Foreigners apply for legal residency at Paraguay's Dirección Nacional de Migraciones (DNM). Your route depends on your nationality: citizens of eight South American countries use the Mercosur agreement; everyone else applies under Migration Law No. 6984/2022.
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Moving has a sequence. Skip a step or miss a deadline and you lose time and money on expired documents or applications you have to redo.
Register your entry with Migraciones and stay 15 to 30 days in a short-term rental to get to know the neighborhoods.
Apply at the Dirección Nacional de Migraciones, through the Mercosur route or under Law 6984, depending on your nationality.
Apply before your temporary residency expires. Mercosur residents must file from 90 days before it expires. Proof of solvency is required.
The Paraguayan ID card, issued by the National Police. With temporary residency under Law 6984; after permanent residency under Mercosur.
The RUC is Paraguay's taxpayer registration. To open an account, each bank has its own requirements.
Foreigners' residency follows Migration Law No. 6984/2022 and, for citizens of Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Bolivia, Chile, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador, the Mercosur Residence Agreement. Applications are filed with the Dirección Nacional de Migraciones (DNM), which replaced the former Dirección General de Migraciones.
Under Law 6984, it is granted for up to 2 years and can be extended once for the same period. Under the Mercosur route, it lasts 2 years and cannot be extended. Mercosur residents have the right to work in Paraguay.
Since July 6, 2026 (DNM Resolution No. 407/2026), permanent residency applicants must prove economic solvency — verifiable income — according to their category: professional, technician, employee, self-employed, remote worker or digital nomad, property owner, shareholder, farmer or rancher, religious worker, retiree or pensioner, dependent or student.
Basic lists from the Dirección Nacional de Migraciones. Check the full, current list on the official site before gathering your papers.
Every foreign document must be valid. Certificates that state no expiry date are accepted for 6 months from the date of issue.
Foreign documents must be apostilled (or legalized, if your country is not in the Apostille Convention) and translated into Spanish by a public translator. Documents in Portuguese issued in Brazil are exempt from translation.
Register your entry into Paraguay at a migration checkpoint, at the border or the airport.
Get, organize, apostille (or legalize) and translate the required documents, keeping an eye on each one's validity.
Fill out the Migraciones forms and pay the fee. According to the DNM fee table: ₲ 2,926,925 for temporary residency under Law 6984; ₲ 2,341,540 under Mercosur.
Submit the application and the documents at the Dirección Nacional de Migraciones.
Follow the process while the authorities carry out security checks and review your documents.
Once approved, collect the resolution and your admission card (the residency document).
Getting residency in Paraguay is a perfectly achievable goal. It requires planning ahead, correct documentation and attention to deadlines and to the migration rules in force.
The roadmap organized so you don't waste time or money.
If you are a citizen of Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Bolivia, Chile, Peru, Colombia or Ecuador, you can apply through the Mercosur route. Other nationalities apply under Law No. 6984/2022.
Attention: the routes differ in fees, documents, renewal and when you can get the cédula. Check the official list for your route.
The cédula de identidad is Paraguay's ID card, issued by the Identification Department of the National Police.
Under Law 6984 you can get it with your temporary residency; under the Mercosur route, only after permanent residency.
Opening an account as a foreigner is not automatic, and each bank has its own rules.
They usually ask for your residency document, a local proof of address and your presence to sign; some ask for the cédula or a minimum deposit. Check directly with the bank.
Check: proven experience with similar cases, reputation and references, plus transparency about costs and timelines.
Careful: be wary of promises of fast approval or guaranteed success. Migration depends on factors beyond any advisor's control.
Costs: certificates, apostille and translations, travel and lodging in Paraguay, Dirección Nacional de Migraciones fees and possible advisory fees.
Timelines vary with the agency's workload, document completeness and additional requests.
Main mistakes: not apostilling or translating documents, bringing expired documents, entering without migration registration and missing the permanent residency deadline.
Planning ahead and attention to detail reduce delays and complications.
In the community, people who've already been through residency, the cédula and the RUC help those who are just starting. Join the Founding Member list to get your invite.
The community opens soon. People on the list get invited first.