Tourist visa renewal and renewal and renewal....

[cujodu]

Hi, I'm from the USA but have spent a lot of time in Argentina over the past several years. I have 7 pages of stamps from Argentina and Uruguay.... a few weeks in 2005, 6 months over 2 trips in 2006/2007, and now I've been here since March 2008. I go to Colonia every 3 months to renew the visa.

However, last week, the Argentine official at the immigration desk in Colonia started asking me a lot of questions about why I was spending so much time in Argentina and what I'm doing here. I really felt like he might deny the visa or maybe by the next time some one else will. He finally stamped it and threw it back at me. Is this a legitimate concern? Is there a limit on how many times you can go back and forth to renew the tourist visa? Should I pack my bags and get out of the country before the visa expires again? I'm in a relationship here, have an apartment, and my dog is here so I'm really concerned that I would end up stranded in Uruguay one of these days. Any advice would be welcome!! Thank you so much!!

 

[Stanexpat]

Hi, I'm from the USA but have spent a lot of time in Argentina over the past several years. I have 7 pages of stamps from Argentina and Uruguay.... a few weeks in 2005, 6 months over 2 trips in 2006/2007, and now I've been here since March 2008. I go to Colonia every 3 months to renew the visa.

However, last week, the Argentine official at the immigration desk in Colonia started asking me a lot of questions about why I was spending so much time in Argentina and what I'm doing here. I really felt like he might deny the visa or maybe by the next time some one else will. He finally stamped it and threw it back at me. Is this a legitimate concern? Is there a limit on how many times you can go back and forth to renew the tourist visa? Should I pack my bags and get out of the country before the visa expires again? I'm in a relationship here, have an apartment, and my dog is here so I'm really concerned that I would end up stranded in Uruguay one of these days. Any advice would be welcome!! Thank you so much!!

A tourist visa is valid for a short stay for the purpose of tourism. It's not valid for the purpose of living in Argentina as a resident. Given this they could deny a renewal and not allow you entry to the country. A lot of people think they are legal by getting the 90 tourist renewal, they aren't.

If they decide to enforce the rules you would have a problem. I don't know how likely this is.

 

[nikad]

get married

 

[Napoleon]

Have a kid

(You don't have to get married)

 

[steveinbsas]

Hi, I'm from the USA but have spent a lot of time in Argentina over the past several years. I have 7 pages of stamps from Argentina and Uruguay.... a few weeks in 2005, 6 months over 2 trips in 2006/2007, and now I've been here since March 2008. I go to Colonia every 3 months to renew the visa.

It isn't necessary to go Colina every three months.

Migraciones routinely grants a 90 day extension of the "tourist visa" at their office on Antardida in Puerto Madera.

Had you done this in the past you would only have half as many stamps in your passport..IF they grant the extension more than once.

As you have already gone back and forth so many times they might ask questions, too. Nonetheless, it's probably worth a try. If they say no here, you will have to go to Colonia again, but in that case you may face more questions coming back..

Another member of the forum once posted that the law states that foreigners may not stay in Argentina more than six months a year without a resident visa. If that's the case, the immigration authorities here have been "soft" on enforcement for quite a while, but they certainly know what's going on.

If they do crack down in the future, they still might let you back in for an additional 90 days, but could write in your passport that it's the "last" time they will allow it until you have stayed out of the country for six months.

 

[diego7david]

suggestion get a new passport

 

[mopo]

I didn't know that Steveinbsas. So what i have to do is go to Migration office and they will extend my visa without any problem (it will be the first time!!)?

Probably you have to pay a fee, but it's the same as if i go to Colonia, right?

 

[syngirl]

Having a kid works for women, not for guys (don't know which you are). One of my male friend's girlfriend's is pregnant, he said that as far as he can figure out the law only works for keeping the mum and baby together, but they could care less about the dad, haha. Do you have info that's different? If so I think he'd love to know about it!

As for original poster, you're in a bit of a difficult situation since tecnichally you are doing something illegal by overstaying. However so far immigration hasn't tried to crack down. But see, the thing is foreigners who come down here make the mistake of trying to be legal. Who's ever heard of Mexicans going down to Guadalajara every 90 or 180 days to renew their "tourist" visas. Illegals that enter the States never leave until they leave permanently. They understand that they are illegal and therefore don't even bother to mess around with the system.

Face it, you're an illegal immigrant here -- so you have to decide, do you keep pretending you're not and keep renewing you're visa every 90 days, or do you just stop renewing and live with the fact that some day when you leave the country after staying over for X months or X years, when you try to get back in they might just tell you No Way.

Ultimately though, without residency there are some things that will just be a pain in the butt in the long term -- driving licences, bank accounts, long term contracts, jobs etc. Obviously you can get through life without a lot of these things, so it's really up to you how you tackle the situation.

 

[syngirl]

I didn't know that Steveinbsas. So what i have to do is go to Migration office and they will extend my visa without any problem (it will be the first time!!)?

Probably you have to pay a fee, but it's the same as if i go to Colonia, right?

I think the fee at Migraciones is about 100 pesos. Going to Colonia these days must be around that as well. The multa when you leave via the airport is 50 pesos. If you're down here for a holiday and when you leave you're leaving for good, I'd just say pay the multa on the way out of the airport instead. As the woman at the airport once told me, it's the smae fine whether you overstay by 2 days, 2 weeks, 2 years, or 20 years... (at least for the moment)

 

[steveinbsas]

I didn't know that Steveinbsas. So what i have to do is go to Migration office and they will extend my visa without any problem (it will be the first time!!)?

Probably you have to pay a fee, but it's the same as if i go to Colonia, right?

Syngirl is correct. The fee is $100 pesos. You can request the extension at the desk of the prorrogas de permanencia. Its easy and automatic, at least the first time. With so many stamps in your passport they might give you some static. If you go just prior to the expiration of your current 90 day "residencia transitoria" (tourist visa) you could face the possibility of being refused, but they just might say OK. If they don't then it's another trip to Colonia. You could follow syngirl's suggestion and stay on without a valid entry stamp in your passport, but I personally would not recommend it.

As I previously noted, I believe the legal maximum stay in Argentina without a temporary resident (residencia temporaria) visa is six months per year, but even if that is the case, so many have gone to Colonia every six months and have been readmitted, it apparently isn't being enforced.