Yesterday was one of the ugliest days I have experienced since moving here. It was foggy, rainy, windy and cold–of course that could have described a Spring Day in San Francisco or London I suppose. Nevertheless, it was way down on the low end of the local bell curve.
Of course, that was the day appointed for the Copperhead and I to officially begin our residency application process–as it turned out, the weather was our ally.
We were scheduled to meet the immigration consultants at the immigration office in Centro at 10AM. There are no appointments for this process. You just show up, take a number and wait. We arrived about 10 minutes later than planned, and to our consternation, our consultants weren't there.
“WONDERFUL”, was not exactly the epithet that slipped from my tongue, but it will do for the G (or maybe PG) rated website.
We called them, and there had apparently been a miscommunication because they said they though it was the next Monday–one week later.
“MARVELOUS” didn't pop out at that point either. But it too, will suffice.
However, the Copperhead, ever patient, arranged for he and I to go to breakfast while we waited for the consultants. They m,ust have flown in because they were there in less than an hour and they had to come all the way from the Costa d'Oro East of the city to Centro. They were very apologetic for the delay.
As it turned out, there was no harm nor foul. The lousy weather played to our advantage and there was almost no one there. Theer was not line for the place we had to go, so we stepped right up and were immediately at bat. I was so tense about this meeting I even wore a tie–imagine that. (yes, I wore socks and shoes too!)
We presented our police letters and birth certificates, all of which had been previously legalized by the appropriate Uruguayan Consulate in the US. We also presented plain photocopies of our passports with our entrance visas. Finally we had a cover letter asking them to please let us in.
The clerk reviewed everything to make sure it was all in order, then she stamped the back of one of the sheets, She signed and placed a stamp on it, and then we each had to sign our sheet.
And that was it. The consultants told us that the whole purpose was to verify personally that we were actually the persons applying using our passports. The passports photos matched, so step one was completed.
So, as it turned out, the weather was a blessing, even though we didn't recognize it as such at first.
I will write down all of the details of the process as they occur over the next few weeks.
Thanks for the great information. We are in the process of researching the residency requirements. We are ready to get some of our documents legalized. I am very interested in your experience and knowledge. I have contacted the consulate general in NYC but they don’t seem to have consistent answers. http://uruwashi.org/Consular.htm#Information_about_permanent_residence_in_UruguayFor example: the spanish translation states that you only need to show documentation of U 500/month income, and the english translation states U 1,500/month. Which is correct $500 or $1500?Did you have to present any documentation about monthly income?Could you recommend an immigration consultant?What are the costs of an immigration consultant?As for your police reports, were they FBI background checks or just local or state police reports?I look forward to reading about your experiences. I wish you better weather and the best of luck with the process.
Left by Enzo on August 9th, 2006
i enjoy reading your site, im a uruguayan guy who has lived in the us, and im so glad you are enjoying yor stay in our country
Left by jose sande on August 9th, 2006
What exactly are police letters?
Left by Hugo on August 9th, 2006
Thanks for your kind words.The monthly income required is currently US$500/month. This is NOT a document that needs to be legalized at the consulate. Depending upon your circumstances, the income proof can takes several forms: bank statements, broker latters, or letetrs from a foreign company or trust. The immigration consultant will work with yo9u on that.The only two things you need a legalized copies of your birth certificate and your police good conduct letter, which can certainly come from your local police. Do not get the police letter much before you leave however as they are only good here for 90 days.Immigration attorneys all seem to want about US$1500. Immigrastion consultants range from US$375-US$1000. But be careful, there are a few shysters out there, even here…I can connect you with the immigration consultant we are using if you email me at Southron@bank-mail.com.
Left by The Southron on August 12th, 2006
A police good conduct letter can be issued by the local police department where you live. It simply states that you have no arrest record, or if you do have one, delineates it. I have not heard of any police department, no matter how humble nor far out into the boondocks, that does not know how to do one of these letters.You need a police letter from every place you have been resident for the last 5 years for purposes of Uruguay Immigration. Remember, get the police letter last, it is only valid here for 90 days and it may take 10-15 of those to get legalized by the nearest Uruguay consulate BEFORE you leave the States.
Left by The Southron on August 12th, 2006
Great site, I eagerly await your next installment. I’ve been living with my wife and kids in Santo Domingo, DR, for the last 2 years and it’s a hard life. It’s not the place my wife remembers from her youth, it’s changed. I ain’t goin back to the good ole USA, and the more I read about Montevideo, the more I like it. Thanks for taking the time to relate your experiences, you are cheering and inspiring me to take action. Hope to meet you some day.
Left by ken mandel on August 12th, 2006
Glad you like the blog.We took a long hard look at the Dominican Republic and it just didn’t work for us. The response I get from Expats there is all over the board. Some love it, some tolerate it and some sound like you.The weather just didn’t work for me fat men in wheelchairs just don’t do well in the tropics…
Left by The Southron on August 12th, 2006
Thanks for the info. The embassy and consulate here don’t have consistent and reliable answers. They specifically told me that FBI background checks and finger printing were required. I had asked if I could provide my local city police letter of good conduct, or the state police’s letter of good conduct. I think they just don’t know what is happening on the ground there in MVD to provide the correct answer. Even the monthly income requirement. The spanish translation states $500/month, and they still tell me that the correct information is to have $1,500 of monthly documentable income. If it were not for your experiences, posts and your blog, we would all be lost. Like the other readers, we eagerly await your next installment.
