Mercosur Residency in Paraguay
This replaces the general rule for you
Mercosur Members: A Cheaper Route with a Harder Deadline
Argentine, Brazilian, Bolivian and Uruguayan nationals can use the Mercosur Residence Agreement instead of the general route. It drops the consular visa, the Interpol certificate and the declaration of profession, and costs 20 jornales rather than 25. In exchange the temporary residency lasts two years and cannot be extended, and the conversion to permanent residency has to be filed in the ninety days before it expires or the Agreement route is lost.
Nationals of eight South American countries can use the Mercosur Residence Agreement, which Paraguay approved as Ley N° 3565/08, instead of the general route. It is a shorter list of documents - no consular visa, no Interpol certificate, no declaration of profession - and a lower fee. The trade-off is a deadline: the Mercosur temporary residency lasts two years and is expressly not renewable, and the application to convert it into permanent residency has to be filed in the ninety days before it expires, on pain of losing the right to continue under the Agreement at all. Economic solvency is tested at the permanent stage here exactly as it is on the general route.
At a glance
- Countries covered
- Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Bolivia, Chile, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador
The migration directorate's own list; Venezuela, Guyana and Suriname are not on it
- Term of the Mercosur temporary residency
- Two years, not renewable
- Window to convert to permanent
- The 90 days before the temporary card expires
Missing it forfeits the right to continue under the Agreement
- Fee, Mercosur temporary residency
- 20 jornales - Gs. 2.341.540as of 2026-07-01
Against 25 jornales, Gs. 2.926.925, on the general route
- Fee, Mercosur permanent residency
- 25 jornales - Gs. 2.926.925as of 2026-07-01
The Mercosur reduction exists only at the temporary stage. The schedule in force from 1 July 2026 has a single permanent-residency line, at 25 jornales converted at the minimum jornal of Gs. 117.077, whatever the route.
- Consular visa
- Not required
The visa table answers no in both columns for these nationalities
- Economic solvency
- Tested at the permanent stage, as on the general route
Requirements
- Nationality of one of the eight states the migration directorate lists as party to the Agreement
- A valid identity document from the country of origin
- A birth certificate, legalised or apostilled where issued abroad
- A police or criminal record certificate valid nationally, from the issuing authority or the consulate in Paraguay, plus a Paraguayan police certificate for foreigners
- A civil-status certificate where applicable
- A sworn declaration of having no international records, provided by the directorate when the application is opened
- Proof of entry into the country
- For the change to permanent residency: the valid Mercosur temporary card, and documentary proof of economic solvency under the published categories
In detail
What the Agreement actually saves you
Set the two requirement lists side by side. The general route asks for a consular visa where the nationality needs one, a birth certificate, a civil-status certificate, three criminal-record certificates including one from Interpol, and two sworn declarations. The Mercosur route asks for the identity document, the birth certificate, a national-level police certificate, the Paraguayan certificate for foreigners, the civil-status certificate, one sworn declaration about international records, and proof of entry. No consular visa, no Interpol certificate, no declaration of profession, and five jornales less.
The deadline is the price
Two years, not renewable, and the conversion has to be filed within the ninety days before the card expires. The general route is more forgiving: three months before expiry as the normal window, one month afterwards on payment of the fine, and an extension of the temporary residency available up to six months after expiry. Under the Mercosur route the directorate says plainly that missing the window forfeits the right to continue under the Agreement.
Eight countries, not the whole bloc
The directorate lists Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Bolivia, Chile, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador. Venezuela, Guyana and Suriname - associated states of Mercosur in other contexts - are absent, and the visa table confirms it from the other direction by requiring a visa of Venezuelan nationals in both columns. Anyone comparing Paraguay with Peru or Chile should check the list at each destination rather than assume the bloc is the list.
Country-level policy
Ley N° 6984/2022 replaced the migration law Paraguay had used since 1996, and it changed the single thing the country is best known for. Permanent residency is no longer something a newcomer can be granted on arrival: temporary residency, granted for up to two years, is now a prerequisite for it, and the only exemptions are investors under the SUACE business regime and the foreign family of a repatriated Paraguayan. The old law was repealed outright rather than amended, so guidance written before October 2022 describes procedures that no longer exist - including, on the revenue authority's own pages, the definition of who counts as a tax resident.
