Renewing 90 DayTourist Visa vs Applying For Residency

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Many people asked me why I bothered to go through the residency process and get a cedula if I don't know how long I will stay here in Uruguay. They wondered why I would be willing take on the whole bureacratic system if I could get away with living here on a tourist visa. Here are a few things to take in to consideration when weighing up this decision between perpetual tourist status and resident....

First of all, it's not that difficult!

There are MANY things I avoid in Uruguay because of excessive waiting in line, paper pushing and rubber stamping, but for all the benefits of holding residency the irritations are equivalent to that of visiting a bank (a Uruguayan bank that is!). And once you start the process you are free to stay as long as you like!

The requirements for residency are not ridiculously demanding, and once you meet the most basic parts of the requirements (your documents stamped and your proof of income) then your residency will almost immediately be "en-tramite" (preprocessing) and you will be granted de-facto residency. Even if there is a problem with your documentation or there is some further step you have to complete you will still be granted residency status while it is being resolved, as such t makes a lot of sense to start the process, even if you are not sure of your future plans.

Of course your decision to apply for residency is dependent on your reason for coming to Uruguay in the first place and how long you intend to stay, but If you are truly picking up your roots and moving everything and everyone to Uruguay then it would be foolish (and probably cause difficulties) NOT applying for permanent residency. However even if you are a young adventurer like myself, coming here alone, without any definite plans or commitments for how long you will stay, I would strongly suggest that if it is likely to be over a year then there are many benefits to holding a cedula.

Freedom (well, sort of!)

Depending on what you plan to do in Uruguay and how long you intend to stay, being required to leave the country every few months can be a real pain! It may seem well and good to think "sure, a holiday every 6 months is no problem" (in fact it may even sound appealing!) but a holiday is only a holiday when it is done at your leisure - during a time and financial situation that suits you. Months pass by a lot faster than you think and many people I know have realized only a week or a few days before their visa expires that they have to leave the country. This forced excursion (which is of course more expensive when booked last minute) is not a holiday, but more a stressful inconvenience you could do without.

Yes, it IS an option to stay in Uruguay for extended periods with only a tourist visa, but it is not one I would recommend. When you enter the country your passport will be stamped and you will receive a small slip of paper that you must keep (if you lose this paper you may have to pay a fee when leaving the country again). This original stamp grants you permission to remain in Uruguay for 90 days. If after this 90 day period you wish to stay longer you can renew this tourist visa for a further 90 days at the immigration office in Ciudad Vieja. This renewal costs about 350-400pesos (the prices seem to increase quite regularly, although by small increments). However you may only do this renewal once after every entry, so after 6 months in the country you must leave and re-enter in order to start the process again.

Uruguay (currently) is fairly relaxed with people overstaying their visas, I think it is usually a case of paying a fee - but I would be wary of doing this if you are more than a casual visitor and have more than the rucksack on your back. Uruguay is pretty notorious for changing their rules last minute and for stubborn bureaucrats and immovable state employees. If you overstay your visa and then you leave thinking nothing of it, you may encounter problems on your return and what do you do when you're stuck at a border crossing or airport, with all of your belongings in Uruguay, and suddenly this one customs officer stands in the way of you and where you currently call home?! There is NOTHING convenient about that situation!

Costs - time, money and inconvenience!

I have had this argument with many people who claim that living on a tourist visa is surely much easier than all the time and money involved in applying for residency - this is a myth! Applying for residency is not expensive (if you do it yourself). Not to mention that regularly leaving the country is not as simple as many people make it out to be.

The two options for cross-border visa renewal are Argentina and Brazil. It is important to note that certain nationalities (including Americans) need expensive visas in order to enter Brazil so this is not an option for renewal unless it includes a long holiday to make the visa worthwhile. For nationalities that don't require a visa there are buses from Montevideo to Chuy - the journey takes 5.5 hours (depending on the route and company) and the cost is approximately 350pesos each way. It should also be noted that the buses don't actually bring you across the border - you must get off at the last stop on the Uruguayan side of Chuy and walk a few blocks to Brazilian immigration on the other side of town.

