- Your DPI, original and photocopy
- Last year's proof of survival, if you have it (IGSS lists it as preferable)
- Your pension resolution, in photocopy, if this is your first time
- If you live abroad: an appointment at the nearest Guatemalan consulate
Quick summary: Every IGSS pensioner (old age, disability, survivorship, and beneficiaries by cause of death) must prove survival once a year, within 30 calendar days from their birthday (for survivor pensions, from the deceased affiliate’s birthday). In Guatemala it is done at your CAMIP, a departmental Delegación or Caja, or a Centro de Atención al Afiliado. From the US, it is done through the nearest Guatemalan consulate: MINEX’s consular certificate of survival is free and strictly personal, and IGSS’s survival record (form IVS-41) signed abroad must be authorised by the Guatemalan consul and legalised by the Foreign Ministry. Old-age and disability pensioners who receive a family allowance also declare that their dependants’ situation persists. IGSS says a pensioner who misses it risks suspension of the payment.
This page is for IGSS pensioners. Retired civil servants paid by the State (clases pasivas) have a different proof of life at the departmental governor’s office: see State pensioner proof of life.
Who must do it, and when
IGSS’s proof-of-life page: «Los pensionados por los riesgos de Invalidez, Vejez y Sobrevivencia y Beneficiarios por Causa de Muerte deben comprobar anualmente su supervivencia y persistencia de derechos.»
| Pension | Window | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Old age, disability, or cause of death | «30 días calendario a partir de la fecha de su cumpleaños» | IGSS proof-of-life page |
| Survivor pension | 30 calendar days from «la fecha de cumpleaños del afiliado fallecido que le dio el derecho a la pensión» | IGSS proof-of-life page |
IGSS’s 2026 notices describe the same window as «un plazo no mayor a un mes calendario, a partir del día de su cumpleaños». Either way, the clock starts on the birthday. It is not the calendar month you were born in.
Doing it in Guatemala
Where. IGSS: «Diríjase al CAMIP que le corresponde, Delegación o Caja Departamental o al Centro de Atención al Afiliado más cercano.» It adds: «Recuerde actualizar sus datos previo a comprobar su supervivencia.»
What to bring. IGSS’s current proof-of-life page does not repeat a document list. Its most recent list we found is in a November 2019 IGSS notice:
| Pensioner | Documents (IGSS notice, 6 November 2019) |
|---|---|
| Old age or disability | Original and photocopy of your DPI |
| Survivorship | Original and photocopy of the pensioner’s DPI; photocopy of the birth certificate of pensioners who are minors (issued within 6 months) |
| Everyone | Last year’s proof of survival, «preferiblemente» |
| First time | Photocopy of the resolution that made you a pensioner |
IGSS’s January 2026 notice on the family-allowance declaration asks for valid DPIs for the pensioner and beneficiaries, and a valid birth certificate with the CUI for beneficiaries who are minors.
Doing it from the United States
In a January 2026 notice republished on its own site, IGSS says: «En el caso de los pensionados residentes en el extranjero también deben presentar acta de supervivencia y declaración de persistencia por los riesgos de invalidez y vejez en un plazo no mayor a un mes calendario, a partir de su fecha de cumpleaños.» For survivor pensions the window runs from the deceased affiliate’s birthday, and «Este proceso se realiza por medio del consulado de Guatemala más cercano a su residencia.»
The pieces, from the two institutions involved:
| Piece | What the source says |
|---|---|
| MINEX consular certificate of survival | «El certificado de supervivencia es un documento que se extiende a las personas pensionadas que, por razones personales, están fuera de Guatemala y necesitan un comprobante de su actual residencia.» Bring the original and a photocopy of your DPI or valid passport; your IGSS, State or IPM case number is optional; you fill in a form with your current address, phone, age, civil status and profession. «El trámite es estrictamente personal.» «ESTE TRAMITE ES GRATUITO» |
| IGSS survival record, form IVS-41 | IGSS’s own form. Its instruction k) says that for a pensioner living outside Guatemala the record must carry the legal formalities: it must be authorised by the Guatemalan consul and legalised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and if it is signed abroad before a Guatemalan notary, it only needs to be protocolised in Guatemala |
| Family allowance declaration | Old-age and disability pensioners with a family allowance declare its persistence in the same window; IGSS says those without one are exempt |
Steps from the US, as the sources describe them:
- Know your date. Count 30 days from your birthday (or the deceased affiliate’s, for a survivor pension).
- Book the nearest consulate early in that window. See scheduling a Guatemalan consulate appointment.
- Go in person with your DPI or valid passport, original and photocopy, and your IGSS case number.
- Ask for the survival certificate and the IGSS record (form IVS-41, or IVS-41/A for minors and incapacitated adults you represent), authorised by the consul.
- Confirm how the record reaches IGSS. The IGSS and MINEX pages we read do not say whether the consulate forwards it or you send it, nor how long the Foreign Ministry legalisation takes (checked 24 September 2026). Ask the consulate, and call IGSS at 1522 or 2412-1224 to confirm it was received.
MINEX lists the survival certificate as free; every published consular fee is in Guatemalan consular fees.
The declaration of persistence of conditions
IGSS’s January 2026 notice: old-age and disability pensioners must declare the persistence of conditions «si la resolución de pensión indica que el monto otorgado incluye una asignación familiar, es decir, esposa o conviviente, hijos menores de edad, hijos incapacitados o padres». It adds: «Quienes no tienen asignación por carga familiar están exentos de este proceso».
IGSS’s form IVS-41 explains why it matters: a family dependant (“carga familiar”) corresponds to pensioners who receive an additional 10% for each dependant reported when the right was granted. The declaration is what keeps that extra amount flowing.
If you miss it
IGSS’s own wording, in two notices:
- 2020: the pensioner who does not prove survival within the month «la pensión podría ser suspendida y el caso sometido a análisis».
- 2026: «Si no se cumple con este requisito, el pensionado corre el riesgo que se suspenda el pago.»
IGSS does not state on these pages how long reinstatement takes or whether suspended months are paid later (checked 24 September 2026). Call 1522 before assuming either.
Contact
| Channel | Detail (IGSS site footer, read 24 September 2026) |
|---|---|
| Contact centre | 1522, or 2412-1224 and 2297-1224 |
| Hours | Monday to Friday, 8:00 to 16:00 |
| Head office | 7a. Avenida 22-72, zona 1, Guatemala City |
Related procedures
- IGSS old-age pension: applying for the pension itself
- IGSS survivor pension: benefits for the family after a death
- IGSS for migrant workers: IGSS’s programme for Guatemalans who contribute from abroad
- CAMIP, IGSS medical care for pensioners
- State pensioner proof of life: the clases pasivas version
- Guatemala consulate directory
- IGSS hub, all procedures
Corrected 24 September 2026. An earlier version of this page said the window was the pensioner’s birth month, listed consular fees of up to USD 30, consulate addresses with processing times, a home-visit service, retroactive payment of suspended months and a 15-day death-reporting rule. None of those appear in the IGSS or MINEX sources we could read, and the window is 30 calendar days from the birthday; those statements were removed. Sources, read on 24 September 2026: IGSS proof-of-life page and pensioners page; IGSS notices of 6 November 2019, 8 October 2020, 4 January 2026 and 20 January 2026; IGSS forms IVS-41 and IVS-41/A; MINEX certificado de supervivencia page (read 23 September 2026).