A residence in Paraguay

cusano said:

Paraguay is one of the cheapest and easiest residence solutions if not even the cheapest. Almost no restrictions to get it. This in combination with a lot of ads for obtaining residence in Paraguay made me think it's too popular.

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Ahhhh.....indeed. There is lots of marketing, but very few actual residents. The EU & US civil community in PY is very small. How small? There are more US "agents" at the US Embassy in Asunción than the combined US & EU "expats/residents" in PY.

A few years back, there were quite a few "expats" in PY (although NOT from the EU & US), but they got harassed so much by the Asunción US Embassy and its assigns that most moved to São Paulo or returned back home.

What you have a lot more now (as compared to before) is Taiwanese immigrants. This is a very CLOSED circle/community, though! It's impossible to penetrate...even for the US Intel or their US-born Taiwanese who have tried to infiltrate the groups. It's a 100% DO-NOT-ENTER deal!
Source: Taiwan and Paraguay escalate trade relations during 4th ECA Joint Committee Meeting

cusano said:

No clue how EU and US banks see this.

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Unofficially blacklisted. Even if the corresponding banks don't harass you right away, the local banks will absolutely make your life a living H3LL with bureaucracy and paperwork and then rob you of a considerable percentage of your incoming transfers.

If you don't know how to stay OFF the grid and be resourceful, Paraguay is definitely NOT for you!

Oh, and if you don't speak Spanish fluently, you will be charged a Gringo Tax...it's usually 500% to 1000%. Nothing the locals will feel "bad about or lose any sleep over."

cusano said:

You are talking about the Lebanese? I didn't know anything changed about this but i am not updated.

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...and their "derivatives."

cusano said:

Why should anyone bank locally in Paraguay?

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For example...
How do you pay ANDE?
I guess you can pay CASH in person, but what if the "cashier" pockets the money?
What happens when you travel? How do you pay when you can't go personally?

cusano said:

Is the residence unofficially blacklisted too or only the local banks?

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Depends! If you are an American or European, a compliance officer in Miami, NYC, or LA would have a real issue with you having residency in PY. I'm NOT defending them, but that is how they have been programmed to think.
If you are from PY, live there, have a local business, and have +$25K in Schwab, then "no." Just mentioning you need to keep Schwab because "Latin America" is corrupt will confirm the "confirmation bias" of the compliance officer.

cusano said:

Off the grid of who? The state itself in Paraguay is really weak.

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Weak? Who told you this?
When I say off the grid, I mean without calling attention to yourself. If you start a local business, let it be a "white-listed" business that does NOT compete with the businesses of other politically connected and privileged locals. You'll know who if you are familiar with Paraguay.

For example, Paraguay will extradite ANY foreigner requested by ANY Western country or its vassal states. Keep this in mind. Any! They will NOT even look at the charges. Of course, if you do have a LOT of money, many well-connected lawyers from the "group" will defend you until you run out of money, and you WILL run out of money. Then they'll extradite you!

Other than this, it's a wonderful country, and you can live like a King! If you don't FA, you won't FO. (FAFO)

cusano said:

If you don't look and behave like an idiot this isn't going to happen. I don't know if you can pay cash in person for the electricity bill but i know at least one type of business that can do bank transfers for you. All legal and it's not a bank.

If you can't go personally you need a person of trust and let's be honest even if someone scams you because of such a low amount then you learn from it and select the person of trust the next time better.


Then the whole PY residence just for producing papers doesn't make sense. Business and Personal account are at another place and only need a good looking residence if the bank asks for it. The thread starter is an perfect example.

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I can only say with utmost conviction that

1. "a potential resident should absorb their theory about Paraguay
2. travel to Paraguay,
3. rent an apartment,
4. go through the bureaucracy,
5. and experience Paraguay in practice."

Then, they will be able to assess whether Paraguay is the right residency for them.

As someone that just obtained my residency in Paraguay, I can speak of my experience. I went down there and met some really nice expats (some Canadian, some German, some South African, and a few locals.) I picked their brains on what they thought of Paraguay, and they were mostly positive on it. I decided while one could do the residency process by ones self, it did involve a lot of steps (that could be accomplished in like 3 days), but in the end I utilized a handler for 2 reasons.

1) I am not yet remotely fluent in Spanish.
2) a handler can (for a fee) speed up the process.

Obtaining the residency involves heading to multiple offices (national police, Interpol, translation, etc) these are spread out around Asunción.

I have a PDF made up of the steps involved.

The usual time to obtain a temporary residency is approx 3 months. For an extra $400 it can be as little as a month but usually 1.5 months.

It is another 2-3 months for a cedula (national ID card) which you use to purchase big ticket items, etc. It's an extra step but worthwhile to have (you can only apply after obtaining temporary residency.). It only involves running around town to multiple locations one more day to apply. You need two Paraguayans to vouch for you, but just making a few friends while socializing I accomplished that in like 2 days, it's like they WANT you to come and are proud you are choosing to come.

I had a positive experience with Paraguay. The people are friendly and not yet jaded by tourists. While it is true the downtown of Asunción lacks that cool area, there are many good neighbourhoods to hang in with lots of shops, restaurants and bars. I frequented a AWESOME steak house for less than what one would pay in Argentina. If you head just outside the nicest expat areas, there are areas with big box stores (like a Costco) that one could grab what ever one desires. No gringo markup. Even going to the main outdoor market (Mercado 4) one never pays the asking price, barter or walk away. I can't emphasize enough how I found the Paraguayans to be friendly and helpful.

