Residency and ID card
in Paraguay for foreigners

How can a foreigner get residency in Paraguay?

It depends on your nationality. Nationals of several countries in the region, such as Brazil or Argentina, apply for the temporary residency, valid for 2 years and extendable. Other nationalities apply for the temporary residency under Law 6984/2022, which can be extended for the same period. After that comes permanent residency and, once residency is granted, the cédula (Paraguayan ID card).

Sources: DNM — temporary residency, immigration fees and Law 6984/2022. Verified on 09/24/2026. The DNM confirms which route applies to your nationality.

How long does it take? Through the regular route, the temporary residency can take around 90 days, and the press reports cases of up to 4 months. At the MigraMóvil, cards for applications filed and approved in the first 3 days are delivered the following Saturday; the rest, in 30 to 45 days. No one can guarantee the DNM's processing time.

Important: there is no residency "without traveling" and no "fast-track ID card". The process is personal and in person, and there are no "fees" other than the official ones.

What official fees apply to Paraguayan residency?

Each stage of the residency has an official DNM fee, paid per person: each family member pays for their own application. The fees are calculated on the minimum daily wage and adjusted every July, together with the minimum wage. The current amounts are included in the quote we send you for your case.

DNM procedures with an official fee

Official schedule: DNM — immigration fees, verified on 09/24/2026. Card payments carry an additional DNM commission.

EC's fees and the current official fees are stated in the quote, before we start. The step-by-step requirements are in the guide Paraguayan ID card for foreigners.

What documents do you need for residency?

For the temporary residency, the DNM asks for a valid identity document, a certified and apostilled copy of your birth certificate, apostilled criminal records from your home country, the foreigners' criminal record certificate from the National Police, a sworn statement, proof of entry and, if applicable, a marital status certificate. For the Law 6984/2022 route, confirm the list with the DNM.

Official DNM list for the temporary residency, verified on 09/24/2026. All documents are submitted as originals plus certified copies.

• Apostille: foreign documents are submitted with an apostille or legalized. With an apostille, consular legalization is not needed.
• Translation: before the DNM, documents in a foreign language are translated into Spanish by a sworn public translator registered in Paraguay or by one authorized in the country of origin; in that case, the translation must also be apostilled or legalized. The DNM exempts Brazilian documents in Portuguese from translation (Law 3582/2008), except those of minors and of the digital nomad category, which are translated anyway.
• Criminal records from within Paraguay: the DNM also accepts criminal records issued by your country's consulate in Paraguay.
• Interpol: the Interpol certificate is not on the official list for the temporary residency.
• Certificate of life and residence: not required for the temporary residency; it is requested later, for the ID card and the driver's license.

More detail in the guide Paraguayan ID card for foreigners.

When and how do you apply for permanent residency?

If you hold the 2-year temporary residency, you can apply for permanent residency from 90 days before your card expires, and it has its own official DNM fee. For applications filed since 07/06/2026, financial means are proven under one of the 12 categories of DNM Resolution 407/2026, such as employee, self-employed, retiree, shareholder or student. A professional degree alone is not enough.

DNM Resolution 407/2026, dated 05/28/2026 and published on 06/25/2026, unified the categories: professional, technician, employee, self-employed, digital nomad, property owner, shareholder or partner (including in an EAS), farmer or rancher, religious worker, retiree, dependent and student.

Examples from the annex to DNM Res. 407/2026, verified on 09/24/2026. The profession no longer appears on the card. According to the DNM, minors are exempt.

Warning: if the temporary residency expires without an application for permanent residency, that route is lost and you must apply under Law 6984/2022 (spontaneous or temporary residency), with new fees and, in some cases, a fine.

If your residency is the temporary one under Law 6984/2022, the DNM publishes the requirements for changing category to permanent resident.

How do foreigners get a Paraguayan ID card?

The foreigner's cédula (ID card) is issued by the Identification Department of the National Police once the DNM has granted residency. Whether it can be requested with the temporary residency or only with the permanent one is confirmed case by case. We tell you the fee and processing time for the ID card during your application.

Temporary or permanent? The DNM page on the temporary residency states that, to get the ID card, you must first obtain permanent residency under the same regime; the Identification Department, however, publishes requirements for foreigners with temporary or permanent residency. That is why we review your case before going to the Identification Department.

Certificate of life and residence. It is issued by the police station for the area where you live and is required for the ID card and the driver's license. It usually requires a form, an identity document, proof of address (an ANDE, ESSAP or COPACO utility bill, or a lease) and witnesses with a Paraguayan ID card. Confirm the current list at the police station before you go.

What the ID card allows and what it does not:

• It allows a foreigner to register for a RUC (taxpayer number) with the DNIT (tax authority) as an individual: the DNIT only registers foreigners who hold a cédula.
• To travel to neighboring countries with only the Paraguayan ID card, you need permanent residency. Temporary residents travel with their home-country document.
• The ID card is not citizenship. Naturalization requires, among other things, 3 years of residency and is processed before the Supreme Court of Justice.
• Nor is it the same as tax residency (see below).

Sources: National Police — ID card for foreigners and certificate of life and residence.

Step-by-step requirements in the guide Paraguayan ID card for foreigners.

Where are the Immigration and ID offices in Alto Paraná?