Left by Enzo on August 12th, 2006
My experience is that the Spanish pages are always more accurate than the English pages. I can appreciate this because the reverse often happens on my business websites which are in three languages. English is always updated first and the other languages follow later, sometimes embarrassingly later.On the police letter issue, I think it is just a matter of the UY Consulate not understanding the US system. Here the police are national, so the equivalent of Uruguay’s police in the US would naturally seem to be the FBI.Remember, Uruguay is essentially a unitary city state. To a Uruguayo, the US mixture of States, counties, territories, the District of Columbia, towns, townships, cities, boroughs, villages etc, each with their own law enforcement authorities, must seem daunting.
Left by The Southron on August 12th, 2006
My husband son and myself are travelling to uruguay in Feb 2007.We are hoping to find a place to settle and work in a small family business together. Do we need to get our police reports legalized in the uk or can they be legalized in Uruguay. Our Son has only been in the UK for 2 years so i assume we have to apply to Austalia for the other period of time required. I have only just found your site and it is very helpful when we live so far away.regardsjanine
Left by janine on August 16th, 2006
Your police reports and birth records must be legalized there, and in your son’s case in Australia as well. Remember, the police reports are only valid for 90 days for immigration purposes.By the time you get here, I know of at least one couple who will have moved here from the UK, so we can expand our coverage to include the specific interests of our friends from Albion…
Left by The Southron on August 16th, 2006
Thank you for your quick response. Can we have someone in Australia organise the legalization of the Australian police report. Do we need our sons birth certificate legalized in the UK and Austalia. We would love to be in touch with anyone else who is undergoing a similar move. We moved to the UK just over 5 years ago and we know the difficulties involved. Our Son is a chef what are the opportunities like in the hopitality business.regardsjanine Assuming the authorities in Australia will permit it, yes, you can have somone there orgnize the legalization of the Australian Police Report. The birth certificate only needs to be legalized by the Uruguayan Consulate in the country where he was born, no other place.–The Southron
Left by janine on August 16th, 2006
It sounds like we need we need to contact an immigration consultant. Can you suggest a releiable one. As we are Australians living in the UK we dont want to travel back to Oz and then travel to Uruguay. The cost would be prohibitive and we dont have the time. We have family that would help us the Australian end. Thanks again for your help and patience. By the way i love the photos.regardsjanine
Left by janine spencer on August 17th, 2006
I am coming down to Uruguay in September to check it out and look for property. I want to start Residency procedings right away but am wondering if I fly back home after finding a property to buy does this void my Residency application? Must I remain on Uruguayan soil while I apply? I plan to be there a month or so and then come back home to organize the move. Also, my spouse (common-law) is going to apply for his Residency as well but currently works overseas. Can he apply in Uruguay and then have his process go on while he is away?Also, do you recommend hiring a lawyer for this process or can I do it myself? I am not afraid of waiting in long queues nor jumping the hoops of red tape. I have the time to do it. I have my original birth certificate that I will bring but does it also have to be “legalised” somehow as well at the Uruguayan Consulate here?Thank you and Bless you for your great site!
Left by Gloria on August 29th, 2006
Once you have your immigration interview, and if your papers are in order, you can leave Uruguay while the residency is getting processed. It will take a week or two here to get to that point.There will be a detailed report on the immigration procedure later this week.Birth certificates must be legalized at the Uruguayan Consulate for the staet from which teh birth certificate WAS ISSUED, not necessarily where you live now.The Southron
Left by The Southron on August 29th, 2006
Can an honorary consul handle the “legalization” of birth certificate and police letter of good conduct?Reason for asking is the honorary consulates are often far quicker and far less bureaucratic than government offices.
Left by Peter4 on September 4th, 2006
I don’t know. What I do know is that virtually the entire earth is parcelled out amongst various UY consulates and you can only get documents legalized at the consulate for your particular spot. If you let me know via eamil to southron@bank-mail.com where you are located, we’ll query the foreign ministry here and find out where you have to go.The Southron
Left by The Southron on September 4th, 2006
You can find the jurisdiction for each consulate on the website of the Uruguayan Embasssy: http://www.uruwashi.org/Consular%20In%20US.htm
Left by Shirley on September 5th, 2006
Thank you kindly Shirley.The Southron
Left by The Southron on September 5th, 2006
Also, the two consulates I have dealt with have handled my requests in a timely manner. I had my legalized documents back from the consulate in LA in two business days, and from the consulate in Chicago in seven business days. (I FedEx’d them in both directions.)
Left by Shirley on September 5th, 2006
My husband son and myself are travelling to uruguay in Feb 2007
We would love to be in touch with anyone else who is undergoing a similar move.Left by Janine on August 16th, 2006
Hi Southron, I read this question left by a fellow Aussie, Janine Spencer and as we will be arriving in uruguay at the end of January 2007 I would like to contact her. I have looked on the Sociedad Southron Board but Janine does not seem to be there. Do you have any way for me to contact her? Thanks for any suggestions.
>>I do not know her. Sorry. I suggest you also post on our forum at SociedadSouthron.net. Maybe someone else knows her, or she reads that forum. You might also write the British Society, if you think she might gravitate towards a group like that: britsoc@gmail.com
-The Southron
Left by daviscup on October 24th, 2006