Residence Permit & Cedula

 

If you not only want to spend your vacations in Paraguay, but also want to stay and live in this country, you should or must apply for the residence permit and the cedula. In Paraguay, you can get these documents as a German, Austrian or Swiss very quickly and usually without problems.

Various documents are needed and also a capital proof of about 5.000 US$, which must be deposited at a bank or cooperativa for several months until receiving the residence permit & cedula, or a land title of more than 10 hectares.

The easiest and fastest way is the proof of capital to avoid a lot of paperwork.

 

 

What is needed?

 

1. Passport

 

To enter Paraguay, you need a passport that is valid for at least 6 months. If the passport is valid for more than 6 months but only for a short time, it is recommended to apply for a new passport in the year of emigration.

 

2. birth certificate

 

If you no longer have a birth certificate, you can apply for one at the relevant registry office. We recommend to apply for an international birth certificate immediately.

 

3. Certificate of good conduct

 

Furthermore, a "certified" certificate of good conduct is required for presentation abroad. This can be applied for at the municipal or city administration or directly at the Federal Office of Justice in Bonn.

 

4. Other documents if required

 

... are school reports for children, the pension statement for pensioners or documents for professional qualification.

 

 

Application for immigration papers

 

If you don't speak Spanish and don't know how the whole process of applying for a residence permit & cedula works, we offer you professional help with our partner(s) with years of experience to save you unnecessary time and effort.

Of course you can do all this by yourself. However, we know from years of experience that many who have tried to do it on their own, have finally asked for help, because they could not do it on their own and took a lot of time and unnecessary costs.

Since the certificate of good conduct has only a 3-month validity (for Austrians 6 months), a new one had to be applied for in Germany and legalized again at the Paraguayan Embassy in Berlin, which also costs quite a bit.

Total cost per person from 8 million PYG (ca.1.000 Euro depending on the course) depending on the effort.

For several persons or families a package price is possible, because the ways are the same. Due to the omission of the certificate of good conduct for children under 14 years, the price is a little cheaper, but often school certificates or consent forms must be legalized.

The fees for the offices and translations are all already included in the total price.

If you would like to receive professional help and learn more, please contact us using our contact form.

 

 

 

Preparation of immigration documents for Paraguay

 

These are the most important steps you have to do already in Germany or Austria or Switzerland.

 

The papers in Germany (or Europe) for emigration to Paraguay must be prepared step by step. The thing with the passport is less to explain, because this is self-evident. This must be valid for at least 6 months. It is best to apply for a new one in Germany, before you have to apply for a new one in the German Embassy in Asunciòn for much more money.

If the name in the passport does not correspond to the name on the birth certificate, because you have married or divorced, then you also need the marriage certificate in the original and certified by the regional council; divorce decree with the signature of the local court and certification by the regional court; death certificate certified by the regional council.

The certificate of good conduct can be applied for at the municipal or city administration, which must be certified by the Federal Office of Justice in Bonn. It can happen that employees or (mock) civil servants do not know what a Überbeglaubigung is. In this case, just tell them that it has to be certified for a stay abroad and that the Federal Office of Justice knows about it - this information only has to be forwarded to the Federal Office of Justice in Bonn.

You can also apply for it directly at the Federal Office of Justice. It is best to call there yourself and ask for it. We have already managed to obtain a certified certificate of good conduct by fax for ourselves and by power of attorney for customers. The fees for this must of course also be paid and it is best if you then also immediately fax or e-mail a proof of the transfer to the Federal Office of Justice, before they have to search for the receipt of payment.

It sounds complicated, but it is quite simple. We already have enough experience with it.

All documents (except the passport of course) must be sent to the Paraguayan Embassy in Berlin and over authenticated. But they will NOT be legalized by the embassy.

If there is a time pressure, you can also send us your documents by DHL to Paraguay and we will prepare everything already, so that everything goes very fast.

All other papers you need in Paraguay can then be applied for once you are in Paraguay, such as the Vida de Residencia (a confirmation of residence - where you will be living in Paraguay during your vacation). This is done together with you and is included in the price, as well as the other things that need to be done.

We are flexible and will also pick you up from the airport. Many things can be clarified in advance by e-mail, by phone or Skype.

 

 

 

 

More information about the cedula and the residence permit

 

La Radicación Permanente (Residence permit)

 

The 1st step necessary to emigrate to Paraguay is to apply for a permanent residence permit according to Migration Law N° 978/96, which is granted to foreign citizens who wish to settle in Paraguay.

The "Radicación Permanente" (Residence Permit) is very easy to get in Paraguay to live and also to work in this country. I do not know any other country in the world where you can get this important document so easily and cheaply.

If you have the "La Radicación Permanente", you should keep it safe, because it is a very important document. You never have to show it. In Paraguay, you are only required to show the cédela, which also confirms that you are in possession of La Radicación Permanente.

What has been going on in Germany and the rest of Europe since 2015, after the opening of the borders to new settlers, does not necessarily need to be mentioned now, because everyone knows and it is clear from UN documents that a resettlement of millions of migrants in Europe, especially in Germany, is desired.

For anyone who does not feel safe in Europe, especially in Germany, and wants to emigrate to a safe country, it is already suggested to take care of it, as long as these simple immigration conditions are still valid, which can also be tightened at any time by the Paraguayan government.

Paraguay is a country with a very stable currency (after the Swiss Franc, the 2nd most stable currency in the world) and with a population of almost 7 million people. Germany, which is smaller than Paraguay, has more than 10x as many people.

At the moment (July 2018) the EURO exchange rate is high again, which should be used to transfer money to Paraguay, to invest profitably with interest rates above 10% at Cooperativas (cooperative banks) or to buy land.

 

 

 

Cédula de Identidad (Identity card)

 

The Cedula is similar to the German identity card, which also confirms that one is in possession of the residence permit in Paraguay. The application is made immediately after receiving the residence permit and is valid for 10 years. After the 10 years you have to apply for a new cedula and again you need the "Radicación Permanente". The 7-digit number of the Cedula is not changed - in Germany you always get a new number for the identity card or for the passport.

Important for real estate buyers who bought their property with their passport and the number of the passport was registered: Always keep the old passport, because the passport number is also entered in the property title and if one wants to sell again and has a new passport, then this number no longer matches the old passport. It can lead to discrepancies and one must then also bring in different proofs.

With the Cedula you can also travel to the Mercosur countries and then you do not need your German European passport.

At police controls of the Policia National, the Cedula is usually also required. It is also important if you want to open a bank account in Paraguay. There are very few banks in Paraguay where you can open an account without a cedula, but with your passport. The cedula is a very important document for living in Paraguay.

As mentioned above, the cedula has a 7-digit number that should be memorized like a telephone number. If you have a business and a tax number (RUC number), then you are often asked for this number in the supermarket, that my invoice with this number can get. Likewise one can require then also everywhere calculations with its RUC number for the tax declaration. For this you only need a tax consultant (Contador) and you give him all the invoices and other things and he takes care of it. In Paraguay it is very easy without much effort and cheap. It is all very uncomplicated - not like in Germany.

You can get more information by e-mail or personally or directly from our partner André Zeidler.