How long can I stay in Argentina as a tourist, and can I extend it?

Last verified: 27 Oct 2026 · Status: Changing

Short answer. Up to three months per entry, extendable once for a similar period. File the extension at a DNM office within the 10 days before your stay expires. The fee is ARS 20,000, or ARS 10,000 for Mercosur nationals. Overstaying triggers a flat exit fee of ARS 40,000 (ARS 20,000 Mercosur), not a daily fine. Tourists cannot work.

As of 26 Oct 2026. Rules in force at that date.

Key rules

Category. Tourists are transitory residents under Law 25.871 art. 24 a). They must leave when the stay ends (art. 25, as replaced by DNU 366/2025 art. 7).
Length. Decree 616/2010, Annex I art. 24 a): a stay of "up to three (3) months, extendable for another similar period". It says months, not 90 days, and "up to" allows a shorter grant.
Extension (prórroga). File in person at DNM headquarters (8 to 13 h, building 3) or any DNM delegation, with a valid passport, the fee and a current stay (DNM tourist page). The request must be made within the 10 days before expiry (Decree 616/2010 Annex II art. 12 e)). It runs from the end of the original term (art. 12 d)). The decree provides for one extension only.
Fee. Extension of a transitory residence other than art. 24 h): 10 UMSM for Mercosur and associated states, 20 UMSM for others (Decree 584/2024 art. 1 g) I and II). 1 UMSM = ARS 1,000 (art. 2); the DNM fee table still shows that value on 27 Oct 2026. Children under 18 filing with a parent are exempt (art. 5 II).
Visa. Visa nationals need a consular visa unless a treaty exempts them (DNM entry page). The DNM visa list marks 106 nationalities "requiere visa" for ordinary passports (including China and India); the United States, Canada, Australia, the UK and EU states are not marked. 68 of them are marked eligible for the electronic travel authorisation (AVE), costing US$400 for tourists (Decree 892/2016 art. 5, as replaced by Decree 584/2024 art. 15).
Overstay. No per day fine exists for tourists. The cost is the "habilitación de salida" fee: 20 UMSM Mercosur, 40 UMSM others (Decree 584/2024 art. 1 l) I and II), flat whatever the length. Pay before leaving at a DNM office, Ezeiza airport (24 hours) or Aeroparque (07:00 to 22:00); it is valid for 10 days (DNM exit page).
Work. Transitory residents cannot do paid work, employed or self employed, without DNM authorisation (Law 25.871 art. 52). Employers face a fine of 50 minimum wages (SMVM) per unauthorised worker (art. 59).

What changes the answer

Mercosur nationality. Fees halve (ARS 30,000 total in the example, US$19.18), and Mercosur temporary residence is usually a better tool than repeated tourist stays.
Late filing. Annex II art. 12 f) charges a 50% surcharge (ARS 30,000, US$19.18) to someone who comes forward within 30 days after the deadlines in art. 12 e). But the DNM tourist page says an expired stay cannot be extended and the person must buy a habilitación de salida. The two texts conflict (unconfirmed).
Indigence. Persons who prove indigence are exempt from the extension and exit fees (Decree 584/2024 art. 4 I).
Switching status. A tourist can change category without leaving (Annex II art. 12 a)), for example to digital nomad (100 UMSM, art. 1 h) II), within the same 10 day window.

Worked examples

A US citizen (not visa required on the DNM list) enters Buenos Aires on 15 Jul 2026 and is granted three months. Pesos at dólar MEP ARS 1,563.90 per US$ on 23 Oct 2026, supplied by some secondary summaries (unconfirmed) (live rate).

Step or item	Time	Cost ARS	Cost USD
Entry as tourist, three months	15 Jul 2026	0	0
Extension, Decree 584/2024 art. 1 g) II, 20 UMSM	File 5 to 15 Oct 2026	20,000	12.79
Extended stay ends	15 Jan 2027	0	0
Leaves 30 days late; habilitación de salida, art. 1 l) II, 40 UMSM	Mid Feb 2027	40,000	25.58
Total		60,000	38.37

Extension: 20 UMSM x ARS 1,000 = ARS 20,000; 20,000 / 1,563.90 = US$12.79.
New end date: three more months from 15 Oct 2026 (Annex II art. 12 d)) = 15 Jan 2027.
Overstay of 30 days: 40 UMSM x ARS 1,000 = ARS 40,000; 40,000 / 1,563.90 = US$25.58. One day or 30 days costs the same.

Cost to do it: ARS 60,000 (US$38.37) in DNM fees, no capital, two DNM visits, about seven months in Argentina, of which one month is irregular.

Practical traps

Border runs. No norm found caps how many times a tourist may leave and re enter, or grants a fresh three months on each entry (unconfirmed). Officers must reject anyone whose purpose does not fit art. 24 a) or differs from the stated one (Law 25.871 art. 35 b) and c)). Back to back stays invite that.
Not paying at a land crossing. The fee can no longer be paid at border posts. Leaving unpaid creates a debt; the carrier is fined, and re entry is refused until it is paid, by credit card online from abroad or in cash at Banco Nación through a third party (DNM debt page). The DNM says the debt is the current habilitación fee, yet the decree has a separate "levantamiento de deuda" line of 40 UMSM Mercosur and 80 UMSM others (ARS 80,000, US$51.15; art. 1 l) III and IV) (unconfirmed).
Stale citations. The DNM exit page cites Decree 231/2009, which Decree 584/2024 art. 17 repealed. The 2024 amounts apply.

FAQ

Is it 90 days or three months? The decree says three months: a stay starting 15 July ends 15 October. Check the date stamped on entry.

What happens after a long overstay? The DNM may order you to regularise and, if you do not, decree expulsion (Law 25.871 art. 61). An expulsion not based on a crime carries a re entry ban of at least five years (art. 63 e)).

Can I come back after paying the exit fee? Yes, but the DNM may check your travel purpose and admission criteria again before letting you in (DNM exit page).

Can I work remotely for a foreign employer as a tourist? The law bars paid work by transitory residents (art. 52) and does not address remote work for foreign payers. The DNM created the digital nomad residence for that case.

Can a tourist get a DNI? No. Only permanent and temporary residents can (Law 25.871 art. 30).

Published 27 Oct 2026 from our research draft. Points marked (unconfirmed) have not yet been checked against the official text; rely on the primary sources linked below.