Immigration benefits for investors in Nicaragua

Nicaragua's Immigration Law (761) provides certain categories under which investors, both non-resident foreign investors and foreign workers who move to Nicaragua as human capital, may have access to a preferential system of immigration status.

One of the purposes of the Immigration Law (761) is to regulate, through the General Immigration Directorate, the entry and stay of foreigners in our country, without violating their individual and social rights and under the same conditions as nationals except for those exceptions contained in the Constitution and laws of the Republic.

There are two types of residence: (i) Temporary and (ii) Permanent. The Temporary Residency classifies the sub-category of self-employed or as dependent employees of a business.

The general requirements to apply for residency in Nicaragua are:

• Original passport, valid for at least 6 months;
• Two passport- size photos up to date;
• Birth certificate or naturalization, as applicable;
• Certificate of Health;
• Certificate of Police Records;
• Marriage Certificate (if the spouse is also applying for the Nicaraguan residency).

All documents before mentioned must be issued by the appropriate authorities of the applicant’s country of origin and submitted in original and duly certified by the Consulate of Nicaragua in that country.

Such request may be made to the General Directorate of Immigration if the alien is already in Nicaragua; in those cases the alien is outside of Nicaragua, the application can be made before the Nicaraguan Foreign Service officer in the diplomatic missions and consular offices.

Specific requirements to apply to the sub-category of self-employed or as independent worker or in a dependency relation will be determined in the Regulation issued by that law.

To hire a foreigner, the employer must request the presentation of the residency card, which must always be valid for the duration of the employment relationship.

Companies employing foreign personnel must also fulfill the provisions of labor legislation, the Immigration Act and its regulations.