Paraguay expresses migration fees and fines not in guaranies but in jornales - day-wage units tied to the legal minimum wage. A figure in guaranies is therefore only meaningful next to the jornal it was converted at and the date that conversion took effect. There is a second trap on top of it: the numbers written into article 100 of the migration law are not the numbers being charged. The law says permanent residency costs 15 jornales and temporary residency 10; the schedule in force since 1 July 2026 charges 25 for each.
Two different clocks, one of them made by the migration directorate rather than by the law. Permanent residency is lost after more than three years of unjustified absence, which is in the migration law itself. Temporary residency is cancelled after more than one year of absence without authorisation, which is not in the law at all: it comes from a 2026 directorate resolution that also sets up a procedure for asking permission to be away for longer. Cancellation is checked twice a year against the entry and exit register, and the directorate notifies the police, the Supreme Court and the revenue authority when it happens.
What applies to you
Mercosur Members: A Cheaper Route with a Harder Deadline
Argentine, Brazilian, Bolivian and Uruguayan nationals can use the Mercosur Residence Agreement instead of the general route. It drops the consular visa, the Interpol certificate and the declaration of profession, and costs 20 jornales rather than 25. In exchange the temporary residency lasts two years and cannot be extended, and the conversion to permanent residency has to be filed in the ninety days before it expires or the Agreement route is lost.
- A valid identity document from the country of origin
- A birth certificate, legalised or apostilled where issued abroad
- A police or criminal record certificate valid nationally, plus the Paraguayan police certificate for foreigners
- A civil-status certificate where applicable
- A sworn declaration of having no international records
- Proof of entry into the country
- The conversion application filed within the 90 days before the two-year card expires
What the law says
«PODRÁN APLICAR A ESTA RESIDENCIA: Los ciudadanos de Argentina, Brasil, Uruguay, Bolivia, Chile, Perú, Colombia y Ecuador (Estados actualmente suscriptos al Acuerdo de Residencia del MERCOSUR).»Our translation - not official
The following may apply for this residency: citizens of Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Bolivia, Chile, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador (states currently party to the Mercosur Residence Agreement).
The list is the directorate's and it is not the same as the membership of Mercosur. Venezuela, Guyana and Suriname do not appear; Paraguay's visa table separately requires a visa of Venezuelan nationals both to visit and to apply for residency.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The migration directorate. Administers residency under Ley 6984/2022 and issues its own resolutions under arts. 78, 79 and 82. Publishes the law as a PDF booklet, per-route requirement pages, the migration fee schedule and a resolutions index.
Standing: Applies the rule
Cannot be cited for: Not the gazette: it reproduces Ley 6984 but did not make it. Its requirement pages restate the law and sometimes diverge from it - art. 100's fee figures against the schedule in force is the live example, and the schedule wins. Cannot be cited for the SUACE investor threshold, which is the industry ministry's, nor for the tax consequences of a migration status. The law booklet is a justified-column PDF, so extracted text breaks words across lines.
We re-read it every 30 days. More about this source
«Dos (2) años, no prorrogable.»Our translation - not official
Two (2) years, not extendable.
The general temporary residency under Ley 6984 can be extended for a further two years. The Mercosur one cannot, which turns the ninety-day conversion window into the only exit.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The migration directorate. Administers residency under Ley 6984/2022 and issues its own resolutions under arts. 78, 79 and 82. Publishes the law as a PDF booklet, per-route requirement pages, the migration fee schedule and a resolutions index.
Standing: Applies the rule
Cannot be cited for: Not the gazette: it reproduces Ley 6984 but did not make it. Its requirement pages restate the law and sometimes diverge from it - art. 100's fee figures against the schedule in force is the live example, and the schedule wins. Cannot be cited for the SUACE investor threshold, which is the industry ministry's, nor for the tax consequences of a migration status. The law booklet is a justified-column PDF, so extracted text breaks words across lines.
