If you are retiring to Paraguay, you will be dealing with an authority that rewrote two important rules in 2026. In May the migration authority, the DNM (Dirección Nacional de Migraciones), set out how you prove your pension when you move up to permanent residency, and how long you may stay away without losing your residency. The upshot: the route is clearer than it used to be, but it is less forgiving of sloppy paperwork. What matters are the documents for temporary and for permanent residency, what the pension certificate has to contain, the 2026 fees, and where the long-established community on the ground genuinely helps.
The wider picture, with tax, living costs, health cover and where to live, is in our guide to how to retire in Paraguay.
What changed for retirees in 2026
The most important change is DNM Resolución 407 of 28 May 2026. It pulls the rules on proof of means, which had been spread over several resolutions from 2024 to 2026, into a single annex and repeals the old provisions on the subject. According to the DNM announcement, it applies to every application filed from 6 July 2026. Three points in it affect you directly as a retiree.
First: proof of means applies only to permanent residency. The resolution states expressly that proving your economic means is an admission requirement for the Residencia Permanente and leaves the requirements for temporary residency unchanged. For the first application you need no pension certificate; for the second it is mandatory.
Second: retirees have their own category. Of twelve categories, number 10 is "Jubilados o pensionados". Article 14 requires a Constancia de jubilación o pensión stating the amount you receive and the financial institution through which you receive it, legalised or apostilled. The resolution sets no minimum amount.
Third: what you declare at the start has to match later. When you move to permanent residency, the authority checks whether your proof matches the activity you declared for temporary residency. If you gave a different occupation there, you have to document the change. So state from the first application that you are retired. Under Article 19 everything you declare has the status of a sworn statement, and where it finds inconsistencies the DNM can refuse the application and refer the case to the public prosecutor.
A small detail on the side: since the resolution, your occupation no longer appears on the residency card (carnet), only in the authority's system and in the decision.
The second new rule is DNM Resolución 376 of 13 May 2026 on absences. For retirees who want to spend part of the year with children and grandchildren abroad, it matters at least as much as the pension rule.
The route: temporary first, then permanent
Retirees follow the same two-stage route under migration law Ley 6984/2022. After you arrive, you first apply for temporary residency. According to the DNM, it is valid for up to two years and can be extended for the same period. While the procedure runs you are a "residente precario": you may leave and re-enter, and you are legally in the country. With the carnet you get a Paraguayan cédula de identidad valid for the same period.
Next comes the move to permanent residency (cambio de categoría). According to the DNM, you file it in the three months before your temporary carnet expires. Up to one month after expiry it is still possible, but with a fine. After that, the only option is to extend temporary residency, which is possible up to six months after expiry, again with a fine. Permanent residency has no end date; only the card is renewed every ten years.
So put the expiry date of your first carnet in your calendar and count back three months. That is the day your documents for permanent residency should be ready.
Documents for temporary residency
For temporary residency the DNM essentially asks for these papers, each as an original with a certified copy:
Anything not in Spanish must be translated by a public translator licensed in Paraguay, or by a translator licensed in the issuing country, in which case the translation itself must be apostilled. Documents from states party to the Hague Apostille Convention need an apostille, according to the DNM; all others need consular legalisation.
The police certificate: the usual bottleneck
With the police clearance certificate, timing decides. Paraguayan authorities generally accept certificates that are no older than six months, so do not order yours too early. It has to come from your country of origin (or your country of residence over the last three years), be valid at national or federal level, and carry an apostille. Where the certificate and the apostille come from two different offices, ask early how long both steps take together and plan the order of your paperwork around the shorter deadline. Our guide to apostilles and documents for Latin America sets out the sequence step by step.
Documents for permanent residency
For the move to permanent residency the DNM asks for:
A new police certificate from your home country is not on the DNM's list for the move; the checks now come from Paraguay itself.
The pension certificate: what it must show
Article 14 of Resolución 407 is short but precise. The certificate must state two things: the amount you receive and the payment route, meaning the financial institution through which the pension reaches you. On top of that comes the apostille and, if the document is not in Spanish, a Spanish translation.
In practice: ask your pension provider for a current statement of your pension that shows the amount and the receiving account. Which office issues the apostille depends on which body issues the certificate, so ask your provider about that at the same time, before you put the papers together. If you draw more than one pension, say a state pension and a company or private pension, document each one you rely on as your means of living. Under Article 3 the DNM may ask for additional documents, and under Article 18 it assesses the proof as a whole.
