Citizenship by descent, for children of Argentine-born parents

You were born outside Argentina. One of your parents was born in Argentina.

If that is you, you may be able to become Argentine by a declaration called the option. People who do this are Argentines by option. It is not naturalisation. There is no oath.

The option is for the children of a parent born in Argentina. If the link runs through a grandparent, this route may not fit. Talk to the lawyer before you plan around it.

There may also be a residence route. Migraciones lists children of Argentines born abroad as a direct category for permanent residence (permanent residence). Its list covers parents who are Argentine by birth, by naturalisation or by option. You file that application with Migraciones from inside Argentina. Whether citizenship or residence suits you better is a question for the independent lawyer.

• One of your parents was born in Argentina. The option is for children of an Argentine-born citizen.
• You were born outside Argentina.
• You can prove the link with your own birth certificate and your parent's Argentine birth certificate.
• If you are over 18 years, you show a valid foreign ID. A child applies through the people with parental responsibility.

Where you do it. Abroad, at an Argentine consulate, in person. In Argentina, through the national ID registry. In the City of Buenos Aires, the city's civil registry handles it, and it asks for an address in the city.

A recent change. Decree 366/2025 repealed the article of Law 346 that made children of Argentines born abroad prove the parent link before a federal judge. Our sources do not say what replaced it. Follow the current list from your consulate or registry, not an older guide.

What the sources do not settle.

• Whether a parent who is Argentine by option or by naturalisation counts.
• Whether grandchildren can use any route.

Both are questions for the lawyer.

We found no published processing time for the option itself.

• After an option at a consulate, the consul registers it and notifies RENAPER within 30 days. That is a duty on the consulate, not a deadline for you.
• A press guide reported the ID card taking 3 months to 6 months after the option. Adding your birth record to the Argentine registers can take far longer (iProfesional).
• Gathering documents comes first. How you obtain your parent's Argentine birth certificate from abroad, and how long that takes, is not in our sources yet.

These are reports, not promises.

• At a consulate: the consulate charges a fee for the option. The Foreign Ministry page does not state the amount, so ask your consulate. You pay it to the consulate.
• At the City of Buenos Aires civil registry: ARS 10,000 (about USD 6 at ARS 1,540 on 6 October 2026) per ID card. You pay it to the registry.
• Documents: apostilles, legalisations and any sworn translation are paid to the offices and translators that issue them.

Our Citizenship by Descent guide is coming soon. It never includes consular or registry fees, and we never collect them for you.

Argentine citizenship by option. After that comes an Argentine ID card. We have not yet researched the passport step, so we do not describe it here.

Argentina accepts dual nationality. Whether your other country lets you keep its nationality depends on that country's law. Check before you apply.