First 90 days in Latin America: the real deadlines

The table below shows the hard registration window, the ID card you're working toward, and the tax number that unlocks banking and contracts. A dash means no fixed statutory window — but 'no deadline' doesn't mean 'no urgency'; it usually means the clock is your permitted stay.

Every country has a routine first-step. Most also have one trap that catches a disproportionate share of new arrivals. These are the ones the published rules make easy to miss.

Brazil's trap is appointment supply. The Federal Police registration window is 90 days from entry, but booking an agendamento in São Paulo or Rio can take weeks. Treat booking the appointment as a day-one task — not something to schedule once you're settled.

Colombia's 15-day cédula de extranjería registration window is the tightest hard deadline in the region, and it resurfaces at every visa renewal. Late registration is a sanctionable infraction with fines scaling up to 7 monthly minimum wages. See the Colombia: the full arrival playbook for the appointment strategy.

Mexico's 30-day canje window has a second clause most people don't read: leaving Mexico mid-canje without INM exit permission voids the entire process. A restart means a new visa application at a consulate abroad — not a quick fix.

Chile closed the most popular workaround in 2021. Under the current migration law, most residence permits must be applied for from outside Chile. Arriving as a tourist and changing status inside the country no longer works for most categories. Confirm your specific category before you fly, or open the file at a Chilean consulate.

The Dominican Republic has its own sequencing trap: the residence visa must be obtained at a Dominican consulate before you travel. Arriving as a tourist and trying to file residence in-country is the most common wasted trip. The 60-day conversion clock then starts at entry.

Uruguay's trap is document logistics. The FBI background check and birth certificate must be apostilled in the US — apostilles cannot be obtained from Montevideo. Arrivals without them face months of courier exchanges before the residency file can move.

Across the region, a local bank account requires the local ID card — and the local ID card requires completing registration first. That gap can run weeks to months. The practical answer is the same almost everywhere: a Wise or Revolut account funded from home, plus a US-based debit card with low foreign-transaction fees, bridges the gap while the paperwork moves.

A few countries have low-barrier entry points. Chile's BancoEstado CuentaRUT opens on a valid RUT alone — and the RUT comes with the cédula. Costa Rica's BCR and Banco Nacional offer simplified low-limit accounts on a passport. Brazil's digital banks (Nubank, Inter) open on a CPF plus a local address, which can arrive before the CRNM. These are the exceptions; in most countries the ID card is the hard gate.

Panama is the outlier in the other direction: even with full residency documents, account opening is famously document-heavy — reference letters, proof of income, source-of-funds declarations — with approvals taking weeks. Multi-currency fintech bridging is near-universal for new Panama residents at first. See Banking that works before the local account exists for the full cross-country picture.

Three countries carry specific banking risk worth flagging. Bolivia maintains a fixed exchange rate and has faced dollar scarcity, making it difficult to obtain hard currency locally. Honduras applies exchange controls, and the lempira is managed, so cross-border money is better held in an account outside the country. Nicaragua's banking sector has operated under significant international sanctions pressure since 2018, and some foreign banks decline Nicaraguan counterparties entirely.

The local tax number is not just a filing requirement — it's the identifier that unlocks contracts, utilities, SIM cards, and often banking. In Brazil, the CPF is needed for practically everything: bank accounts, SIM cards, leases, online purchases, even pharmacy discounts. In Chile, the RUT is Chile's universal identifier — banking, contracts, healthcare, buying a phone, even a supermarket loyalty card runs on it.

In most countries the tax number is tied to the ID card, so it arrives automatically once registration is complete. The exceptions worth noting: Argentina's CUIL and CUIT are issued separately through ANSES and ARCA (the renamed AFIP), and they're needed for payroll, freelancing, banking, and utilities. Colombia's RUT is issued by DIAN and is distinct from the cédula de extranjería — you'll need both.

Guatemala is the outlier for day-to-day use: even routine retail purchases ask for a NIT on the receipt. Getting the NIT early smooths ordinary life considerably, not just formal contracts.

