I studied at BSUIR from 2014 to 2020, then worked in the IT sector in Belarus. In 2022, my future wife and I moved to Georgia. The companies we worked for relocated us. It was clear that this was a transit point, but overall, life there turned out pretty well: we stayed in Georgia for almost three years.
Павялічыць
Nikita with his pet in Georgia. Narrator’s Instagram
In parallel, we explored directions where we could move next. Ultimately, we chose Argentina. A good climate, a calm region, delicious food, an interesting culture, and a relatively quick possibility of obtaining citizenship helped us make the choice.
We arrived as tourists, and began the legalization process once we were there. The simplest option is through birth. But we applied as rentiers. By the way, Russian-language sources often provide incomplete information about the requirements for such an application. They claim that regular passive income from abroad is absolutely necessary for it.
A residence permit for rentiers is a residence permit for individuals with passive income (dividends, rent, interest, pension) received outside the country of residence.
Regular passive income from abroad for obtaining a rentier residence permit in Argentina must be at least five minimum wages (as of February 2026, this is 346,800 pesos, or $250), which means about $1250. However, some emigration websites recommend submitting documents confirming a higher passive income—from $2000 per person per month—for a positive decision).
In fact, income received from abroad will not allow you to apply for a residence permit as a rentier. But instead of regular payments from foreign assets, you can show the assets themselves. I don’t remember the exact wording, but for the documents to be accepted for consideration, a year and a half ago, a sum of about $50,000 in an account was sufficient.
The residence permit is still in process. The case has been under consideration for about a year; now I am reapplying through my studies, because student applications are usually processed faster. After obtaining a DNI, I will need to live for another two years before applying for a passport. We hope to become Argentinians within the next three years. The legalization process itself in Argentina is not overly complicated, but it is long and requires patience.
Argentina’s National Identity Document, issued to citizens and residents.
Our relocation budget looked like this:
- $2500 for tickets from Georgia;
about $1000 — living expenses for the first month (via Airbnb);
about $50 per page — pre-translation and apostille of all Belarusian and Georgian documents;
about $20 per document — legalization of the translation;
several hundred $ — fees to the Argentine migraciones service.
Finding a long-term apartment turned out to be quite difficult and expensive. We had to pay rent for the first and last months immediately, as well as an agent’s commission equal to one month’s rent. Often, when renting housing, a deposit or insurance is also required.
In addition, buying household items “eats up” money. And a financial safety cushion is also needed for unforeseen expenses. You just have to accept that $1000-2000 in the first year can be lost on money transfer fees, unfavorable exchange rates, and simply due to inexperience.
Павялічыць
Buenos Aires. Narrator’s Instagram
The level of taxation in Argentina depends on the form of employment. If you are an employee of an Argentine company, you pay the full package through your employer (about 30% goes to various deductions). If you work as a monotributista, the rates will be lower (depending on the income amount).
Argentine simplified tax system.
I resigned from my previous company before moving to Argentina and completely switched to game development here. Now I’m making my game with a small team of Argentinians and Belarusians. For now, we are working for the idea; in the future, I will open a studio. It is much more difficult to do this without a DNI.
Currently, my activity does not yet generate income. But that was my plan: to learn and start working in a completely new field. I left my previous job with savings, and I also had funds from selling property in Belarus. Plus, I am married to an IT specialist.
Our team consists of Belarusians and Argentinians. We communicate in English, which is sufficient for work. But for a comfortable life in Argentina, Spanish is essential, as many locals do not know English. I am actively learning and estimate my level at B1+. This is enough to not feel lost when communicating with Argentinians. But, of course, I would like to speak fluently.
Two Flights with a Dog
Our dog Loki flew with us first from Belarus to Georgia, then from Georgia to Argentina. Everything was very standard in the documents, and registering the dog for the flight was also quite simple. But flying in the cargo hold is a huge stress. He flew to Georgia that way, and afterwards, he flinched at any noise for several days.
Павялічыць
Loki. Photo from the narrator’s Threads
We didn’t want the dog to go through that again. We explored possible options and found that a large dog can fly in the cabin if it’s a service dog. We completed a two-month training course and received a document that allowed us to fly with Loki in the cabin.
By the way, Buenos Aires is very pet friendly. There are many dog owners, parks, and dog playgrounds here. We have never once heard complaints about the dog walking where it shouldn’t or that we are bothering someone.
Life in Buenos Aires
We live in Buenos Aires. The city, in contrast to Minsk and Tbilisi, is much more energetic and lively. And it is also very diverse. It has both wealthy neighborhoods and less affluent ones.
