Uruguay: residency and banking
UruguayAmericas- Main route for non-Mercosur nationals
- General permanent residence (no investment threshold)
- As of 2026-10-25 · [1]
- New-resident regime for foreign capital income
- Year of arrival plus the 10 following fiscal years
- As of 2026-10-25 · [2]
- Tax holiday through property, without 183 days
- Real estate above UI 12,500,000 (about USD 2.1 million)
- As of 2026-10-27 · [12]
Overview
Uruguay attracts people who want a calm, institutionally stable base in South America. Its general permanent residence does not ask for capital: the Dirección Nacional de Migración (DNM) wants identity documents, clean criminal records, a Uruguayan health card and credible evidence of how you support yourself.
Tax is a separate track run by the Dirección General Impositiva (DGI). The 2025–2029 Budget Law changed it substantially: from 1 January 2026, foreign capital income and gains of Uruguayan tax residents fall within personal income tax (IRPF), while newcomers can opt into a time-limited regime that keeps such income outside Uruguayan tax. Who qualifies, and on what conditions, matters more than the headline.
Redomiciled sequences the immigration and tax steps and introduces you to licensed Uruguayan lawyers, notaries and accountants (contadores), who give the legal and tax advice on your file.
Uruguay residency for founders and investors
Uruguayan permanent residence is a legal residence granted by the Dirección Nacional de Migración to foreigners who intend to settle and can prove regular means of living. As of 2026 the application starts online and ends at an in-person appointment. It suits remote founders, retirees and investors whose income comes from abroad.
Uruguay's Migration Law (Law 18.250) and its regulation (Decree 394/2009) provide several residence types. For people without a Mercosur passport the usual route is general permanent residence, which is open to any nationality. Nationals of Mercosur and associated states have their own permanent and temporary tracks, and a temporary residence of six months to two years exists for work, study and similar purposes.
The core of the file is proof of means of living. The DNM lists typical forms: a notarial certificate of salary from a Uruguayan or foreign employer, an accountant's certificate for self-employed income, a notarial certificate for company owners, or, for people living on investments or pensions, a notarial certificate stating the nature and monthly amount of the income and how it reaches Uruguay. The DNM may ask for more evidence.
Foreign documents must be apostilled or legalised and translated by a Uruguayan public translator, except Brazilian documents. Criminal record certificates are needed from your country of origin and every country where you lived for six months or more in the five years before arriving. The health card and vaccination certificate are issued in Uruguay by providers authorised by the Ministry of Public Health.
The application is submitted online through gub.uy, reviewed by the DNM and then completed at an appointment with the original documents. While the file is pending you can hold a cédula as a resident in process. Licensed Uruguayan lawyers, notaries and contadores advise on the legal and tax side; Redomiciled coordinates the sequence around them.
Who it suits
Founders with income from abroad
Your company or clients sit outside Uruguay and you want a stable legal home in the region.
Retirees and investors
A foreign pension or investment income can serve as the means of living, documented by a notarial certificate.
Families relocating together
Spouses and children apply with their own records; the DNM asks for marriage and birth certificates to prove the link.
People planning a long-term move
Permanent residence is the starting point for legal citizenship after years of habitual residence.
Requirements
- Required
Valid identity document
The passport used to book the appointment must be presented on the day; nationals who need a visa for Uruguay must hold a valid one.
- Required
Criminal record certificates
National-level certificates, apostilled or legalised and translated, from the country of origin and recent countries of residence.
- Required
Uruguayan health card and vaccination certificate
Obtained in Uruguay from providers authorised by the Ministry of Public Health.
- Required
Proof of means of living
A notarial or accountant's certificate showing the source and monthly amount of your income.
- Required
Personal attendance
You attend the DNM appointment in person, with an interpreter if you do not speak Spanish.
- Depends on your case
Marriage and birth certificates for family members
Required when relatives apply with you; a marriage certificate may not be more than one year old.
- Depends on your case
Early advice from a Uruguayan contador
Useful before arrival, because the date you become tax resident decides which tax regime you can elect.
Documents
- PassportValid, with any required visa, and the same document used for the online booking.
- Criminal record certificates (apostilled, translated)National scope only; state or provincial certificates are not accepted.
- Health card (carné de salud)Issued in Uruguay.
- Vaccination certificateIssued in Uruguay under the national vaccination scheme.
- Notarial certificate of incomePrepared by a Uruguayan notary (escribano), describing your employment, business, pension or investment income.
- Birth certificateNeeded for minors and requested by the civil identification office for the cédula.
- Legal basis
- Law 18.250 (Migration Law) and Decree 394/2009As of 2026-10-25 · [1]
- Criminal records required
- Country of origin and countries of residence in the last 5 years (stays of 6 months or more)Applicants over 18As of 2026-10-25 · [1]
- Temporary residence for work or study
- 6 months to 2 years, extendableAs of 2026-10-25 · [1]
- Tax residence through property (investments since July 2020)
- Real estate above UI 3,500,000 plus at least 60 days' presence a yearAs of 2026-10-25 · [4]
- Conditions without 183 days' presence
- Real estate above UI 12,500,000, or UI 625,000 a year in qualifying investment fundsAs of 2026-10-25 · [6]
- Legal citizenship (habitual residence)
- 3 years with family in Uruguay, 5 years withoutAs of 2026-10-25 · [9]
Timeline
- 1Prepare documents abroadOrder criminal records and civil certificates, apostille them and arrange translations by a Uruguayan public translator.
