We were so excited when we arrived in Nicaragua (after our epic journey from Guatemala). Granada was so beautiful. We were amazed by the architecture. The people were friendly. The beaches on the Pacific coast are gorgeous. Sadly though Nicaragua couldn’t tick all our boxes. We love you Nicaragua but it has to be goodbye!
Back in Oct 2022 when we jumped on a plane in NZ bound for Dubai we hadn’t really thought too much beyond getting out of NZ and arriving in Guatemala. We figured things would fall into place. Guatemala is an amazing place and we are so grateful to Greg, Helaine & family who welcomed us in Guatemala with open arms. They founded Alas – Asociacion La Libertad to help, support and empower the community of Canilla in rural Guatemala and do an amazing job.
Guatemala just didn’t feel right for us though and we couldn’t imagine living there long term. So after a bit of research we decided to head to Nicaragua. It seemed like there were some residency options there and maybe even the opportunity of starting a business. We are so pleased we did. We had an amazing time there and made some great friends who are still there living the good life in San Juan del Sur
So we spent about four months in Nicaragua mainly in Granada. We travelled around and explored quite a few places. Once we were settled and had sorted our accommodation we began to get down to the assessing the long term viability of Nicaragua.
Ticking the Boxes
One of the great pieces of advice we heard numerous times on our travels was to take our time. Have a look around and decide where you would like to live. Don’t rush in to stuff. When you are looking for your new “home” it’s easy to ignore that advice. You want to settle in and get the party started. But you need to do some seriously research before you leap!
Scratch the Surface
There is nothing like learning from experience. What we learned quite quickly is that much of what you read & see online isn’t the reality. Especially in Latin America. Many of the expat websites are targeted at wealthy US retirees who have an income. We are definitely not in that category!
Also expat forums online can give you false information or a false sense of opportunities in a country. On the other hand posts can be overly negative as well. There have been many expats who have moved to Nicaragua hoping for a better life and sadly returned back to their home country with empty pockets.
The Nitty Gritty of Why We Left
These are the boxes that Nicaragua couldn’t tick for our family – everyone is different though!
Visa’s
We don’t have a passive income. We sold our property in NZ a few months after we left so we are reliant on savings until such time as we can create an income for our family. Nicaragua’s permanent residency visa options at this point are pretty limited for our situation. Here’s a breakdown of the visa options.
Rentista – Fixed Income
Proof of stable income totaling $1250 or more per month, plus $150 for each dependant is required. This could include income from rental properties, annuities, trusts etc.
Application costs including legal and government fees are $1500 for the first person, $800-1200 for a partner, $500 extra per child
Pensionista – Pensioner
This is the best option for those over 45 who have a pension/disability income or military pensioners of any age. You need to provide proof of income. At this point the requirements are $1250 per person or $1500 per couple.
Expenses: The cost to apply including legal and government fees is $1500 for the first individual, $800-1200 for a spouse, and $500 per minor dependant
Inversionista – Foreign Investor
This is the only option for individuals under 45 or couples/families that don’t have a passive income or pension. A minimum investment of $30,000 USD is required. The investor class of residency is subject to approval from the Immigration Ministry and the Ministry of Finance.
- Up until 2022 you could purchase property place it in a Sociedad Anonima (S.A.) corporation, then apply for residency. You could include the home you lived in or a rental business like an AirBNB. This is no longer the situation
- You now need to prove that you are a legitimate business that creates economic activity. MIFIC (Ministry of Finance) will assess and inspect your business (They can just turn up on your doorstep)
- You need to employ two or more people with employment contracts
- There are numerous other set up and maintenance costs over and above the $30,000 USD. To apply for the visa (including attorney and government fees) is $1000-2000 for the first person, $800-$1200 for a partner, $300 – $500 per child. These costs would vary based on your attorney/individual needs.
- There would also be costs for accountants and annual compliance which would vary dependent of your situation.
We actually started to go down the track of applying for an investment visa. We even found two cute colonial houses in Granada that we put an offer in on (luckily we were able to pull the pin) We planned to live in one and AirBNB the other but as we spoke to more people we realised that getting tangled up with the Nicaraguan govt wasn’t a good idea. The other nail in the coffin of our Nicaragua dream was the changes in the renewal of your cedula.
