Permanent Residency

[Nelmi]

Hi All,

I have permanent residency in Argentina and is planning to travel to Europe soon. We are flying to Madrid and will be there for a couple of hours before we fly to Moscow. Can anyone tell me if I can leave the transit area and wander around in the city with my Argentine residency permit or do i need a visa? I travel on a South African passport. I cannot find any information on the Internet and was hoping that maybe somebody here has done this in the past.

Thanks!

 

[ElQueso]

Your Argentine DNI doesn't mean anything to other countries outside of Argentina, as far as I know, except maybe for an official means of ID. Although there has been some (a few, maybe a couple) who have said in the past they could get into Brasil, as a fellow Mercosur country, with just a permanent Argentine residency, but I don't think that's true.

What you can do in Madrid will depend on what your South African passport will allow, so if Spain requires a visa from South African citizens, you will need a visa. If you had an Argentine passport as well, it would be a different story.

 

[gpop]

I just passed through Madrid en-route to Munich a few weeks ago. With my Canadian passport (and permanent res. DNI), Argie wife and kid in tow.

I still had a tense little moment when passing through migraciones over there because the bad-mood border cop claimed our invitation letter could have been written by my daughter, and we did not have hotel reservations as we were staying with family.(and apparently the bad-mood border cop doesn't speak a word of English (really?!?! ...and he works in an an international airport at a prime port of entry to the European continent... not one word of English huh 0_o) and wants the invitation to be translated, authenticated, and have an official seal 0_o ------ somebody woke up on the wrong side of the cama that morning).

This wins the hincha-pelotas of the year award. In hind sight, I should have done the talking there and not the wife. So expect the unexpected, they appear to be in bitchy mode in Madrid. Don't expect leniency without a stack of documentation and double-check every requirement.

 

[Ceviche]

Don't expect leniency without a stack of documentation and double-check every requirement.

Coudn't agree more. Since I got my Argie passport, been many times via London Heathrow. In last visit this month, the officer ( in a bad mood) told me she thinks my Argie passport is fake cos I don't look like a Argie! Despite the fact that it was full of stamps, very busy/crumpled biometric passport. I just kept calm and kept a semi-smile on my face, till she did her investigations ( including flipping my passport in the air to check good knows what) , ( also ensured I had a outbound ticket from UK) before letting me in.

Such are the times!

 

[sesamosinsal]

Visa requirements are based on your citizenship. If you plan to enter Spain with a South African passport, you will need a Schengen visa.

 

[Girino]

I just passed through Madrid en-route to Munich a few weeks ago. With my Canadian passport (and permanent res. DNI), Argie wife and kid in tow.

Some time ago an Argie relative of my husband told me about this invitation letter. She said a friend of hers wanted to visit her daughter in Spain and needed this invitation letter (and a visa?! - not sure it was entirely correct), but I checked on the Spanish Embassy website and I couldn't find anything about this.

My SIL and her Argentine bf both travelled to Barcelona recently on their Argie passport and they did not require such letter. What's the deal?

 

[r2d2]

I still had a tense little moment when passing through migraciones over there because the bad-mood border cop claimed our invitation letter could have been written by my daughter, and we did not have hotel reservations as we were staying with family.

I have heard several times that Spanish immigration officials are extremely unfriendly to travelers from Latin America. Last time from friends from Chile that traveled to Europe on business. Treated them as if they were trying to enter the country illegally.

 

[Ceviche]

I have heard several times that Spanish immigration officials are extremely unfriendly to travelers from Latin America. Last time from friends from Chile that traveled to Europe on business. Treated them as if they were trying to enter the country illegally.

Thats why i always avoid the first stop as Spain when entering Europe on my Argie passport. Its a ideal recipe for trouble.

Its ironic. Have seen many Spaniards from Canary Islands living in BA initially illegally and working en negro, without a DNI.

 

[EJLarson]

I have heard several times that Spanish immigration officials are extremely unfriendly to travelers from Latin America. Last time from friends from Chile that traveled to Europe on business. Treated them as if they were trying to enter the country illegally.

Of all the European countries I've passed through or visited, Spanish travel officials are hands-down the rudest, least-friendly of all. This is based on a small sample size, but the comments in this thread are reinforcing my experiences.

 

[Ceviche]

Just today the Argie girl who works for me told me when she went to Spain for a holiday last year..they detained her in a room for additional verifications before letting her go inside.