Expat communities in Paraguay. Twelve diasporas, twelve entry points.

National diasporas

Twelve communities, where they live, how they organize.

• Brazilians ("brasiguayos")

  Largest foreign group · 23,526 residencies granted in 2025

  Asunción, Ciudad del Este, border departments (Alto Paraná, Canindeyú, Amambay)

  Dominant in agriculture (soy, beef) and retail. Portuguese widely understood near the border.

• Argentines

  Second-largest · 4,366 residencies in 2025

  Asunción, Argentine border zones

  Cultural and language overlap. Strong in medicine, business, and professional services.

• Germans, Austrians, Swiss

  ~150,000–300,000 with German roots (heritage estimates vary) + ~10,000 recent expats

  Nueva Germania (San Pedro), El Paraíso Verde (Caazapá), Asunción

  Long-established colonies plus new eco-/sovereign-living settlers.

  • Goethe-Zentrum (cultural center)
  • AHK Paraguay (Chamber of Commerce)
  • Instituto Cultural Paraguayo Alemán
  • Embassy of Germany

• Canadians (mostly Mennonite)

  ~10,000

  Chaco colonies (Menno, Fernheim, Neuland)

  Traditional lifestyle, Plautdietsch language, key dairy and beef producers.

  • Canada travel advisory

• Russians

  ~10,000 (first-wave émigrés + new arrivals)

  Asunción (streets named after Russian generals)

  First wave arrived in the 1920s; new wave since 2022.

  • Coordination Council of Compatriots (KSORS)
  • Embassy of Russia

• Ukrainians

  5,000–12,000

  Southeast, Encarnación region (border with Argentine Misiones)

  Strong organized community with active cultural life.

• Spaniards

  Several thousand

  Mostly Asunción

  Active cultural calendar at the embassy and CCEJS.

  • Centro Cultural de España Juan de Salazar
  • Embassy of Spain

• Americans

  3,000–5,000 (plus non-resident investor-pass holders)

  Asunción (Villa Morra, Carmelitas)

  Growing IT, trader, and investor population.

  • US Embassy Asunción
  • American Chamber of Commerce

• Chinese & Taiwanese

  ~5,000–10,000 (mostly from Taiwan; heritage estimates higher)

  Asunción, Ciudad del Este, Encarnación

  Dominant in retail. Paraguay is one of 12 countries that recognize Taiwan.

• Japanese

  ~10,000

  Yguazú and La Paz agricultural colonies; Asunción

  Festivals, martial arts, language courses run year-round.

  • Centro Paraguayo Japonés

• South Koreans

  5,000–8,000

  Asunción, Ciudad del Este

  Strong focus on education (Parangsae school).

• Mennonites (Canada, Germany, Mexico, US)

  30,000–40,000

  Chaco colonies (Fernheim, Menno, Neuland)

  Key dairy producers. Fernheim Colony Museum is a public archive of the migration.

  • Fernheim Cooperative
  • Neuland Cooperative

Universal expat groups

Cross-national groups by language.

English-speaking

• Expats in Paraguay — Largest Facebook group (12,000+ members). Daily discussion of every aspect of life here. ↗
• ParaguayNext — Paid Skool club for entrepreneurs and investors. Live sessions on residency, investment, real estate. ↗
• Paraguay EZ — Practical support: housing, lawyers, day-to-day adaptation. ↗

Russian-speaking

• Парагвай – русские экспаты — Active Facebook group. ↗
• Русский Парагвай — Telegram channel and chat. ↗

German-speaking

• Deutsche in Paraguay — Facebook group. ↗
• Auswandern nach Paraguay — Skool community. ↗

How to find your people

How to actually find your people.

• 01

  Identify your national diaspora. Check cultural-center events and consular announcements.

• 02

  Join the relevant Facebook group. "Expats in Paraguay" is the universal entry point for English speakers.

• 03

  Use niche communities for your situation: ParaguayNext for business, AHK for German-speaking commerce, KSORS for Russian-speaking outreach.

• 04

  Show up at local events. Goethe-Zentrum, Centro Paraguayo Japonés, and CCEJS run frequent open-to-public programming.