Illegal Aliens!

A Reason for Rejoicing

We want to be permanent residents of Bolivia. When we arrived a year ago we were advised to get a ‘permiso’ since it was much cheaper than a regular carnet. However, the laws have changed and everyone is now required to have a carnet. The law also says that you must first apply for a one year carnet, then a two year carnet and then a permanent one. However, the lawyer explained that things could be done differently and who were we to argue?

We still are not sure how things proceeded but we know that our passports were sent to La Paz and have come back saying that we are now permanent residents of Bolivia. The lawyer began the legal documentation for the carnets and we should be the proud owners of carnets when we get back from Canada.

The biggest problem is that our ‘permiso’ to drive has also expired and because we have lived here for more than three months, we cannot drive on an international license. We cannot get a drivers license because we do not have the carnet. We tried to get an extension on the ‘permiso’ but were not able to do so. Although we are told verbally that it is still good, we are not taking chances and are restricting our trips to the city.