Residencia Transitoria/Temporaria por estudios & other issues

[marrekesz]

Dear All,

I have found other posts in the forum helpful, but I would like to ask for help from the more experienced expats anyway.
I entered the country (I had lived here before but always as a tourist) on 10 December, 2025, and am now applying for a residency as a student at Wanderlust Spanish. I have signed up purely to access the legal stay options, as I speak fluent Argentinian Spanish already. The school have been helpful, but occasionally uninformed.

First, I have been told that once approved, my residency will count towards the permanent one or citizenship, whether or not it is temporaria or transitoria por estudios. Plus, my trámite indicates the category of transitoria por estudios por 6 meses o más even if the school have given me a certificado de inscripción for one year (renewable). Is it possible to clarify that on the spot with Migraciones during a cita presencial? I have paid a lot of money to obtain all documents and return here so need to be sure.

Second, I shall need to travel during the European summer 2026 for work (max 4 months) whilst maintaining the domicilio and ties with Argentina during my absence (such as keeping the record of monotributo, once I have opened it, continuously). I have read multiple speculations about the challenging of the infamous decree 366/2025 suggesting no travel abroad for two (sic!) years prior to a citizenship application (apparently NOT affecting the permanent residency applications)... But has anyone had similar discussions with lawyers already? I feel that the person I have contacted is hardly reliable.

I would appreciate any help.

Best,
Marek Szczabel

 

[DotConnector]

I figured the two year stick in the country was a bit ridiculous. It should allow you to go in vacation and not being held against your intention to untaron citizenship. Then again, I believe the US has something along the same lines.

 

[escape004]

Transitory visas do NOT get you permanent residency as far as I know. Nobody really knows the rules for citizenship since the change, but most lawyers are saying you need temp residency, not transitory. I started on transitory residency and Im changing to a student visa to get temp residnecy.

 

[marrekesz]

Transitory visas do NOT get you permanent residency as far as I know. Nobody really knows the rules for citizenship since the change, but most lawyers are saying you need temp residency, not transitory. I started on transitory residency and Im changing to a student visa to get temp residnecy.

From what I am told, I should get a type of residency which will allow me to stay for a year (renewable), since I have signed up for a year of lessons and my inscripción is for 12 months. Yet, the system has apparently taken it as a residencia transitoria por 6 meses o más. It is confusing, as both the lawyer and the school keep reassuring me that the time spent with them will count towards the permanent residency and/or citizenship.

Hence the question: perhaps I could clarify it during a meeting with Migraciones, but I would like to avoid more delays.

 

[SlowWalker]

Transitory visas do NOT get you permanent residency as far as I know. Nobody really knows the rules for citizenship since the change, but most lawyers are saying you need temp residency, not transitory. I started on transitory residency and Im changing to a student visa to get temp residnecy.

I think a work visa might count towards permanent residency.
But you need 2 years if you from a Mercosur country, or 3 years otherwise.

 

[escape004]

From what I am told, I should get a type of residency which will allow me to stay for a year (renewable), since I have signed up for a year of lessons and my inscripción is for 12 months. Yet, the system has apparently taken it as a residencia transitoria por 6 meses o más. It is confusing, as both the lawyer and the school keep reassuring me that the time spent with them will count towards the permanent residency and/or citizenship.

Hence the question: perhaps I could clarify it during a meeting with Migraciones, but I would like to avoid more delays.

You won't even get a DNI with a transitory visa. Its basically a longer tourist visa. Its uncertain if it helps with citizenship, but you need temporary residency to get permanent residency. Transitory residency can be renewed, but it doesnt lead to anything. I also originally got my transitory visa with Wanderlust.

 

[escape004]

I think a work visa might count towards permanent residency.
But you need 2 years if you from a Mercosur country, or 3 years otherwise.

A work visa falls under temporary residency like a student visa (for official studies).

 

[Alby]

It helps to clarify terminology and use it carefully. There are no "visas" and thus no "student visa" or "work(ing) visa". "Visa" is a term we foreigners here tend to default to as a kind of jargon we are used to, but it confuses matters. In Argentina there are just "residences" (residencias) and three categories thereof: (i) transitoria (transitory), for just a few months, seemingly non-renewable and seemingly no DNI issued, (ii) temporaria (temporary--for one year, and renewable for up to three, entailing also a DNI), and (iii) permanente (permanent). The first two have sub-categories, e.g., in temporaria there are, among others, trabajador migrante (for coming to work, an as employee) and estudiante (for coming to study). Two successive temporaries lead to permanent residency for Mercosur foreigners; for non-Mercosur, it is three successive temporaries. There is also a estudiante (student) sub-category in the transitoria category, introduced in 2023 to cover newer types of short term study such as language programs, internships, exhanges. Anyone hoping to progress to permanent residency starting as a student will need to know which of the two student sub-categories they are in. And it needs to be the one in the temporaria category. A language program sounds to be me like the transitoria, which leads nowhere at the end except out of the country. The institution itself must know and be able to tell the candidate.

Start here: https://www.argentina.gob.ar/migraciones/residencias
Then click on each of "Residencia Transitoria" and "Residencia Temporaria" to see the respective "Estudiante" sub-categories.

(Citizenship is a different category altogether. But let's get the basic concepts and language around residencias clear first.)

 

[zensailor]

Dear All,

I have found other posts in the forum helpful, but I would like to ask for help from the more experienced expats anyway.
I entered the country (I had lived here before but always as a tourist) on 10 December, 2025, and am now applying for a residency as a student at Wanderlust Spanish. I have signed up purely to access the legal stay options, as I speak fluent Argentinian Spanish already. The school have been helpful, but occasionally uninformed.

First, I have been told that once approved, my residency will count towards the permanent one or citizenship, whether or not it is temporaria or transitoria por estudios. Plus, my trámite indicates the category of transitoria por estudios por 6 meses o más even if the school have given me a certificado de inscripción for one year (renewable). Is it possible to clarify that on the spot with Migraciones during a cita presencial? I have paid a lot of money to obtain all documents and return here so need to be sure.

Second, I shall need to travel during the European summer 2026 for work (max 4 months) whilst maintaining the domicilio and ties with Argentina during my absence (such as keeping the record of monotributo, once I have opened it, continuously). I have read multiple speculations about the challenging of the infamous decree 366/2025 suggesting no travel abroad for two (sic!) years prior to a citizenship application (apparently NOT affecting the permanent residency applications)... But has anyone had similar discussions with lawyers already? I feel that the person I have contacted is hardly reliable.

I would appreciate any help.

Best,
Marek Szczabel

If the lawyer you have contacted is "hardly reliable" I would suggest that your first step is to get reliable council ... and then let them, and the others, do their job without all of the second-guessing ... you need a sherpa and you have to trust your sherpa ... in essence, you are trying to game the system and you are looking for a sympathetic guide ... maybe there is a better way to achieve your goal of staying ... good luck ... as they say, " if you don't know diamonds, know the man you are buying diamonds from"

 

[marrekesz]

You won't even get a DNI with a transitory visa. Its basically a longer tourist visa. Its uncertain if it helps with citizenship, but you need temporary residency to get permanent residency. Transitory residency can be renewed, but it doesnt lead to anything. I also originally got my transitory visa with Wanderlust.

Thank you so much. My goal has exactly been to get a DNI and accumulate time for permanent residency. It seems that they have lied to me at Wanderlust? I asked them repeatedly if that time with them would help me get permanent residency, etc. I haven't started with them and I have only taken partial payment from me, but if I confirm what you say - namely, that it gives me no benefit - I shall ask for a refund.