A foreign license works for a limited window almost everywhere — but the window length, what happens after it, and whether there's a simple exchange vary significantly.

• Brazil: a foreign license is valid 180 days from entry. After that, the full CNH process applies — no US reciprocity, with medical and psychological evaluations plus theory and practical exams at the state Detran.
• Colombia: no US exchange. Homologation covers only 7 treaty countries (Spain, Peru, South Korea, Chile, Paraguay, Argentina, Portugal). Everyone else does a CEA driving course plus medical exams.
• Costa Rica: a foreign license works for the length of the legal entry stay (up to 180 days). Residents homologate at COSEVI with the DIMEX, the valid license, and a medical exam — no driving test required.
• Dominican Republic: a foreign license is valid for the first 90 days. Residents convert through INTRANT with the original license, cédula, and a medical certificate — many foreign licenses convert without a road test.
• Ecuador: residents can exchange (canje) at ANT with a certified/apostilled license, psychosensometric exam, Red Cross blood-type certificate, and a theory evaluation in Spanish.
• Panama: tourists may drive 90 days on a foreign license. The exchange requires prior certification of the US license — an apostille from the issuing state or a US Embassy certification legalized at Panama's MFA — plus a blood-type test. Arrivals routinely end up couriering documents home.
• Peru: a foreign license covers only the first 6 months. The MTC canje needs the carné, a health certificate, certification of the license, and a theory exam — the US is not among the exempt treaty countries.
• Uruguay: a full exchange treaty exists only with Spain. US licenses are revalidated at the intendencia with cédula, an apostilled license certification, and a medical exam.

A few countries have conditions that go beyond the standard registration checklist.

Bolivia requires an Interpol certificate issued inside Bolivia as part of the residency file — it cannot be arranged before you arrive. Combined with the apostille and translation requirements for every foreign document, budget several office visits before the file is complete. The Bolivia: the full arrival playbook has the sequence.

Ecuador tightened its absence rules in the 2025 reform: temporary residents forfeit the visa by spending more than 90 days per year outside Ecuador. The count starts from day one of residence, not from when you first leave.

Peru's permanent residence lapses automatically after more than 183 consecutive days outside Peru in any 365-day period (365 days for permanent residents) unless Migraciones authorizes the absence in advance. This catches people who treat the carné as a set-and-forget document.

Paraguay's residency rules changed materially in 2022, replacing the old bank-deposit route with a temporary-then-permanent path and higher documentary standards. Anything written before 2022 about a same-week permanent cédula is out of date. Verify current requirements directly with the Dirección General de Migraciones.

Nicaragua's political and sanctions situation since 2018 has affected banking access, NGO and church affiliations, and property rights — and rules have changed with little notice. Verify current conditions close to your move date rather than relying on anything written months earlier.

Argentina's residency system has seen repeated fee and requirement shifts through 2024–25. Temporary residencies renew annually and Migraciones runs slow — letting the electronic residencia precaria lapse leaves you irregular. The Argentina: the full arrival playbook tracks the current state.

Belize's defining quirk is the monthly stamp renewal: a real trip to an Immigration office every 30 days, with a fee, for a full year before you can even file for permanent residence. The QRP programme run by the Belize Tourism Board sidesteps this for qualifying applicants. The continuous-presence requirement for permanent residence is strict — leaving during that year can reset the clock, and the monthly stamps are the evidence trail.

Costa Rica's CCSS (Caja) enrollment is not optional: no affiliation, no DIMEX card — and unpaid contributions block renewal. Healthcare enrollment is a prerequisite, not an afterthought. See Healthcare enrollment, by country for the full picture.

The table and country notes above are a starting map. The published rules are the floor; each government makes the actual decision on your specific file, and conditions change. Use this to know what questions to ask and which deadlines to put in your calendar on arrival day — then verify the current version of each requirement through the official source for your country.

For the complete step-by-step sequence in any single country — documents, fees, appointment links, and the order that actually works — the Every first-90-days playbook index links to each country's full guide.