Rentista Visa (Temporary Residence for passive income) (Argentina): Requirements
Argentina residence route
Rentista Visa (Temporary Residence for passive income)
Retirees with documented passive income who want a route to Argentine residence and eventually citizenship.
- Income threshold
- $2,000 / month
- Minimum age
- None
- Validity
- One year, renewable.
- Permanent residence
- Three years of temporary residence gives permanent residence.
- Processing
- 4 to 12 months
The financial test in detail
Historically set at a multiple of the Argentine minimum wage and commonly cited around 2,000 U.S. dollars a month of passive income from foreign sources such as rents, pensions, dividends or annuities. Because it is pegged to a peso figure that is revised frequently, verify the current amount with the Dirección Nacional de Migraciones.
Savings
None, but the income must be demonstrably regular and documented.
What the status gives you
- Renewal
- Renewed annually on continuing proof of income.
- Work rights
- Temporary residents may work.
- How much time you must spend there
- Genuine residence is expected, and citizenship applications are assessed on actual presence.
- Citizenship
- Two years of residence makes you eligible for naturalisation through the courts, which is among the fastest routes in the world. Requirements were tightened by decree in 2025, so confirm the position in force. Argentina permits dual citizenship and does not require renunciation.
- Government fees
- Visa: 300 USD. Residence permit: 200 USD.
- 1 Apostille and translate documents FBI check authenticated federally, vital records apostilled by the issuing state, then translated by a traductor público matriculado registered in Argentina and legalised by the translators college.
- 2 File with Migraciones Filed either at a consulate or inside Argentina. Filing in Argentina is common and lets you handle problems in person.
- 3 Obtain the DNI The Documento Nacional de Identidad is the national identity card and is the key to banking, healthcare and daily administration.
Your action Documents and authentication Government processing
Your document checklist for this route
10 documents in total, of which 5 need authentication: 2 through the U.S. Department of State and 3 through a Secretary of State. All authenticated documents also need certified translation into Spanish.
- U.S. passport Identity and the physical book the visa is placed in. Lead time: Routine renewal takes weeks; check current published times
- Passport-format photographs Every application. Specifications differ by country and are enforced strictly. Lead time: Same day
- National long-stay visa application form The core filing. Almost always country-specific and often only valid if printed from the consulate portal. Lead time: Same day
- FBI Identity History Summary (background check) U.S. Department of State, Office of Authentications (federal) Apostille Almost every retirement and long-stay residence visa requires a national-level police clearance. For Americans that means the FBI Identity History Summary, not a local police letter, because consulates want a federal record covering all 50 states. Lead time: 1 to 10 days to obtain, then federal authentication
- Certified birth certificate Secretary of State for the issuing state Apostille Proves identity, nationality and, where relevant, family relationships for dependants. Lead time: 3 to 20 days depending on state
- Certified marriage certificate Secretary of State for the issuing state Apostille Required whenever a spouse is included as a dependant, and to prove joint income or joint savings. Lead time: 3 to 20 days
- Social Security benefit verification letter U.S. Department of State, Office of Authentications (federal) Apostille The single most-used proof of "guaranteed lifetime pension" for pensionado-style visas. Panama, Costa Rica, Colombia and Ecuador all key on it. Lead time: Same day online
- Private pension, annuity or 401(k)/IRA income letter Secretary of State for the issuing state Apostille Used where Social Security alone does not meet the threshold, or where the visa requires a lifetime guaranteed payment. Lead time: 5 to 20 days
- Bank and brokerage statements Proof of savings or liquid assets, used either instead of income or alongside it. Lead time: 1 to 10 days
- Certified translation of the authenticated set Non-English-speaking destinations require the document and its apostille translated by a translator they recognise. Lead time: 2 to 7 days
Why applications on this route fail
- The income threshold is a peso figure that is revised, so a dollar number from a guide written last year may be badly wrong.
- Translations must be done by an Argentine registered public translator and legalised by the Colegio de Traductores. U.S. translations are not accepted.
- Currency controls have historically complicated proving and receiving foreign income. Understand the rules currently in force before you rely on regular transfers.
Apply here
- Dirección Nacional de Migraciones Residence categories, requirements and filing.
- Argentine consulates in the United States Consular network and document requirements.
- 1 Obtain the record Order certified copies from the issuing authority. Do not use photocopies, scans or hospital souvenir certificates.
- 2 Notarise if required Letters and affidavits need a notary acknowledgement before any state can authenticate them. Government-issued vital records do not.
- 3 County clerk (some states) A handful of states require the county clerk to certify the notary commission before the Secretary of State will act.
- 4 Authenticate State-issued documents go to the Secretary of State of the issuing state. Federal documents go to the U.S. Department of State Office of Authentications.
- 5 Apostille or legalise Hague Convention destination: an apostille finishes the chain. Non-Hague destination: the document then goes to that country embassy or consulate for legalisation. For Argentina the apostille ends the chain.
- 6 Certified translation Translate the document together with its apostille. Translating first means paying twice.
- 7 File with the consulate Book the appointment at the consulate with jurisdiction over your state of residence and bring originals plus copies.
The expensive mistake: translating before the document is authenticated. The apostille or legalisation certificate is itself part of what the receiving government reads, so it has to be inside the translation. Do it the other way round and you pay for the same translation twice.
Rentista Visa (Temporary Residence for passive income): common questions
How much income do I need for the Rentista Visa (Temporary Residence for passive income)?
The published threshold is about $2,000 a month for a single applicant. Historically set at a multiple of the Argentine minimum wage and commonly cited around 2,000 U.S. dollars a month of passive income from foreign sources such as rents, pensions, dividends or annuities. Because it is pegged to a peso figure that is revised frequently, verify the current amount with the Dirección Nacional de Migraciones.
Do I need savings as well as income?
None, but the income must be demonstrably regular and documented.
Can I work on this visa?
Temporary residents may work. This is the field applicants most often misread, and in several countries remote work for a U.S. employer counts as work performed locally.
What documents need an apostille?
For this route we count 5 documents needing authentication: 2 federal, through the U.S. Department of State, and 3 state-issued, through the Secretary of State of the issuing state. Argentina is a Hague Convention country, so an apostille completes the chain.
How long does it take?
4 to 12 months
How much time must I spend in the country?
Genuine residence is expected, and citizenship applications are assessed on actual presence.
Does it lead to permanent residence?
Permanent residence: Three years of temporary residence gives permanent residence.. Citizenship: Two years of residence makes you eligible for naturalisation through the courts, which is among the fastest routes in the world. Requirements were tightened by decree in 2025, so confirm the position in force. Argentina permits dual citizenship and does not require renunciation..
Verified Sep 7, 2026
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This resource is provided free by Federal Apostille as an educational tool. It is not legal, tax, immigration or financial advice, and no attorney-client relationship is created by using it. Immigration rules, income thresholds, fees and processing times change frequently and often without notice, and consulates apply them differently. Always confirm current requirements with the official government source and the specific consulate that has jurisdiction over your U.S. state of residence before you act. Every figure on this site carries the date we last verified it and a link to the primary source.
