Argentina: Procedure for permanent residents of Argentina residing abroad to obtain citizenship

In 20 December 2007 correspondence with the Research Directorate, a consular official at the embassy of Argentina in Ottawa provided information obtained from the Consular Affairs Section (Dirección General de Asuntos Consulares) of the Argentine Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Religion (Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Comercio Internacional y Culto) indicating that a foreign citizen who has been given permanent resident status in Argentina can present an application for Argentine citizenship before a judge after having resided in Argentina for an uninterrupted period of two years (Argentina 20 Dec. 2007). This information is corroborated by the Argentine government website, which adds that the applicant must have resided in the country for an uninterrupted period of two years immediately preceding the time of application (Argentina n.d.). The applicant must also present a history of good conduct as an Argentine resident, e.g., a record free of any criminal charges, outstanding legal proceedings, or outstanding tax issues (Argentina 20 Dec. 2007). When these conditions are met, the applications are normally approved (ibid.). No information could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate on the time required for this process.

An official at the National Immigration Office (Dirección Nacional de Migraciones) of the Ministry of Interior (Ministerio del Interior) provided the following information in an 18 January 2008 telephone interview with the Research Directorate. A permanent resident of Argentina who has lived outside of Argentina for less than two years is allowed to re-enter the country and keep the same status without facing any hurdles (Argentina 18 Jan. 2008). If the permanent resident has lived outside Argentina for more than two years, the National Immigration Office will decide whether to strip the individual of permanent status (ibid.). According to same source at the National Immigration Office, if the person intends to re-establish himself or herself in Argentina, the permanent residency status is usually re-issued [translation] "without any problems" (ibid.). If the permanent resident is the parent of an Argentine-born child, the administrative process is still required, but acceptance was reported as [translation] "automatic" (ibid.).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Argentina. 18 January 2008. Ministerio del Interior. Dirección Nacional de Migraciones. Telephone interview with an official of the Dirección de Asuntos Jurídicos.
_____. 20 December 2007. Embassy of the Republic of Argentina, Ottawa. Correspondence from a consular official.
_____. N.d. Poder Judicial de la Nacion. "Requisitos para Ciudadanía u Opción." [Accessed 10 Jan. 2008]

Additional Sources Consulted

Oral source: A representative of the Colegio Público de Abogados de la Capital Federal was unable to provide information.