What Is A Cedula?
A Cedula de Identidad is a national identity document. It is a required form of ID in various situations (like purchasing a car) You can only apply for your cedula once your residency visa has been approved.
The problem is now they have changed the cedula renewal process on all of the residency visa’s in Nicaragua. You now need to renew your cedula/residency card every 6 months. BOOM! That was a big nail! There goes the freedom to travel further afield for a length of time.
If you have a rentista or pensionista visa you also need to live in Nicaragua for at least six months a year.
Tourist Visa – the Border Run Game
Nicaragua has a 90 day tourist visa. Many expats in Nicaragua (especially San Juan del Sur) just do a border run to Costa Rica. Nicaragua is a CA4 country which means it shares it’s 90 day visa with Guatemala, Honduras & El Salvador. If you want to renew your 90 day tourist visa from Nicaragua the closest country is Costa Rica.
It’s basically a border hop – you leave Nicaragua, walk through no mans land into Costa Rica then walk around the other side of the customs building and do the opposite back into Nicaragua. We did one border run when we were in Nicaragua. The best advise we can give you is to go early in the morning to avoid the queues created by the international buses.
You can read more about border runs on innicanow.com
Obviously there are risks to the border run strategy, especially now in the world of border closures and lockdowns!
Things can change in Nicaragua so prices may vary from those we have quoted but this information will give you a ball park idea of the numbers.
The Cost of Living
Nicaragua can be cheap but it can also be expensive!
We have noticed in Central America that wherever you have a high concentration of expats and the USD as an alternate currency you are paying high prices. Sadly Nicaragua gets strangled by the US and you really only have access to local food or outrageously expensive imported food from the US. This doesn’t really appeal to our thrifty mindset!
Buying Property
Land/houses can be expensive in Nicaragua, dependent on where you want to live. There is also a risk with land titles and ownership so buyer beware on that front. We have also heard nightmare stories on the calculation of property taxes that are charged upon purchasing a property. Inflating the price of a property increases the income for the govt.
The property tax is also legally payable by the SELLER but many ‘real estate agents’ try to tell buyers that are they liable to pay that or need to split the costs with the seller. The real estate market in Nicaragua is only just beginning to be formalized legally. There is no such thing as a standard sale & purchase agreement or protections for the buyer. Up until recently anyone could set up shop and say they are a real estate agent.
Property Buying Tips
You need to find a trustworthy attorney (not the one your real estate agent suggests) and have an agreement drawn up that requires the titles etc need to be checked and verified for the sale to go through. A small deposit can be put forward as a commitment of intent, this can then be refunded if the property isn’t up to scratch. Don’t forward any funds directly to the real estate agent until that contract is agreed.
Also be aware that some of the people that will happily take you for a ride are expats too. There are definitely are few expat sharks around, so take your time and if you are getting pressured to put down a deposit or move quickly on a property that maybe you are in a risky situation. There are so many stories of expats who bought land and found out later that it didn’t have a clear title or was owned by somebody else who came to claim it back.
The People in Charge
Without saying too much we feel the political situation in Nicaragua isn’t as stable as we would like it to be. In saying that look at what happened to NZ in a short space of time!
But we felt investing money into Nicaragua was too much of a risk for us. If you have a passive income, are wealthy or have a remote job then that’s a different situation.
We don’t plan to return to NZ or Australia to live permanently so our needs could be different to yours. The citizens of Nicaragua have no say in their governments processes and as an expat you cannot speak out against them otherwise your visa will be cancelled. Yes that does happen.
We also don’t want to live the full on “expat life” . The thought of living in a gated community with a housekeeper, gardener and a pool person isn’t our thing. Hanging out with only expats and paying ‘gringo’ prices doesn’t align with the “dirtcheaplife’ mission. Everyone has a different idea of paradise though!
There were a few other situations like the challenge of buying a car in Nicaragua, and the high cost of electricity. If you are thinking of moving to Nicaragua and have any other questions about life there, please don’t hesitate to CONTACT US.
So after weighing it all up we went down the snake and rolled the dice again! Then Paraguay came on to our radar……
So we decide to head off to Miami for a quick jaunt back into the Western world, then on to Asuncion, Paraguay. Sorry Nicaragua, we do love you, but it has to be goodbye for now.
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