I will also say that unlike Mexico where you have a great old town where all the expats go, but then 5 blocks over it turns to a hellhole, Paraguay for the most part lacks that. I travelled all over Asunción and only really found one area that gave me second thoughts. The wealth is spread more evenly there.

It is true that money still talks in Paraguay, You are not supposed to get a driver's licence before getting a cedula, but couple hundred fixes that problem. lol

Bottom line, I am happy I did it... I am back in Canada atm finishing off my preparations to become a non-resident and saying goodbye to Trudeau and all the s**t happening here, and with very low stay requirements, Paraguay residency gives me the freedom to do what I want, and pay hardly any tax on my investments.

I recommend, If one is interested, check out at least Asunción and Encarnacion, you might be impressed. Paraguay is atm one of the cheapest and safest places in South America, so feel free to walk around and hang with the locals. I initially planned to just grab the residency and leave to sever my ties with Canada, but I enjoyed the low-key lifestyle, the leave one alone behaviour, the anti woke, pro freedom nature to the place that I look forward to spending more time there (just not in their summer unless you have a swimming pool! lol... That being said it's not any worse than Thailand during their hot season)

Anyway, I hope this helps.

P.S. I would not wait long to grab residency... From my chilled rooftop pool at my residence, I counted over 20 construction cranes putting up buildings around town, people are moving in.

FREE CITIZEN said:

The usual time to obtain a temporary residency is approx 3 months. For an extra $400 it can be as little as a month but usually 1.5 months.

It is another 2-3 months for a cedula (national ID card)

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Ok.... here goes.

I was traveling with a Spanish friend last month to Paraguay. He is a native Spanish speaker and accomplished all you mentioned in two weeks flat. We had to leave else he would have all the docs in hand as well. Upon returning there he could collect the docs. No extra fees etc. When using any form of intermediary (handler) you are still screwed over in both time and money.

I do agree that they are very welcoming to foreigners in general.

cusano said:

Paraguay is one of the cheapest and easiest residence solutions if not even the cheapest. Almost no restrictions to get it. This in combination with a lot of ads for obtaining residence in Paraguay made me think it's too popular. No clue how EU and US banks see this.

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That is telling everyone everything you need to know about Paraguay.

A friend of mine has PY residency. He says it works well with EU banks, unlike e.g. the UAE, which is greylisted and causes lots of trouble.

JustAnotherNomad said:

A friend of mine has PY residency. He says it works well with EU banks, unlike e.g. the UAE, which is greylisted and causes lots of trouble.

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Would be interested to hear more about people’s experience with getting access to banking using a PY residency. Is this seen as a red flag in regions outside of the UAE, or is that the exception?

Can someone explain why cant you keep your existing banking with PY residency?

cusano said:

Paraguay is one of the cheapest and easiest residence solutions if not even the cheapest. Almost no restrictions to get it. This in combination with a lot of ads for obtaining residence in Paraguay made me think it's too popular. No clue how EU and US banks see this.

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I don't think Paraguay is too popular, we had lot's of threads about it her while I searched for it I found it. Do you relocated to Paraguay ?

kokunut said:

I don't think Paraguay is too popular, we had lot's of threads about it her while I searched for it I found it. Do you relocated to Paraguay ?

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It is more like a hidden gem. There are quite many with residencies there, especially from the digital nomas scene. But many travel in silence and don't talk about it.

Island Insider said:

Can someone explain why cant you keep your existing banking with PY residency?

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I think some banks don't want to keep you as customer if you give them your address in Paraguay.

daniels27 said:

It is more like a hidden gem. There are quite many with residencies there, especially from the digital nomas scene. But many travel in silence and don't talk about it.


I think some banks don't want to keep you as customer if you give them your address in Paraguay.

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Yes, these are indeed quite a few especially in those rare cases where id be okish to have bigger amounts, similar to Panama. They charge a lot in case business continues.

I think many residency providers (especially on Twitter) created a fantasy world for themselves and their followers that the whole of Europe is moving to Paraguay. We are talking 3000 people/year, at best, getting residencies. The number includes the US and Russia. Many of these people are heavily in Crypto and live bankless (or with Xapo only), so IF you are blacklisted from some bank as a Py resident, it definitely won't be because Paraguay is too popular.

Anyone willing to stay in Paraguay for 5-6 months or come 2-3x for a visit in this period can choose the cheapest providers on the market. Of course, unless they are outright scammers. If you need to get things done in one visit and or need some continuous support, you should look for someone more expensive. The cheapest, which are usually local "lawyers" or Mennonites - typically don't know how to serve more complicated clients and their needs.

There is indeed a relatively sizeable Lebanese community, so as Iranian. A lot of South Koreans and Taiwanese as well.

I will come soon and start a thread describing my experience

I was an EU res this year but I got my res/cedula in Para 2 yrs ago. I have to visit this year so I don't lose them. I figure if I'm gonna make the long trip to South America, I might as well get a RUC and keep it active and sign a rental contract for a room in my friend's house so I can at least establish my tax res there until I figure where I want to live more permanently.

I have a Wise card which has been super convenient for travel and transfers, but they don't offer cards or balances to Paraguay residents. I guess it's just a matter of being slow to update the address on one of my foreign bank accounts so my statements still have my current EU address on it in case I have to update my info with Wise? Any risks?
Any multi-currency debit cards/EMIs that are good for Paraguay residents? I've heard Ueno is one so I'm looking into it at the moment.

yeah get the ruc and pay some invoices and some taxes with it... once you have a decent history (like 6 months, you will be able to open local bank accounts. IIRC this what told me a friend a while ago.
try this https://www.utoppia.com/ , i think they willl accept the cedula but don't rely on it...