A friend recently did this border crossing for his visa renewal and was told (after crossing) that he would have to stay in Brazil for 24 hours before he could re-enter Uruguay. Now Chuy isn't dangerous but it is certainly not somewhere you would choose to wile away 24 hours of your life, let alone spend money on overnight accommodation! Also during low season (ie. any months other than December, January and February) there are much fewer buses running this route up through Rocha so its not a matter of just hopping on and off the bus to get a stamp, you will have to arrange your tasks around the limited bus schedule.

Going to Argentina to renew you visa:

As for the Argentina option - Buenos Aires is often considered the easier and more attractive option but it can also be rather expensive. You can take the Buquebus boat direct from Montevideo port to Buenos Aires or you can take their shuttle bus from Tres Cruces bus station to their terminal in Colonia del Sacramento and board the boat there. You can also take a regular bus from Tres Cruces to Colonia and then take the Colonia Express Ferry to Buenos Aires. The prices vary seasonally and depending on how far in advance you book them.

Buses from Tres Cruces in Montevideo to Colonia del Sacramento cost about 200 pesos each way and the journey takes about 2.5 hours. You should note that there is about a 10 block walk from where the bus from Tres Cruces leaves you and where the Colonia Express dock is. The "Colonia Express" Ferry costs about 300 pesos each way from Colonia - Buenos Aires (it can be cheaper if you book online and in advance) and the journey takes an hour. I have to say that the Colonia Express ferry and its dock aren't the most attractive but if money is your main concern this is the cheapest method of making this river crossing.

So overall you will spend about 4 hours traveling each way and the journey will cost approximately 1000 pesos, but you must also take in to account that the times buses leave Montevideo rarely coincide with the ferry departure times so don't expect to leave Montevideo at your own chosen time and find yourself in Buenos Aires 4 swift hours later...there will be "layovers" so to speak. Also frequency of departures and the reliability of service have been known to fluctuate with the seasons. Seeing as they often only offer 1 departure per day on the weekends, if you work during the week you will have to include an overnight stay in Buenos Aires as part of the cost of renewing your visa

Buquebus does both ferry departures direct from Montevideo port to Buenos Aires (which takes 3 hours) and shuttle bus services to Colonia which match the time of the boat's departure in Colonia (this combination takes 2.5 hours in the bus and 1 hour on the ferry). I have found that costs vary depending on the time of year and how far in advance you book them. They are usually in and around 800-1000 pesos each way depending on which combination or ferry you choose. You can get an idea on their website: http://www.buquebus.com/cache/HomeURY.html (*if the prices look surprisingly cheap make sure you are on the Uruguay page and not the Argentina page, they are different pesos!)

Some people choose to take the bus to Buenos Aires. This takes about 10 hours and costs 600pesos each way. You can also do the border crossing by going to to Carmelo (which is a little further up the river from Colonia, where the water crossing is shorter) or you can do any of the land crossings such as Salto - Concordia in the northwest of the country.

In Conclusion......

What I am saying is that there is no shortage of relatively convenient (and even enjoyable!) ways to physically cross the border in order to renew your tourist visa. The point I am trying to share (something I have learned from experience and have had other people agree with me on) is that a forced excursion is not a holiday at all. A long weekend in Buenos Aires is fantastic - when you have the time, the money, and it is done on the day and date that suits you. If you are working during the week as most people must, you want your weekends and free time to be spent doing as you please, when you please - not HAVING to leave the country irrespective of other plans or commitments.

In my humble opinion I think if you're staying here for any extended period then applying for residency trumps a tourist visa any day. Yes I found the paper-filled process bureaucratic, but it is not impossible. It require patience and you must provide everything they ask for, in the exact format they as for it - but it is a clean straight-forward process. It doesn't require bribes or insiders as in some other Latin American countries.

My first year in Uruguay was stressful and hectic enough - new country, new language, new job, new home (many new homes in fact)... if someone had told me to take a forced cross-border trip in the middle of all that I may have cracked. Holidays are only fun when you're prepared for them - having to pay for a last minute trip to Buenos Aires when the rent is due, or realizing you have to take a 10 hour journey when all you want is a relaxing weekend is the last thing I would call a "holiday", keep that in mind.

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Residency Uruguay Renewing 90 DayTourist Visa vs Applying For Residency