Moving to El Salvador With Your Family: Which Residency Each Person Needs

When a family moves, residency is not one procedure: it is several, one per person, and they all hang on the first. Choosing the right category for the main applicant decides what the others need, how much income must be proven and whether the spouse can work.

This guide answers those questions in the order they come up.

First, the main applicant's residency

Everything starts with the person who "anchors" the family's residency. For someone with no employer in El Salvador, the two most common routes are (see rentista or self-employed):

• Self-employed (F-03): if you will keep working on your own. Up to two years, with no need to set up a company.
• Rentista (F-08): if you live on income from abroad and will not work. One year, renewable.

With dependents, the number that matters changes: a rentista needs 4 minimum wages of monthly income (US$1,635.20), but with two or more people accompanying, the law raises it to 6 minimum wages: US$2,452.80 a month (art. 145 of the immigration law). For a family of four, that is the figure that counts.

Spouse and children: accompanying-family residency

The family applies with DGME form F-09, temporary residency to accompany. It covers the spouse, partner, parents and children under 18 of a temporary or permanent resident, of any nationality.

• What it asks for: the application, passport, criminal record certificates for the adults and a notarial sworn statement of support from whoever will support the family: the commitment, the term and where the income comes from. One statement covers the whole group.
• Spouses: marriage certificate. Unmarried partners: a sworn statement of the union before a Salvadoran notary.
• Minor children: the legal representative signs the application, with the birth certificate apostilled and translated. If only one parent signs, a special power of attorney from the other parent is required. A teenager over 14 can file their own application (Regulations, art. 146).
• Fee: the same as any temporary residency: US$140 for one year or US$260 for two, per person, for non-Central Americans.

If the main applicant is a rentista, the accompanying family shares the benefits: income tax exemption on what they receive from abroad, duty exemption on household goods and on one vehicle (art. 146).

Children: school, travel and permits

School

The immigration law has no express rule on schooling for children accompanying a resident: what matters in practice is the recognition of their studies. The Ministry of Education (MINEDUCYT) has two procedures, both free of charge:

• Equivalence of studies, for primary or secondary grades completed abroad. It is decided within eight business days of submitting the documents (Executive Decree 82 of 1995, art. 6). It requires the transcript of the last grade passed, apostilled, its notarial translation if not in Spanish, and the passport. MINEDUCYT states that, under a memorandum with the United States, studies by minors in that country do not need an apostille.
• Incorporation, for a high school diploma obtained abroad.

Get the apostilled transcripts before you leave: they are among the easiest documents to forget and the hardest to obtain from a distance.

Leaving your country with the children

Each country has its own rule. Colombia, for example, requires a resident minor leaving with only one parent to carry the other parent's permission, authenticated before a notary or consul, stating destination, purpose and dates (Law 1098 of 2006, art. 110). If both parents travel together, that permission does not apply. Check your own country's rule.

Leaving El Salvador once you are residents

Once a minor holds residency and has been in the country more than a year, they need an exit permit; the permission of the parent they live with is enough (art. 64 of the immigration law). While a non-resident who has not exceeded 365 days in the country, they do not need it (art. 65).

The tax line: when you become domiciled

Immigration residency and tax domicile are not the same thing. Under article 53 of the Tax Code, a person is considered domiciled in El Salvador if they reside in the country more than 200 consecutive days in a calendar year, or if their main place of business is here. It is not the 183-day rule used in other jurisdictions.

What changed in 2024: Legislative Decree 969 added to article 3 of the Income Tax Law that amounts obtained abroad, from any source, do not constitute income under that law, whether or not the person is domiciled. That does not exempt you from what your home country requires: review that side with your tax advisor before you move.

How to read a quote for the whole family

For a family, ask for a quote broken down by person and by item:

1. Immigration fees, which are public (art. 325): temporary residency for each member, then extensions or permanent residency.
2. Costs in your country: apostilles, criminal record certificates, civil records.
3. Notary in El Salvador: sworn statements (support, activities or income) and translation procedures.
4. Lawyer's fees: which phases are included (main applicant, family, extensions, permanent residency) and whether powers of attorney are covered.

A good quote says what it does not include. If it doesn't, ask before you sign.

Frequently asked questions

Which residency do my spouse and children need in El Salvador?

Temporary residency to accompany (DGME form F-09), which covers spouses, partners, parents and children under 18 of a temporary or permanent resident. It is granted without authorization to work.

How much income does a rentista moving with family need?

With two or more people accompanying, 6 minimum wages for the commerce and services sector: US$2,452.80 a month at the wage in force since June 2025 (art. 145 of the immigration law).

Can my children go to school in El Salvador as dependents?

The immigration law does not regulate it expressly; what is needed is recognition of their studies by the Ministry of Education (equivalence, free, decided in 8 business days), with apostilled transcripts.

Can my partner work with accompanying-family residency?

Not with that residency: form F-09 is granted without authorization to work. To work, they need their own category with a work permit.

When do I become tax-resident in El Salvador?

Under article 53 of the Tax Code, when you reside more than 200 consecutive days in a calendar year, or when your main place of business is here. Foreign-source income does not constitute income under article 3 of the Income Tax Law, amended in 2024.