Guide · Updated October 2026

Residency in Argentina: the Complete Guide

Which residency fits you

Other routes: pensionado (retirees), business (opening a company in Argentina, which AG sets up as an SA or SRL when it is the right route), Mercosur residency for citizens of Mercosur countries, and the move from temporary to permanent residency.

Student residency

One of the most accessible routes to citizenship. Only an official degree program (licenciatura, tecnicatura, maestría) at an institution registered in RENURE gives temporary residency with a DNI; short courses and language programs only give a transitory stay without a DNI. Choose an in-person program, because Migraciones checks your regular student status and grades at every yearly renewal. A parent can also get residency through a child enrolled in an Argentine secondary school (ages 12 to 18). Since 2025, public universities charge tuition to temporary residents.

Rentista residency

For people who live on regular passive income from abroad. Migraciones does not look at your savings or net worth: it looks for documents that show where the income comes from and how often it is paid (a lease, a pension letter, dividend or interest statements), plus bank statements that show it arriving. The legal minimum is five Argentine minimum wages a month; AG recommends showing about USD 1,500 to 2,000 a month per adult, because the minimum wage and the exchange rate change during the process. Once granted, the income must arrive every month in an Argentine bank account, and that history is reviewed at each yearly renewal.

Work contract residency

The employer must first be registered in RENURE, which usually takes 1 to 3 months. Then a notarized employment contract of at least one year is signed in Spanish, and you file in RaDEX with the documents the employer provides. You get a precaria that lets you live and work while Migraciones reviews the case, which can include an inspection of the workplace. Then RENAPER issues your DNI. It is renewed every year with proof of continued employment, and after 3 years you can apply for permanent residency.

Marriage or civil union with an Argentine

Marriage, or a registered civil union (unión convivencial), gives residency through family reunification. Since 2025 it is a temporary residency first, and permanent residency comes later. You need to be living in Argentina: marriage alone does not give residency or citizenship from abroad.

Digital nomad visa

A transitory permit for people who work remotely for clients or employers outside Argentina, for 180 days and renewable once. You cannot work for Argentine companies, you need health insurance, and it does not lead to permanent residency or citizenship. If your plan is to stay, AG helps you switch to a category that counts.

Rules that apply to everyone

• Criminal records from your country and from any country where you lived 1 year or more in the last 3 years, issued within the last 3 months and apostilled.
• Translations must be done in Argentina by a sworn public translator and legalized by the translators' association. Translations made abroad are not accepted.
• Your name must be spelled exactly the same on every document.
• Presence: to keep a temporary residency, spend more than half of each year in Argentina. To apply for citizenship under the current rules, do not leave the country during the 2 years.
• Health care: since 2025, temporary residents pay for non-emergency public health care, so private insurance is advisable.

From residency to citizenship

Student, rentista, work contract, family, business and permanent residency all count toward the 2 years. See our guide to citizenship by residence.

Frequently asked questions