In Ciudad del Este, Monday to Friday, Immigration (Migraciones) is at Avda. Rogelio Benítez casi 4 de Mayo, from 07:00 to 14:30, and the National Police Identification Department is on the Súper Carretera, Área 1 (tel. 061-573916), from 07:00 to 15:00. Elsewhere in Alto Paraná, the DNM also has an office in Santa Rita, and the Identification Department in Santa Rita, Minga Guazú and Presidente Franco.

Addresses and hours verified on 09/24/2026 on the websites of the DNM and the National Police. Hours may change: confirm before you go.

To visit us, see our office in Ciudad del Este.

When is the next MigraMóvil in Ciudad del Este?

The next MigraMóvil (the DNM's mobile immigration service) in Ciudad del Este is scheduled for 11/02 to 11/06/2026, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., with 250 appointments per day handed out the same day from 7:30 a.m. Appointments are personal and non-transferable. The usual venue is the Centro Cultural Mangoré, but it must be confirmed in the DNM's official announcement.

MigraMóvil 2026 calendar from the DNM, subject to change.

At the MigraMóvil, cards for applications filed and approved in the first 3 days are delivered the following Saturday; the rest, in 30 to 45 days. Since appointments run out early, it is best to arrive with a complete, reviewed file.

How do you register your entry into Paraguay to avoid fines?

Always register your entry at immigration control: it is mandatory and free, and failing to register carries a DNM fine. At the Friendship Bridge (Ciudad del Este), the DNM runs the Pre Registro Migratorio (immigration pre-registration), a web form that generates a single-use QR code for each entry or exit and speeds up the check.

• Travel document: nationals of several countries in the region can enter with their valid national ID card; others, with a passport. The DNM publishes the list of valid travel documents by country.
• Tourist stay: up to 90 consecutive days, extendable once for a period no longer than the original, with a DNM fee.
• If you did not register your entry: for residency, proof of entry can take other forms: a stamp, an entry slip, a sworn statement provided by the DNM or "another document proving your presence in the country".

Sources: DNM — entry and exit requirements and Pre Registro Migratorio (archived on 04/20/2026). The pre-registration does not replace registering your entry.

How long can I stay abroad without losing residency?

It depends on the type of residency. Article 55 of Law 6984/2022 cancels residency for an unjustified absence of more than 1 consecutive year for temporary residents, or more than 3 consecutive years for permanent residents, unless the DNM has given prior authorization. If you need to be away longer, request that authorization before you travel.

Law 6984/2022, art. 55 and DNM notice on unjustified absence, verified on 09/24/2026.

The law provides other grounds for cancellation: false documents or fraud, a request by the resident, and breach of immigration rules.

How does residency work for your family?

Each family member has their own application and pays their own fees. For permanent residency, a spouse supported by the other can prove financial means as a dependent, with an apostilled marriage certificate. Minors' foreign documents must be translated into Spanish, as required by the DNM's section for children and adolescents, and minors are exempt from proving financial means.

• Spouse: for permanent residency, the dependent category of DNM Res. 407/2026 requires the apostilled marriage certificate and the Paraguayan ID or residency card of the supporting spouse. Marrying a Paraguayan does not grant citizenship, but the DNM has a permanent residency for spouses and children of Paraguayans.
• Minor children: documents translated as well as apostilled. Parental authorizations for minors' applications are confirmed with the DNM case by case.
• Children born in Paraguay: they are Paraguayan (Constitution, art. 146).

Important: we prepare the family's files together, so everyone is regularized at the same stage.

Does the Paraguayan ID card give you tax residency?

No. For the DNIT (tax authority), an individual is a Paraguayan tax resident when they hold permanent residency (Decree 3181/19, art. 2); the ID card alone is not enough. In addition, your home country applies its own rules and may still consider you a tax resident if your life, work or assets remain there.

• The tax residency certificate (RG 65/2020) requires a valid ID card, an up-to-date RUC (if you are a taxpayer) and an immigration movement record, which carries a DNM fee. It is issued within 10 business days and is valid for 1 year.
• The "120 days per year" is not a requirement for the certificate: it comes from a presumption of domicile in Law 125/91 (art. 152). Even so, the immigration record shows your actual presence.
• The certificate is used to apply double taxation treaties. Check whether your country has a treaty with Paraguay on the DNIT list.

Important: EC advises on the Paraguayan side. How your home country's tax authority treats it must be confirmed by an accountant licensed there. See also the guide to taxes in Paraguay.

Is there direct permanent residency through investment?

Yes. The Paraguay Investor Pass (MIC Resolution 0283/2026), launched on 04/17/2026, grants direct permanent residency without going through temporary residency, for example from a productive investment of US$70,000 with 5 formal jobs. The investor residency through SUACE (the one-stop shop for business formation) requires US$70,000 invested within 2 years and 5 formal jobs. Outside these routes, you generally start with temporary residency.

Sources: DNM — Paraguay Investor Pass, MIC, DNM — investor residency through SUACE and the MIC Guide for Foreign Investors, verified on 09/24/2026.

The Investor Pass is processed with the Foreign Investor Certificate (CIE) through SUACE. The 8% IDU (dividend tax) is not a benefit of the program: it is the general rate for resident shareholders (Law 6380/2019, art. 43). The DNM also has a permanent residency for spouses and children of Paraguayans, with its own requirements. If you also plan to open a company, see open a company in Paraguay.