Studying in Argentina

What a year costs

Tuition at public universities: the rule changed in 2025. Decree 366/2025, published in the Official Gazette on 29 May 2025 and in force from that day, amended article 2 bis of the Higher Education Law (Ley 24.521). The new text says undergraduate study at state universities is free for Argentine citizens and for foreigners with permanent residence, and that institutions may set charges for everyone else. As a student on temporary residence, you fall into the group that can be charged.

In July 2026 the national Undersecretary of University Policies publicly confirmed that the decree remains in force and that each national university keeps the power to decide whether to charge. No national fee schedule exists, and we could not find official, published foreign-student fees for specific public universities when we checked. Before you accept an offer, ask the university in writing whether it charges students without permanent residence, how much, and whether the fee can change during your degree.

Private universities set their own fees; check each institution.

Living costs. No government body publishes an official student budget, and high inflation means any figure dates quickly. Buenos Aires is the most expensive city; Córdoba, Rosario, La Plata, Mendoza and Tucumán are usually cheaper. Build your budget from current listings shortly before you go, keep part of your money in a stable currency, and include health insurance (see below).

The visa

You need temporary residence as a student (residencia temporaria, estudiante). The Migration Law, article 23(j), grants students on recognised courses two years, renewable, with multiple entries. The Foreign Ministry's visa page also gives a permitted stay of up to two years. The migration authority's (DNM) in-country service page describes a one-year renewable grant, so check the length on your own resolution.

There are two routes:

• Visa at a consulate before you travel. Your university must be registered in the RENURE system and pre-load your data electronically.
• Residence applied for inside Argentina through the DNM's online RaDEX system, followed by an in-person appointment, if your nationality can enter without a visa.

The money. The Foreign Ministry asks for proof of sufficient financial means to cover your stay and studies, through bank statements, credit cards or other documentation. No amount is set. Show clear, traceable funds for at least a year of living costs and any tuition.

Fees at a consulate. The Foreign Ministry lists a US$250 consular fee plus a migration fee of US$600 for non-Mercosur nationals and US$300 for Mercosur nationals, which makes US$850 for most applicants from outside Mercosur. Students from the founding Mercosur states are exempt from both fees.

Fees inside Argentina. The DNM fee table (Decree 584/2024) sets temporary residence at 100 UMSM for non-Mercosur nationals and 50 UMSM for Mercosur nationals, with 1 UMSM currently worth ARS 1,000: that is ARS 100,000 or ARS 50,000. Transitory residence costs 32 or 16 UMSM.

Documents include a passport valid for at least six months, criminal record certificates (Argentine and from any country where you lived for a year or more in the last three years), proof of address and the study programme.

Health care changed too. Decree 366/2025 amended article 8 of the Migration Law. Emergency care cannot be refused, but at health facilities run by the national government, people without permanent residence receive routine care only on presentation of health insurance or after paying. Buy insurance that covers you in Argentina for your whole stay.

Working while you study

Article 51 of the Migration Law allows temporary residents to do paid work, employed or self-employed, only during their authorised stay. The law sets no weekly hour limit for students. Article 52 bars transitory residents from paid work unless the DNM expressly authorises it, so make sure you hold temporary, not transitory, residence if you intend to work.

After you graduate

Argentina has no post-study job-search permit. The Migration Law gives students a residence for their studies; when that ends, you must qualify for another category, for example through work, or leave. Talk to the DNM or a specialist before your student residence expires.

Language

Public university teaching is in Spanish, and most programmes expect you to follow lectures and write exams in Spanish from the start. The national certificate of Spanish proficiency is the CELU; check whether your university requires it or another proof of level. A few private universities and postgraduate programmes teach partly in English.

You do not need Spanish for the visa, but migration offices, landlords and any job will be in Spanish.

When to apply

The academic year runs from March to December. Public universities often start with an introductory or foundation cycle before the degree proper, and many have open admission rather than competitive exams, though this varies by university and faculty. Private universities set their own admissions.

Your school certificates must usually be legalised or apostilled and, for some universities, recognised through the Ministry of Education before enrolment. Allow several months for that, plus the consular appointment or the RaDEX process.

What to watch out for

"Free university" is no longer guaranteed for you. Since 29 May 2025 each public university can charge students without permanent residence. Get the fee in writing for each year of your degree, not just the first, and check whether the university's governing council has approved a fee since you applied.

Health care is not free for you either. Since the same decree, routine care at national public facilities requires insurance or payment.

Temporary, not transitory. The residence type decides whether you can work. Check your resolution.

Inflation and exchange rates. Prices in pesos change quickly, and peso-denominated fees in this guide (such as the UMSM value) can be updated at short notice. Check the DNM fee table on the day you pay.

Keep your residence renewed. Student residence must be renewed before it expires, with proof that you are still enrolled. An expired residence complicates everything from work to leaving and re-entering the country.

Where these numbers come from

Rules change, sometimes at short notice. Every figure above carries the date we checked it. Check the official source before you rely on it. We could not find official tuition amounts for foreign students at any specific public university, a proof-of-funds figure (none is published) or an official living-cost estimate.