Visa / Temporary Residency For An American Remote Worker

[haascava]

Hello!

I'm an American thinking about relocating to Buenos Aires in May and I was wondering if anyone here would have advice for which particular course of action I should follow.

I've been employed by an American technology company for three years, and they have offered to allow me to work remotely. As such, I will not be moving to Argentina with the purpose of finding a job once I get there. I will be employed full-time by an American company, being paid in USD that is direct deposited to an American bank account.

Most of the things I've read so far from other digital remote workers indicates that it's easy enough to renew your tourist visa every 3 months, however my company isn't comfortable with that level of instability and would prefer that I attempt to establish something a little more mid-term, as I intend to stay for 1 - 3 years.

However, none of the temporary residencies I've seen on http://www.migraciones.gov.ar/accesible/indexP.php?nomercosur_temporaria seem to apply to my case, unless I would be considered a Rentista? I'm not exactly sure if that refers to someone who will be renting real estate as opposed to owning?

If anyone here could provide some insight I would really appreciate it. Thanks!

 

[Greg2231]

You read correctly, you situation doesn't qualify under any of the standard visas, as there is no remote working Visa, and to be more specific if you are residing in Argentina and working you owe Argentina Taxes, it isn't relevant that your work product is shipped abroad or that you receive payment abroad, you are working from Argentina, so therefore you should be registered and paying taxes here.

 

[gracielle]

Posted on 28 November 2014 under topic: Int'l Taxes For Dummies, courtesy of forum member, "eorl".....

[background=rgb(252, 252, 252)]....It is a difficult topic because rather than having a rule every answer turns into "it depends." Just using the USA and Argentina as examples sometimes you should pay social security to both countries, only one country, or neither country. It all depends on the circumstances (Argentine employer, USA employed on assignment to Argentina, Self-employed, etc.) Income taxes can be another issue whether or not to use credits or elect exclusions. Sometimes the answer is clear, other times it makes no difference, but most of the time it depends on your current and future circumstances.[/background]

[background=rgb(252, 252, 252)]A really big issue here is that accountants tend to do two tax returns. The first one according to the rules and the second is "What can we get away with." Most people tend to file the the second. It is so common that most accountants here told me they would have no clients if they did everything according to the rules. This differs from the USA where the majority of accountants (at least the professional ones) try to file a return as accurate as possible. [/background]

[background=yellow]For[/background][background=rgb(252, 252, 252)] USA citizens a good book is...The Expatriate’s Tax Bible—The Complete Guide to U.S. and [/background][background=yellow]For[/background][background=rgb(252, 252, 252)]eign Taxes [/background][background=yellow]for[/background][background=rgb(252, 252, 252)] the American Abroad[/background]
[background=rgb(252, 252, 252)]A free copy is available on pdf if you google the name. It isn't up to date (2008) but it covers the general rules with specific examples. [/background]

 

[gostomper]

You can stay 6 months. Before the 3 month stamp is expired you go to the immigration office pay a fee and get three more. After 6 months you must leave. Not sure what you or your company means by instability though, as long as you avoid North Korea, you can connect to the internet and do work. If you want to stay longer the student visa isn't a bad option. Just take a class or two that qualifies for it. Like a long term spanish class.

 

[summysammy]

I recently got married and was here for almost 3 years working remotely. It was a choice I made so that I could be economically independent while we did the "boyfriend girlfriend courtship" thing. I never found a visa that worked for me. I did the extension once, and then just left the country to Uruguay or to the US for a yearly work meeting. Now I am processing my marriage visa, but I can say that I just was a tourist for all this time. I admit my work didn't like the idea, but it is not easy for them to establish a biz here in Argentina to then officially hire me. Their other option was to use a company that acts as a third party to hire people (like a consultancy) and the company would take their contract and job profile, hire me, and pay me through them (of course for a fee). Basically the company acts as a local HR, but in Argentina we didn't find any companies to do that. Probably because the economy has been so tricky. So, alas, your only option at the moment is that you might qualify for a rent income temporary visa, or you have to be a perma tourist.

 

[haascava]

Thanks so much for your replies, I really appreciate ya'lls insight.

 

[geash]

How good is your Spanish? If you consider yourself pretty fluent there are some Master's programs you could enroll in that only meet Friday and Saturday and you could get a student visa through that. Just in case your Spanish is above the level that the Español como lengua extranjera schools offer.

 

[haascava]

I'm fluent in Spanish and I was able to carry regular university courses while I was studying at UNAM in Mexico City in my 20's. But I unfortunately never completed my Bachelor's, so I can't apply for a Master's program. :-\