and some cheap activities.

 

[citygirl]

Children born overseas (unless on a US military base aren't considered "natural born citizens". So probably no on the presidency

I'll also be a debbie downer. You realize if you move to Argentina and the child is born in Argentia, if you divorce, you will need to remain in Argentina until child is 18 unless your wife allows the child to travel. It's a pretty big decision. Just keep in mind.

It's not hard to get your child US citizenship (slightly more difficult when it's the father who has US citizenship rather than the mother).

 

[earlyretirement]

Children born overseas (unless on a US military base aren't considered "natural born citizens". So probably no on the presidency

I'll also be a debbie downer. You realize if you move to Argentina and the child is born in Argentia, if you divorce, you will need to remain in Argentina until child is 18 unless your wife allows the child to travel. It's a pretty big decision. Just keep in mind.

It's not hard to get your child US citizenship (slightly more difficult when it's the father who has US citizenship rather than the mother).

Yep. You can't be President of the USA and be born abroad unless you are on a military base. I'm not sure where gimesalot got their information that you can be born wherever and still become president. Kind of funny how they said it so matter of factly. Ha, ha.

Just out of curiosity citygirl, why is it slightly more difficult when the father has US citizenship over the mother? I had not heard that before. I have many friends that had their kids born in Buenos Aires where their spouse was a Porteño and none of them whether they were male or female had any problems at all getting US Citizenship.

You do have good advice about if the child is born in Argentina and how strong of a position the mother has. Argentina has some of the toughest laws against a child under 18 traveling out of the country. We would have to carry a big bag full of documents every time we traveled with them out of Argentina. Birth certificates, Argentine passports, US passports, marriage certificates, DNI's for the kids and us as well. Crazy but then again the odds of a kid getting smuggled out of Argentina are slim to none flying through an International airport.

 

[sergio]

I know of a case whereby an American parent attempted to take his Argentine son out of Argentina and was not allowed to board his plane at Ezeiza He called me crying asking what to do! About being USA president if born abroad. John McCain was born in the Panama Canal Zone which was at the time US territory. The US Congress accepted this as the equivalent of having been born in the USA hence he was allowed to run for office. Had be been born outside the Zone it would have been different. The original poster should insist that his son is born in the US to avoid potential problems and make the child's life easier as a citizen BORN in the US!

 

[citygirl]

Early Retirement - the requirements were slightly more strict for father in terms of time required to have been in the US etc. However Google tells me this changed in 2017. Per USCIS - prior to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Sessions v. Morales-Santana in 2017, the physical presence requirements for children born out of wedlock were different for a child acquiring citizenship through a U.S. citizen mother than for those acquiring through a U.S. citizen father . But it's the same now - 5 years presences with at least 2 years coming after the age of 14 in order to pass citizenship to the child.

It isn't difficult - just there used to be slightly more stringent requirements and was even more so if parents were not legally married - I believe father had to provide written documentation he would support child, etc.

Again, I do NOT mean to be a debbie downer to the OP. I just knew of several expats who wound up "stuck" in Argentina with limited job prospects after having a child and then separating from the Argentina parent. And FWIW - the first year of a kids life is usually TOUGH on a marriage, no matter how much you love the person. Maybe suggest that her family comes and stays with you if she is worried about them not being aroudn when the child is born. Then take some long vacations where you can see how you feel working remotely).

Just my unsolicited two cents...