We re-read it every 30 days. More about this source
«el extranjero deberá dar ingreso a su solicitud de Residencia Permanente MERCOSUR a partir de los noventa (90) días previos al vencimiento de su Carnet de Admisión Temporaria MERCOSUR, caso contrario, perderá el derecho de tramitar su documentación migratoria bajo el citado Acuerdo.»Our translation - not official
the foreigner must submit the application for Mercosur Permanent Residency from ninety (90) days before the expiry of their Mercosur Temporary Admission card; otherwise they will lose the right to process their migration documents under that Agreement.
The consequence stated is loss of the Agreement route, not loss of residency as such: the general route under Ley 6984 remains, at the higher fee and with the longer document list.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The migration directorate. Administers residency under Ley 6984/2022 and issues its own resolutions under arts. 78, 79 and 82. Publishes the law as a PDF booklet, per-route requirement pages, the migration fee schedule and a resolutions index.
Standing: Applies the rule
Cannot be cited for: Not the gazette: it reproduces Ley 6984 but did not make it. Its requirement pages restate the law and sometimes diverge from it - art. 100's fee figures against the schedule in force is the live example, and the schedule wins. Cannot be cited for the SUACE investor threshold, which is the industry ministry's, nor for the tax consequences of a migration status. The law booklet is a justified-column PDF, so extracted text breaks words across lines.
We re-read it every 30 days. More about this source
«Residencia Temporaria por Acuerdo Mercosur (Incluido cambio de categoría) | 20 | 2.341.540»Our translation - not official
Mercosur Agreement temporary residency (including change of category) | 20 | 2,341,540
Quoted as a row so the jornal count stays with the amount. The general temporary residency on the same table is 25 jornales.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The migration directorate. Administers residency under Ley 6984/2022 and issues its own resolutions under arts. 78, 79 and 82. Publishes the law as a PDF booklet, per-route requirement pages, the migration fee schedule and a resolutions index.
Standing: Applies the rule
Cannot be cited for: Not the gazette: it reproduces Ley 6984 but did not make it. Its requirement pages restate the law and sometimes diverge from it - art. 100's fee figures against the schedule in force is the live example, and the schedule wins. Cannot be cited for the SUACE investor threshold, which is the industry ministry's, nor for the tax consequences of a migration status. The law booklet is a justified-column PDF, so extracted text breaks words across lines.
We re-read it every 30 days. More about this source
«Sus disposiciones serán de aplicación a las solicitudes de residencia permanente tramitadas al amparo de la Ley N° 6984/22 "DE MIGRACIONES" y de la Ley N° 3565/08 "QUE APRUEBA EL ACUERDO SOBRE RESIDENCIA PARA NACIONALES DE LOS ESTADOS PARTES DEL MERCOSUR".»Our translation - not official
Its provisions apply to applications for permanent residency processed under Law No. 6984/22 on Migration and Law No. 3565/08 approving the Agreement on Residence for Nationals of the Mercosur Member States.
The 2026 resolution deliberately unified the solvency tests across the two regimes, so the Mercosur route is cheaper and lighter on documents but not easier on the economic question.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The migration directorate. Administers residency under Ley 6984/2022 and issues its own resolutions under arts. 78, 79 and 82. Publishes the law as a PDF booklet, per-route requirement pages, the migration fee schedule and a resolutions index.
Standing: Applies the rule
Cannot be cited for: Not the gazette: it reproduces Ley 6984 but did not make it. Its requirement pages restate the law and sometimes diverge from it - art. 100's fee figures against the schedule in force is the live example, and the schedule wins. Cannot be cited for the SUACE investor threshold, which is the industry ministry's, nor for the tax consequences of a migration status. The law booklet is a justified-column PDF, so extracted text breaks words across lines.
We re-read it every 30 days. More about this source
«Residencia Permanente (Incluido cambio de categoría) | 25 | 2.926.925»Our translation - not official
Permanent residency (including change of category) | 25 | 2,926,925
Quoted as a table row so the unit - 25 jornales - stays attached to the converted amount, which moves whenever the minimum wage does.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The migration directorate. Administers residency under Ley 6984/2022 and issues its own resolutions under arts. 78, 79 and 82. Publishes the law as a PDF booklet, per-route requirement pages, the migration fee schedule and a resolutions index.