- 2Apply onlineFile the application on gub.uy with the documents in PDF.
- 3DNM review and bookingIf the DNM accepts the submission, you receive a link to book an appointment; if not, it returns observations to correct.
- 4Appointment in UruguayAttend with the original documents. Missing items are handed in later in a single delivery, and a cédula as a resident in process can be issued meanwhile.
- 5Residence granted and tax set-upAfter the DNM resolves the file, register with the DGI as needed and decide, with a contador, on the tax regime election.
Tax notes
- You are tax resident in Uruguay if you spend more than 183 days there in a calendar year, or if your main base of activities or economic interests is there. Decree 148/007 sets investment tests, for example real estate above UI 3,500,000 combined with at least 60 days' presence a year, or above UI 15,000,000 without a presence test.
- Law 20.446 widened IRPF from 1 January 2026: capital income and gains from foreign assets are taxed in the hands of residents, generally at 12%, with credit for foreign tax. Foreign interest and dividends were already taxable before 2026.
- People who become tax resident from 1 January 2026 can elect, once, to keep foreign capital income outside IRPF for the year of arrival and the 10 following years. Those resident through 183 days' presence qualify each year without further conditions; others need real estate above UI 12,500,000 or UI 625,000 a year in qualifying funds. You must not have been tax resident in the two previous years.
- After that period, residents can elect, once, to pay IRPF on that foreign capital income at half the applicable rate (6% where the general 12% applies) for the next five years, provided they invest UI 625,000 a year in qualifying funds or hold real estate above UI 6,250,000. Alternatively, they can pay a fixed IRPF of UI 1,875,000 a year on all such income (UI 1,250,000 in years with 183 days' presence). People who arrived before 2026 keep the regime they elected; the older options closed to new elections on 31 December 2025.
General information, not tax advice. Your position depends on your circumstances.
Banking fit
- Local accounts usually follow the cédula, and each bank decides after its own review.
- A DGI tax residence certificate helps with international banks once you meet a residence test.
- If banking is the main objective, start with our banking assessment rather than the residence permit.
Real estate in Uruguay: tax residence and the tax holiday
Buying property in Uruguay does not by itself give you a residence permit: immigration still runs through the DNM's means-of-living test. What property can do is make you a Uruguayan tax resident, and from 2026 it can qualify you for the 11-year exemption on foreign capital income without spending more than 183 days a year in the country.
There are three property thresholds to know. Real estate above UI 3,500,000 (about USD 580,000), bought after July 2020 and combined with at least 60 days' presence a year, makes you tax resident. Real estate above UI 15,000,000 (about USD 2.5 million) makes you tax resident without a presence test. And for the new-resident regime, people who do not spend 183 days in Uruguay need real estate above UI 12,500,000 (about USD 2.1 million), or UI 625,000 (about USD 104,000) a year in qualifying funds.
If you do spend more than 183 days a year in Uruguay, no property is needed for the tax holiday: presence alone qualifies, provided you were not tax resident in the two previous years. Property then becomes a lifestyle or investment choice rather than a tax condition.
Promoted housing (vivienda promovida). New units built under Law 18.795 carry their own tax benefits: the first sale is exempt from VAT and transfer tax, the unit is exempt from wealth tax for ten years, and rental income from qualifying leases can be partly or fully exempt from income tax. An investor can use a promoted-housing purchase towards a tax residence test and keep these benefits at the same time.
Redomiciled introduces Uruguayan notaries, lawyers and contadores, who structure the purchase, confirm which test you meet and file the regime election with the DGI.
Who it suits
- Investors who will spend less than half the year in Uruguay – Property above UI 12,500,000 gives access to the tax holiday without 183 days.
- People buying a home to live in – Property above UI 3,500,000 plus 60 days a year makes you tax resident.
- Rental investors – Promoted housing adds wealth-tax and rental-income exemptions.
Key facts
| Test | Legal threshold | Approx. USD | Presence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tax residence through property (bought from July 2020) | UI 3,500,000 | 580,000 | 60 days a year |
| Tax residence through property, no presence test | UI 15,000,000 | 2.5 million | None |
| Tax holiday without 183 days | UI 12,500,000 | 2.1 million | None |
| Tax holiday through funds instead | UI 625,000 a year | 104,000 a year | None |
Timeline
- Decide the presence plan – 183 days or more, or a property-based test.
- Choose the property – Size it to the test you need; check whether it is promoted housing.
- Purchase through a Uruguayan notary – Funds wired and title registered.
- Residence file – DNM application on the means-of-living basis.
- Tax election – With a contador, elect the new-resident regime once you become tax resident.
