Guatemala Customs Regulations - You should be familiar with customs regulations before you get here. That way you do not unknowingly fail to comply with the customs laws and cause problems for yourself when it is time to exit and go back home. Before you can even depart from a North American airport on an international flight the attendants at the departure counter will check your passport and any other papers required.

If you are a tourist, you are going to need a passport that has at least 6 months of validity remaining on it. If you are just visiting the country for a vacation or to explore retirement opportunities, you do not need to get a visa beforehand if coming from a country like the United States or Canada. They will stamp your passport when you arrive at the airport in Guatemala and usually this stamp is good for 90 days.

Beyond the 90 days, you are going to need a visa. In fact if you know you will be staying past the 90 days, it might be wise to get that visa prior to leaving. There are typically two types of visas to go along with your passport if required: tourist and business. The tourist visa is valid for 90 days from the date of issue and the business visa is valid for 180 days from the date of issue. There are also single and multiple-entry visas available. Check with the Guatemalan Consulate to get multiple entry visas.

Customs regulations require that if you are coming from a country infected with Yellow-fever (such as Colombia and Brazil), you are going to need a yellow fever vaccination and be able to show proof of that when entering the country. The United States and Canada are not yellow fever infected countries.

Guatemala customs regulations prohibit you from bringing in any unregistered firearms and of course controlled drugs. You are also limited to the equivalent of $5,000 in U.S. currency allowed to import or export from the country.