Moving back to Cuba from the US (repatriation): $20 and 180 days

Moving back to Cuba from the US: Residencia Permanente en el Territorio Nacional

Returning to live in Cuba (often called “repatriation”) appears on the Cuban Consular Office page in Washington, DC, as the Solicitud de Residencia Permanente en el Territorio Nacional (application for permanent residence in the national territory). Per the page, Cuban migration authorities grant it to emigrated Cuban citizens who wish to resettle in Cuba permanently. From the United States you apply in person, by mail or through an agency. It costs $20 USD to apply, plus $20 USD if sent by mail (fee published by the Cuban Consular Office, checked October 3, 2026). The key condition is timing. Once the consulate notifies you, you have a maximum of 180 days to travel to Cuba and report to the DIIE office in the municipality where you will live.

Versión en español

At a glance

The file: required documents

From the section “Solicitud de Residencia Permanente en el Territorio Nacional”, the file is made up of:

1. A personal request letter explaining why you want to return to live in Cuba and naming your representative or reference in Cuba, with that person’s home address and phone number.
2. One application form, completed and signed inside the box provided (Anexo 2, Planilla para trámites consulares; file anexo_2._planilla_para_tramites_consulares_0.pdf).
3. Two high-resolution color passport-style photos, light background, facing forward, face and head uncovered, no dark glasses.
4. A photocopy of the Cuban passport’s main page with your personal details.
5. Photocopies of US identification documents (ID, driver’s license or others).
6. The original notarial deed (escritura notarial) from the owner of the property in Cuba, authorizing the applicant to live there permanently. The page says this document is optional for the consulate stage but mandatory when the procedure continues at the DIIE office in Cuba.

The Anexo 2 form is a general form with boxes for several procedures, labeled with codes such as “HE-4”, “HE-11” and “DVT”. The current Spanish page does not tie this procedure to a code, so confirm with the office which box to mark.

The Anexo 2 form adds these details for completing the application (checked October 17, 2026):

• Personal details must match the previous passport or identification document; its instructions say never to use the married surname.
• The residence-history field asks for the last two addresses in Cuba.
• The form is invalid if it contains amendments, crossings-out or erasures.

Cost

Fee published by the Cuban Consular Office, checked October 3, 2026:

The page publishes no other charges for this procedure. The $20 non-personal charge matches section 19.a of the Cuban Foreign Ministry fee schedule, Resolución 38/2023 (signed June 29, 2023). Payment is by USPS Postal Money Order, and the page warns that a request paid with any other money order is returned. Whatever may be charged once the procedure continues in Cuba is not on the consular page.

Step by step

1. Write the letter with your reasons and your representative’s or reference’s details in Cuba.
2. Assemble the file from the list. If you already have the homeowner’s deed, you can include it. If not, you will need it once you reach the DIIE.
3. Choose a channel. In person: 2639 16th St NW, Washington DC, 20009, Monday to Friday 9:00 AM to 12:00 noon. These are the public hours since March 4, 2024, per Nota Informativa No1/2024. By mail: Embassy of the Republic of Cuba, 2630 16th St NW, Washington DC, 20009, with a prepaid return envelope left unsealed. The page recommends a tracking number and a $9.65 USD postage stamp (checked October 3, 2026). You can also go through an agency contracted by the consulate, or a relative can file at a DIIE office in Cuba.
4. Pay $20 USD, plus $20 USD if you file by mail.
5. Respond to any further requests. The page says Cuban migration authorities handle the process, so the applicant must provide any additional document they request, and the Consular Office will notify the applicant.
6. Travel within 180 days of the notice. Report to the Trámites office of the Dirección de Inmigración, Identificación y Extranjería (DIIE) in the municipality where you intend to live. Per the page, the procedure continues from that point.

Before you travel: the Cuban passport

The file asks for a photocopy of your Cuban passport. Separately, the travel rule the page publishes for nationals who live permanently abroad is that they must carry a valid, unexpired Cuban passport to travel to Cuba. If yours is expired, see our guide to renewing a Cuban passport from the US. If you emigrated before 1971, also read what the page says about the HE-11 and entering on a foreign passport.

When Cuba’s new Migration Law takes effect

The procedure above is the one the consular page describes as of October 23, 2026. The regulation of Cuba’s new Migration Law (Decreto 136, published in the Gaceta Oficial on May 5, 2026, in force 180 days after publication) repeals Resolución 44 of the Interior Minister of October 13, 2012, “Sobre el procedimiento para resolver las solicitudes de residencia en el territorio nacional que presentan los ciudadanos cubanos emigrados” (on the procedure for residence requests from emigrated Cuban citizens).

• The new category (Ley 171, Article 27.1). Cuban citizens are residents in the national territory “cuando cumplen con la condición de residencia efectiva migratoria” (when they meet the condition of effective migratory residence), as the law and its regulation set out.
• Recognition (Decreto 136, Article 55). Cubans whose effective migratory residence is recognized “adquieren en el propio acto la categoría de Residente en el Territorio Nacional” (acquire resident status in that same act).
• Cases already filed. Decreto 136 says migration procedures under way when it takes effect “continúan y concluyen de acuerdo con lo establecido en la legislación por la que se iniciaron” (continue and conclude under the rules they started under).

More detail: Cuba’s 2026 migration and citizenship laws.

What the page does not say

• No processing time is published, and the page does not say what happens if you do not travel within the 180 days.
• The consular page does not publish the steps and costs in Cuba after you report to the DIIE (checked October 3, 2026).
• Nothing about the United States. The effect of moving to Cuba on a green card, an asylum case, a work permit or any other US status is not part of this Cuban procedure. That is a question for an immigration attorney. See where to find pro bono legal help.

For questions about the Cuban procedure, the office takes inquiries Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, at (202)-797-8518 and recepcion@usadc.embacuba.cu.

Related information

• Cuban consulate in the US: directory
• All Cuban consular procedures
• Renewing a Cuban passport from the US
• Entering Cuba on a foreign passport: the HE-11
• Cuba emergency travel document (DVT)
• Cuban power of attorney
• Find pro bono legal help

Official sources

• Cuban Consular Office in the United States, “Servicios Consulares” (section “Solicitud de Residencia Permanente en el Territorio Nacional”), Spanish page: misiones.cubaminrex.cu/es/eeuu/servicios-consulares. The page shows no visible last-updated date; its HTML metadata gives a last-modified time of April 4, 2024. The office’s English-language page is older and out of date, so this guide relies on the Spanish page only.
• Resolución No. 38/2023, Cuban Foreign Ministry consular fee schedule, section 19.a: resolucion_38_de_2023_sobre_el_arancel_consular.pdf

Last verified: 2026-10-03. General procedural information for educational purposes. The decision belongs to Cuban migration authorities, and the requirements can change. Verify directly with the Cuban Consular Office in Washington, and for the effect on your US status, consult an immigration attorney. Not legal advice.