Paraguay's New Permanent-Residency Rules (Effective 6 July 2026)

From 6 July 2026, Paraguay's National Directorate of Migration (Dirección Nacional de Migraciones, DNM) tightens two things at once for permanent residency. Both changes apply to every permanent-residency application filed on or after that date, and they apply equally to the national regime (Ley 6984/22) and the MERCOSUR regime (Ley 3565/08) — MERCOSUR citizens are not exempt.

If you are a temporary or permanent resident of Paraguay, or currently in the immigration process, these changes affect when you must travel and which documents you now need.

1. Mandatory visits are now strictly enforced

The formal mandatory visits — annual for temporary residents, every three years for permanent residents — are now actively enforced. As a temporary resident you may not be outside Paraguay for more than 365 days; as a permanent resident, not more than three years.

The rule itself is not new — it comes from Article 55 of the migration law (Ley 6984/22): residency is cancelled on an unjustified absence longer than one year (temporary residents) or three years (permanent residents). What changed is that it is now genuinely enforced. Two things are worth remembering:

• Every single entry into Paraguay resets the counter to zero.
• If you know in advance you will exceed the limit, you can ask DNM for prior authorization (autorización previa) to preserve your residency.

DNM now also verifies this limit retroactively — at the permanent-residency application itself. When assessing your application it checks whether, since obtaining temporary residency, you were ever outside Paraguay for more than 365 consecutive days (that is, without a single counter-resetting entry). If so, permanent residency is not granted — instead you get a two-year extension of temporary residency (prórroga), and must apply for permanent residency again later, once you can prove the limit was respected.

In practice this ends the "one-trip permanent residency." It is no longer enough to fly in once, file, and leave with permanent residency — before it is granted you must genuinely maintain your presence (entries within the limit) during temporary residency. Be cautious of intermediaries still promising "one-trip" permanent residency; under current enforcement it is no longer possible.

2. You must now prove your income (economic solvency)

Previously a permanent-residency application required one mandatory visit plus either a university diploma or an RUC tax number — and in practice zero-activity monthly IVA (VAT) returns plus a generated "Cumplimiento Tributario" (tax-compliance) certificate were enough.

That is no longer sufficient. Under Resolution DNM N° 407/2026, every permanent-residency applicant must prove solvency — actively and with documents. Economic solvency is never presumed: a diploma or title alone is no longer enough, and you must prove both income and the real exercise of the activity you declared (which must be consistent with what you stated at the temporary-residency stage).

You can prove income in one of two ways:

• Local income declared in Paraguay — through the tax authority (SET), with non-zero IVA/VAT activity (at least the last 3 monthly IVA returns with real activity), or personal income tax (IRP) for the last year.
• Foreign income — documented and then notarized, apostilled, and translated to Spanish. Note: if the documents are apostilled and translated abroad, the Spanish translation itself must also be apostilled (not just the original document).

Zero monthly IVA/VAT returns are no longer accepted as they were before. A clean tax-compliance certificate backed by empty returns is not, by itself, proof of solvency.

There are many legitimate ways to prove non-zero income depending on your situation:

• Own property in Paraguay? You can declare rental income.
• A digital nomad or remote worker? You can present an apostilled foreign employment contract (a document proving you have income abroad).
• Earning directly in Paraguay? You will need at least the last 3 IVA/VAT returns with real (non-zero) activity.

Resolution 407 defines twelve categories of applicant — professionals, technicians, employees, self-employed (commerce and services), remote workers / digital nomads, property owners, shareholders / partners, farmers and ranchers, religious, retirees / pensioners, dependents (family members), and students — and you choose one. Each has its own document list.

One more change worth knowing: the profession/activity field is removed from the printed residency card (carnet). The data stays in DNM's internal system, so it does not affect your rights — but it means you should remember which activity you declared at the temporary-residency stage, because it must stay consistent at the permanent-residency application.

Finally, treat the documents seriously: the whole application has the character of a sworn declaration (declaración jurada). DNM may request further documents at any time and verifies authenticity; any false or incomplete statement can lead not only to rejection but also to referral to the public prosecutor (Ministerio Público). The rule is simple — prove what is real, and do not invent income you cannot document.

Important: the law states no minimum income amount. What that means in practice is covered below.

3. What our local lawyers say (the honest version)

We asked our partner lawyers in Paraguay for the practical detail. Their honest answer: everything is written in the regulation, but in practice nobody — not even the DNM officials applying it — yet knows exactly how each case will be assessed. For now the only reliable guide is common sense: the point of the law is simply that you genuinely prove you are solvent. With that caveat, here is their current reading.

• How much income must I prove? The law states no amount. As a rule of thumb, plan on declaring at least the Paraguayan minimum wage — on the order of 500–600 USD/month. (This is a practical estimate, not a figure in the resolution.)
• What counts as proof of foreign income? A contract stating what you do, how much you earn, and what activity you perform — apostilled — backed by a bank statement proving the income you claim is actually received.
• Does crypto income count? Unclear. Our partners do not currently expect income exclusively in crypto to be accepted as proof of solvency.
• I'm married — what about my spouse? A married applicant brings a marriage certificate. If your spouse is already a permanent resident, the marriage certificate is essentially all that's needed on top (the resident spouse acts as the provider). If both spouses apply at once, one spouse can act as provider/guarantor for the other.

4. Declaring local income in Paraguay — the route we recommend

If you choose the local-income route, you (or your accountant) issue invoices and file monthly IVA returns in Paraguay's online tax system (Marangatú, run by SET).

In practice this route is cheap and predictable. You declare income at roughly the Paraguayan minimum wage (~500–600 USD/month), which at the 10% IVA rate costs about 60 USD/month in tax. You don't need a full year: the rule asks for the last 3 monthly IVA returns, so it's enough to start invoicing and filing in the three months before applying — for example September, October, and November if you convert in December. That is roughly 180 USD total for a solid, locally-issued proof of solvency.

This is the path we usually recommend — and not only for the low cost. Your proof is a record issued by the Paraguayan tax authority (SET) itself: an officer reviewing your application can hardly dispute the state's own records, whereas a foreign work letter or contract can always be questioned and depends on someone abroad issuing, apostilling, and translating it in time. Filing locally also keeps you in control: the proof is generated automatically through the system, on your own schedule, without waiting on anyone.

Need help? Polystate handles the full Paraguay residency process — temporary and permanent — including the Marangatú tax-document path and the document checklist by category. Get in touch.

This article is a client-facing summary; it does not replace the full text of Resolution DNM N° 407/2026 or legal advice.