Buenos Aires is a very comfortable city to live in. Shops are generally like everywhere else. There isn’t the same variety of dairy products as in Belarus, but there are many different fruits and the most delicious Argentine meat. And overall, the quality of products is good. Cheeses and sausages are available. One could say that the variety of goods in some segments is lower, but this is not a big problem.
Public transport in Buenos Aires is well-organized: metro, a huge network of buses, commuter trains. Almost any point in the city can be reached with a maximum of one transfer. But this is if you need to go somewhere. This doesn’t happen often; practically everything needed for daily life is within walking distance. So, a car isn’t particularly necessary here.
Павялічыць
Buenos Aires. Narrator’s Instagram
Buenos Aires has a comfortable climate. Winters are mild, rarely falling below +5°C. There is no snow. Yes, it can get hot in summer, up to +37°C, but such temperatures are tolerated more easily here than +30°C in Belarus. The main drawback is the lack of central heating in many homes, which is noticeable in winter.
Argentina is vast, and the nature here is very diverse. We haven’t traveled much yet, but we would love to visit everywhere.
What I like most about Argentina is the feeling of freedom and lack of pressure. And also the number of sunny days: here I realized how much this affects one’s well-being and mood. What I miss here are the close people who remained in Belarus.
For rent, there are two types of apartments here – furnished and unfurnished, and prices depend on this. A two-room furnished apartment in our quite affluent location starts from $1000 per month. If unfurnished, more budget-friendly options can be found. Cheaper housing can be found, but for that, most likely, compromises will have to be made regarding the neighborhood, the condition of the housing itself, and infrastructure.
Rent is cheaper in other regions of Argentina. But I’m not planning to move anywhere else yet; I like Buenos Aires.
People
There are quite a few Russian-speakers in Argentina. But from the beginning, our goal was to integrate into Argentine society, so we deliberately didn’t look for Slavic communities. In my close circle, I have a few Belarusian friends whom I already knew in Minsk. It turned out quite amusing: we used to work at adjacent desks, and now we live ten minutes from each other on the other side of the Earth.
Argentinians are friendly towards migrants. Towards Belarusians – with curiosity. Some don’t even know what Belarus is and listen with interest to stories about our country. I have not encountered any negativity towards myself in a year and a half.
Relations with locals are excellent. They are, as a rule, very polite and friendly. I already have a couple of good Argentine friends. I also talk well with my classmates, they are very pleasant guys and girls. In Buenos Aires, I simply enjoy making small talk with people on the street.
Surprisingly, Argentinians have a lot in common with Belarusians. Our shared traits are hospitality, tolerance, peacefulness, and the habit of saving money in dollars.
In other matters, there are also differences. Argentinians are much more relaxed and open in communication. They also work with less strain; there’s something to learn from them. But at the same time, there’s a culture of mutual help and support here. Locals always helped us when needed. We also noticed that whenever someone on the street feels unwell or stumbles and falls, no one passes by.
I remember, somehow on the street an old man was walking towards me — and suddenly lost consciousness. I was the closest, ran to help; I have first aid skills. And while I was providing it, about 10 people ran up. Someone called an ambulance, someone ran to the store for water — in general, they self-organized in 10 seconds. Very cool.
In my estimation, the Argentine economy is gradually stabilizing. Inflation still remains a problem, but it has ceased to be triple-digit. After a rather difficult 2025, when prices for many things rose sharply, some goods are now starting to get cheaper.
Павялічыць
Buenos Aires. Narrator’s Instagram
On the other hand, I heard from Argentinians that there are more homeless people.
Medicine
Here I have already encountered both paid private and free public medicine – so far, the experience has been positive. Without insurance, appointments and treatment can be quite expensive.
There is social insurance, which costs somewhere around $20-30 a month. However, one can get into public hospitals even without it; insurance is mostly used to get discounts on medicines. Once I went to a public hospital to get a prescription, a regular hospital, nothing impressed me. I sat in line for half an hour (there are always queues in such hospitals), had a nice chat with the doctor, and he prescribed what was needed. But what exactly such insurance covers and does not cover – I don’t know.
And there are private insurances and clinics; there, it’s up to what one can afford. But without a DNI, I can’t even register on their websites to get insurance. I need to go to them in person, which I haven’t done yet.
Advice for Belarusians looking at Argentina
- First piece of advice: learn Spanish in advance. This will greatly simplify your life and reduce anxiety in the first six months to a year.
- Second piece of advice: study migration legislation on official websites. Information in Russian-language sources is contradictory and, most likely, outdated.
- Third piece of advice: immediately accept the reality that “here – it’s not like there.” Many things in Argentina are different from what you are used to, and you either accept it or you don’t. Life here is arranged differently, but that doesn’t mean it’s worse.