Mrs. Weekly Flyer and I visited Argentina in 2011. We used the old British Airways program miles to fly First Class on American Airlines. Then we used Hyatt Gold Passport points to stay at the Palacio Duhau Park Hyatt. We avoided expensive costs related to visiting Argentina, until we arrived at Argentina’s Ezeiza International Airport. Upon arrival into Ezeiza International Airport on our American Airlines flight from Miami, we were required to pay $140 each to enter the country.
The $140 fee was a reciprocity fee charged to business and tourist travelers arriving into Aeroparque Jorge Newbery Airport or Ezeiza International Airport. We enjoyed our trip so felt the fee was worth it.
The bad news is upon arrival we experienced a long wait in order to pay the fee. We paid by a credit card with no foreign transaction fees so we at least earned points paying the fee.
The good news is we can now return for the next 10 years without having to pay the fee. The Argentina government has since put in place a measure to require the fee to be paid online before you arrive into the country.
Effective October 31, 2012 (Aeroparque) and December 28, 2012 (Ezeiza)
The National Immigration Agency (Dirección Nacional de Migraciones) has added a new form of payment of the reciprocity rate (visitor visa – rate for Americans of USD$160), through the Provincia Payment System. Until now, this fee was paid upon arrival at the airport (either Aeroparque or Ezeiza). Effective October 31, 2012 for arrivals to Aeroparque and effective December 28, 2012 for arrivals to Ezeiza International airport, all U.S. tourist or business visitors must pay the reciprocity rates (USD$160 for Americans) with their credit card through the on-line system. After these dates, cash payments will NOT be accepted at the airports.
You can pay the newly increased $160 fee directly online at the official website by following a few simple steps.
- Register at provinciapagos and obtain an entry code.
- Complete the form including personal and credit card details . This information and the entry code will be sent electronically to the DNM.
- After payment is processed, print the receipt.
- Upon arrival in Argentina, go to the DNM Office and present the printed receipt.
- The receipt will be scanned by DNM staff and the data will be validated to enable entry to Argentina.
There used to be more than one way to avoid the reciprocity fee by taking a certain type of flight. But it looks like the new requirements require the fee from all points of entry starting on January 7, 2013.
Were you aware of any of the different ways to avoid the reciprocity fee and does any option still exist?
Don’t cheat, post your comment first, then you can see this post here for a way (although impractical for tourists) to avoid the fee. Even still, there was another way to avoid the fee, but it appears to be gone now.
Join others by Signing up for Email || Follow Us On Twitter || Like Us On Facebook
Hotel Offer Page || Airline Offer Page || Flexible Offer Page || Tips & Tricks Page
About The Weekly Flyer
The Weekly Flyer writes about travel from a business traveler perspective. He travels the world every week accumulating points and miles along the way.
Sign up for Email || Twitter || Facebook |
Hotel Offers || Airline Offers || Bank Offers || Cash Back Offers
I thought you could fly into Uruguay and then take the boat/ferry over to Argentina.
Dusting off the other passport. One that can also get you to Brasil, chile, Russia and other plus china for $20 dollars. 🙂
In Aug 2012 five members of our family flew into MVD stayed 2 nights.
We then took the bus to Colonia Sacremento in the morning and late afternoon departed ferry to Argentina. As we cleared customs their were lots of questions and some grumbling in Spanish.
My son who speaks Spanish said to me as we boarded the ferry , I think they are onto to dad. How so I said. Customs agent keep repeating, they did not pay. We did not pay because we’re not required.
That apparently is about to change and I for one do not intend to returned to Argentina until they drop the fee.
Mark
In June 2012 we flew from JFK -> Lima -> IPC -> SCL -> MDZ (Mendoza, Argentina) -> AEP -> IGR -> EZE -> Lima -> CUZ -> Lima -> JFK. We spent 3 weeks traveling thanks to British Airways (Pre Avios). Thus avoided the Visa and/or Reciprocity fees for Chile and Argentina.
I have a EU and CDN passport, each time I visit ARG I use my EU one which doesn’t require an entry fee.
They did not collect the fee taking the bus over the Andes from Santiago to Mendoza. I already had paid the fee from a previous trip and showed the border patrol and they said… that only applies to airports. Unfortunately, Chile now has a landing fee, although cheaper… so I got nailed with that one too.
I avoided Chile’s reciprocity fee by crossing via land between Tacna Peru & Arica Chile. Then I avoided Argentina’s fee by crossing via the bus/boat combo from Chile over to Argentina (I ended up in Bariloche Argentina after the buses & boats). At that time, you only had to pay the fee if you arrived on an international flight, arriving at EZE (the Buenos Aires int’l airport). I’m surprised to hear they have the fee now at Aeroparque because that airport was only used for domestic flights & therefore no way to collect the fee from arriving foreigners. I avoided the fee on another trip by flying from Tacna Peru to Cordoba Argentina, and then domestic flight from Cordoba to Buenos Aires domestic airport.
I personally will not visit Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil and Chile as long as they have these fees because I am fee averse. However, keep in mind that these countries charge these fees because that’s what the USA charges to *their* citizens for applying for a US Visa just to vacation here. And, if they get turned down for the visa (which happens more often than not, according to my friends in South America), they don’t get any of that money back. $140 is a month’s rent down there (outside of the capital cities), so we’re not talking about a small amount of money for them.
Brazil now sends more than 1.5 million “visitors” to the USA each and every year. So a lot of visas, clearly, are being approved.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/04/09/fact-sheet-united-states-and-brazil-facilitating-travel-and-exchange
I have an award ticket for later this year that includes:
LIM – IPC
IPC – SCL
SCL – MDZ
MDZ – AEP
AEP – IGR
IGU – GRU
So I thought I was going to avoid the Chile fees by arriving from Lima in Easter Island, and avoid the Argentina fees by arriving in Mendoza from Santiago. Sadly LAN has just cancelled the LIM – IPC making it LIM – SCL – IPC so now I am hit with the Chile fees. And with Argentina’s new enforcement, I will be hit again at MDZ. This is for (2) tickets too. Weak!
I am flying into SCL and was planning to take the bus to Mendoza but I’m reading on some forums that the fee is now collected at the Santiago to Mendoza crossing. http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g312741-i979-k5868796-o10-Going_to_Mendoza_better_from_B_A_or_Santiago_by_bus-Buenos_Aires_Capital_Federal_Distric.html
My wife and I thought Argentina was a dreadful place to visit and we could not get out soon enough. Inflation understated, corruption everywhere, unsafe, a failed country. We paid our $160 entry reciprocity fees (as tourists). If it had cost more to depart we would have paid that too. My advice is avoid Argentina. A bankrupt country in chaos. Beware.