Payroll and Benefits Guide Uruguay

Uruguay offers a variety of visas to foreign nationals including:

• Tourism visas, which allow multiple entries and are valid for 90 days
• Business visas, which are valid for 90 days and multiple entries
• Student visas, which are single entry and valid for 30 days
• Family reunification visas, which allow a single entry and are valid for 30 days
• Work visas, which are valid for 30 days and a single entry
• Humanitarian and emergency visas, which are single entry and valid for 30 days
• Foreign employees will need to obtain a work visa to enter Uruguay

To remain in the country beyond the initial 30-day period, a residency visa will be required.

To apply for residency, the foreigner enters Uruguay as a tourist and then applies in person at Uruguay’s national immigration office, Dirección Nacional de Migración (DNM). The required documentation includes:

• a birth certificate
• a marriage certificate
• a police certificate for each country you’ve lived in during the last five years, and if you are a U.S. citizen, you need an FBI report instead of a police report
• documented proof of income

The birth certificate, marriage certificate, and non-Interpol (non-U.S.) police records must be authenticated by apostille (an official pre-printed form) affixed to the document by the appropriate authority in the appropriate jurisdiction and translated into Spanish by an official public translator.

The legalized translated birth certificate must also be registered with the Registro de Extranjeros, which will issue a document required to obtain the Uruguayan resident ID card.

Besides these documents, there is also a requirement for a carné de Salud (Uruguay health card) and a medios de vida (an income certificate). The health card requires a medical exam at an authorized clinic in Uruguay and the income certification must prove a sufficient income. The source and amount of your income must be verified by an escribano, an Uruguayan legal professional authorized to prepare an income verification certificate. Any source of income from abroad is acceptable, such as a pension, social security, lease income, or business income.

Once the application has been made and documentation provided, the foreigner will become a temporary resident of Uruguay—known as a residente en trámite (a resident in the process). The next step is to go to the immigration department to get the documentation associated with getting the temporary cédula at the Dirección Nacional de Identificación Civil (DNIC). It often takes around a year for the completed residency application to be processed.