Questions
- Can I get Uruguayan residency by buying property? Not directly. The residence permit depends on proof of means of living. Property counts for tax residence and for the new-resident tax holiday.
- How much property do I need for Uruguay's tax holiday? None if you spend more than 183 days a year in Uruguay. Otherwise, real estate above UI 12,500,000, about USD 2.1 million, or UI 625,000 a year in qualifying funds.
- What is vivienda promovida? New housing built under Law 18.795, with VAT and transfer-tax exemptions on the first sale, a ten-year wealth-tax exemption and income-tax relief on qualifying rentals.
Questions
How do I get residency in Uruguay?
File an online application on gub.uy with your documents, wait for the DNM to accept it, then attend an appointment with the originals. You need clean criminal records, a Uruguayan health card and vaccination certificate, and proof of regular means of living.
Do I need to invest money to get Uruguayan residency?
Not for general permanent residence, which rests on proof of means of living. Investment thresholds appear in tax rules instead: for some tax residence tests and for electing the new-resident regime without spending more than 183 days a year in Uruguay.
How long does Uruguayan residency take?
The DNM does not publish a processing time, and files vary with workload and how complete the documents are. Plan for document preparation abroad, the online review, an appointment in Uruguay and a pending period during which you can hold a resident-in-process cédula.
What is Uruguay's tax holiday for new residents?
People who become tax resident from 2026 can elect, once, to leave foreign capital income outside Uruguayan income tax for the year of arrival and ten more years. It requires 183 days' presence each year or qualifying investments, and no Uruguayan tax residence in the prior two years.
Is Uruguayan residency the same as tax residency?
No. Immigration status comes from the DNM; tax residence depends on days spent in Uruguay or where your economic interests lie. Becoming resident in Uruguay does not by itself end tax residence elsewhere, so check your departure country's rules as well.
Can Uruguayan residency lead to citizenship?
The Constitution grants legal citizenship after three years of habitual residence for people with family in Uruguay, or five years without, together with good conduct and means such as capital, property or a profession. Residence has to be proven with dated documents.
Banking in our network
We do not publish institution names: the right partner depends on your profile, and each institution keeps its own view on who it will serve.
1
Banking partners
- Opening a Uruguayan account is usually simpler once you hold the cédula issued during the residence process. Each institution applies its own know-your-customer and source-of-funds review.
- For private banking, a tax residence certificate from the DGI and a documented history of your foreign income usually carry more weight than the residence card alone.
- Our network includes one private banking institution relevant to Uruguayan residents; names are only shared with clients. The banking assessment shows whether it, or an institution elsewhere, suits your profile.
Questions
Does Uruguay tax foreign income?
Since 1 January 2026, foreign dividends, interest and related capital gains of Uruguayan tax residents are generally within IRPF. People who become tax resident from 2026 can elect a regime that keeps that income untaxed for eleven fiscal years, provided they meet its conditions.
Can I get Uruguayan residency without buying property?
Yes. The general permanent residence asks for proof of means of living, such as a pension, rental income or a salary, rather than an investment. Property only becomes relevant for some tax residence tests and for the new-resident tax regime.
Can Redomiciled open a bank account for me in Uruguay?
We prepare the file with you and make introductions to suitable institutions. The bank alone decides whether to onboard you, so no account can be promised before its own review.
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Sources
- 1.Dirección Nacional de Migración (gub.uy): Residencia Legal – Permanente, requirements and costs (updated 19 February 2026), retrieved 2026-10-25
- 2.IMPO: Texto Ordenado 2023 (DGI), Título 7, article 24-BIS, impatriate regime for capital income (added by Law 20.446), retrieved 2026-10-25
- 3.IMPO: Texto Ordenado 2023 (DGI), Título 7, article 24, previous regime for new residents, retrieved 2026-10-25
- 4.IMPO: Decree 148/007, article 5-BIS, tax residence of individuals, retrieved 2026-10-25
- 5.IMPO: Texto Ordenado 2023 (DGI), Título 7, article 2, residence of individuals, retrieved 2026-10-25
- 6.IMPO: Decree 188/026 of the Ministry of Economy and Finance regulating the impatriate regime (published 19 August 2026), retrieved 2026-10-25
- 7.IMPO: Law 20.446, National Budget 2025–2029 (promulgated 16 December 2025), retrieved 2026-10-25
- 8.PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries: Uruguay, individual, significant developments (reviewed 2 September 2026), retrieved 2026-10-25
- 9.IMPO: Constitution of Uruguay, article 75 (legal citizenship), retrieved 2026-10-25
- 10.IMPO: Texto Ordenado 2023 (DGI), Título 7, article 37, IRPF rates on capital income, retrieved 2026-10-25
- 11.DGI: Unidad Indexada values 2026, retrieved 2026-10-27
- 12.Forvis Mazars Uruguay: 2026 roadmap for tax residents and investors, retrieved 2026-10-27
- 13.IMPO: Decree 355/011 regulating Law 18.795, retrieved 2026-10-27
Reviewed by the Redomiciled team on .
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