Standing: Applies the rule
Cannot be cited for: Not the gazette: it reproduces Ley 6984 but did not make it. Its requirement pages restate the law and sometimes diverge from it - art. 100's fee figures against the schedule in force is the live example, and the schedule wins. Cannot be cited for the SUACE investor threshold, which is the industry ministry's, nor for the tax consequences of a migration status. The law booklet is a justified-column PDF, so extracted text breaks words across lines.
We re-read it every 30 days. More about this source
Practical notes
The Agreement route and the general route lead to the same permanent residency card, valid indefinitely and renewed every ten years, and to the same Paraguayan identity card.
The directorate also advertises special procedures for Uruguayan and Ecuadorian nationals on its residency index. We did not open that page, so nothing here describes it.
We did not read the text of Ley N° 3565/08 or of the Agreement itself; this page rests on the directorate's pages applying them and on Resolución DNM N° 407/2026, which cites the law by name.
- administersResidencia Temporaria para extranjeros de los países suscriptos al Acuerdo de Residencia del MERCOSUR
Dirección Nacional de Migraciones (Paraguay)
About this source
The migration directorate. Administers residency under Ley 6984/2022 and issues its own resolutions under arts. 78, 79 and 82. Publishes the law as a PDF booklet, per-route requirement pages, the migration fee schedule and a resolutions index.
Standing: Applies the rule
Cannot be cited for: Not the gazette: it reproduces Ley 6984 but did not make it. Its requirement pages restate the law and sometimes diverge from it - art. 100's fee figures against the schedule in force is the live example, and the schedule wins. Cannot be cited for the SUACE investor threshold, which is the industry ministry's, nor for the tax consequences of a migration status. The law booklet is a justified-column PDF, so extracted text breaks words across lines.
We re-read it every 30 days. More about this source
- administersResidencia Permanente para extranjeros de los países suscriptos al Acuerdo de Residencia del MERCOSUR
Dirección Nacional de Migraciones (Paraguay)
About this source
The migration directorate. Administers residency under Ley 6984/2022 and issues its own resolutions under arts. 78, 79 and 82. Publishes the law as a PDF booklet, per-route requirement pages, the migration fee schedule and a resolutions index.
Standing: Applies the rule
Cannot be cited for: Not the gazette: it reproduces Ley 6984 but did not make it. Its requirement pages restate the law and sometimes diverge from it - art. 100's fee figures against the schedule in force is the live example, and the schedule wins. Cannot be cited for the SUACE investor threshold, which is the industry ministry's, nor for the tax consequences of a migration status. The law booklet is a justified-column PDF, so extracted text breaks words across lines.
We re-read it every 30 days. More about this source
- administersAranceles Migratorios - escala vigente desde el 01/07/2026
Dirección Nacional de Migraciones (Paraguay)
About this source
The migration directorate. Administers residency under Ley 6984/2022 and issues its own resolutions under arts. 78, 79 and 82. Publishes the law as a PDF booklet, per-route requirement pages, the migration fee schedule and a resolutions index.
Standing: Applies the rule
Cannot be cited for: Not the gazette: it reproduces Ley 6984 but did not make it. Its requirement pages restate the law and sometimes diverge from it - art. 100's fee figures against the schedule in force is the live example, and the schedule wins. Cannot be cited for the SUACE investor threshold, which is the industry ministry's, nor for the tax consequences of a migration status. The law booklet is a justified-column PDF, so extracted text breaks words across lines.
We re-read it every 30 days. More about this source
- administersResolución D.N.M. N° 407 del 28 de mayo de 2026 - criterios de acreditación de solvencia económica
Dirección Nacional de Migraciones (Paraguay)
About this source
The migration directorate. Administers residency under Ley 6984/2022 and issues its own resolutions under arts. 78, 79 and 82. Publishes the law as a PDF booklet, per-route requirement pages, the migration fee schedule and a resolutions index.
Standing: Applies the rule
Cannot be cited for: Not the gazette: it reproduces Ley 6984 but did not make it. Its requirement pages restate the law and sometimes diverge from it - art. 100's fee figures against the schedule in force is the live example, and the schedule wins. Cannot be cited for the SUACE investor threshold, which is the industry ministry's, nor for the tax consequences of a migration status. The law booklet is a justified-column PDF, so extracted text breaks words across lines.
We re-read it every 30 days. More about this source