One practical point on the payment route: Paraguayan banks often ask where an incoming foreign transfer comes from, so keep your annual pension statement to hand once the money starts arriving in Paraguay.
For couples: if only one of you draws a pension, the other can prove means as a "Dependiente". For a spouse, Article 15 requires the apostilled marriage certificate and a certified copy of the cédula or carnet of the spouse who provides support. The simplest approach is to file so that the pensioner's application goes through first or at the same time.
Fees in 2026
The DNM charges in daily wage units (jornales). Since 1 July 2026 one jornal has been PYG 117,077. According to the DNM fee schedule, cash payment costs:
| Procedure | Jornales | Guaraníes (PYG) |
|---|---|---|
| Temporary residency | 25 | 2,926,925 |
| Permanent residency (change of category) | 25 | 2,926,925 |
| Certificado de Radicación | 2 | 234,154 |
| Extension of temporary residency | 11 | 1,287,847 |
| Renewal of the permanent carnet | 4 | 468,308 |
| Fine for overstaying | 6 | 702,462 |
Electronic payment adds a card provider's charge. Apostilles, translations and costs in your home country are not included. If you would like support with the procedure, our page on residency in Paraguay sets out what we do.
How long you may stay away
Resolución 376 has reorganised the procedure. The limits themselves come from the law, but how the authority checks them is now set out in detail. The DNM reviews entry and exit records every six months. If you hold temporary residency and stay out of the country for more than one year at a stretch, you lose it. For permanent residency the limit is three years. After cancellation you count as a tourist and must leave within 30 days or apply for a new residency. If temporary residency is cancelled, you start again from scratch. If you lose permanent residency, Article 5 lets you recover it within three years of the cancellation, through a short-term Residencia espontánea during which you stay in the country, and with new certificates.
If you plan a longer absence, for medical treatment abroad or to care for a family member, you can apply for an authorisation of absence. The application must reach the DNM no later than three months before the one-year or three-year limit runs out. As a permanent resident you can get up to one additional year; as a temporary resident, at most until the day before the deadline for applying for the move to permanent residency or for an extension expires. You must show your ties to the country with at least two pieces of evidence, such as a property title, a rental contract, a bank account, a RUC tax number or a family member with residency. The fee is two jornales. If you apply late or with incomplete papers, the application is refused and your residency is cancelled, and if the authority does not decide within 60 days, the application counts as refused.
For most retirees the simple rule is: during the temporary stage, enter the country at least once a year; after that, things become much more relaxed.
Obligations back home
The application in Paraguay is only one side of the move. Residency in Paraguay does not, on its own, end your tax residence at home, and whether your pension stays taxable there depends on your country and its treaty position with Paraguay:
Ask your pension payer whether it needs a yearly life certificate from abroad and how its letters will reach you, and settle a reliable postal address before you leave.
The community on the ground: where it really helps
Paperwork is where you see why so many retirees settle near established communities. Paraguay has long-standing German-speaking and Mennonite colonies, in Itapúa in the south, around Villarrica and in the Chaco, and around them doctors, clubs and services are close at hand. How the settlements came about and where the communities live today is described in our article on the German and Mennonite colonies of Paraguay. How others fared on arrival, hurdles included, you can read in our honest experiences of living in Paraguay.
There are two things a community cannot replace. First, the application itself: you file it in person with Migraciones after you arrive, and its head office is in Asunción. Second, care with your papers: tips from friends and neighbours often date from before Resoluciones 376 and 407. What counts is what the DNM requires today.
The checklist in the right order
1. At home: request the police certificate and its apostille, no more than six months before you apply.
2. Obtain your birth and marriage certificates, have them apostilled and plan the Spanish translations.
3. Ask at the same time about the pension certificate with amount and payment route, and who apostilles it. You will only need it in two years, but it helps to know the route.
4. Enter Paraguay, apply for temporary residency at Migraciones, give "jubilado" as your activity and include the Interpol and police certificates.
5. Apply for the cédula, sort out a postal address and a bank account, and move your pension payments if you wish.
6. During the temporary stage, be in Paraguay at least once a year.
7. Three months before your carnet expires, file the move to permanent residency with the apostilled and translated pension certificate.
Paraguay is one of several Latin American countries that offer retirees a workable route. How it compares is shown in our overview of the best Latin American countries for retirees. The full process for every applicant is in Paraguay residency step by step, and everything on tax, costs and daily life is on our Paraguay country page.
Carpe Diem. Life is short and fleeting. One shot. Make it count.