The Chile Dependent Visa, Explained
Does your spouse, partner, child, or parent already hold a temporary residence permit in Chile? This page explains the dependent visa: who qualifies, how it differs from the family reunification visa, the required documents, and what happens if the titular's own permit ends.
What is a dependent visa in Chile?
The dependent visa — Residencia Temporal en Calidad de Dependiente (Spanish for "Temporary Residence in Dependent Capacity") — is a temporary residence permit for a qualifying family member of a foreigner who already holds any category of Chilean temporary residence. The person you join is the "titular"; you apply "en calidad de dependiente" (as a dependent). Qualifying ties are: spouse or an equivalent civil-union partner, a cohabiting partner, parent, minor child, child with a disability, or a single child under 24 enrolled in studies. Holders are authorized to work.
Tip
Do not confuse this with the family reunification visa. Both let you join a family member in Chile, but the sponsor's status is different: the dependent visa applies when the person you are joining holds temporary residence; the family reunification visa applies when they are a Chilean citizen or hold permanent residence. See the "Dependent visa vs. family reunification visa" section below.
Who can apply for a dependent visa in Chile? Is the dependent visa right for me?
The dependent visa is for you if a family member is already settled in Chile on a temporary residence permit — a work visa, a student visa, an investor visa, a rentista visa, or any other subcategory of temporary residence — and you have a qualifying tie to that person. Two criteria are required to qualify:
- The family member in Chile must hold a valid Chilean temporary residence permit (any subcategory under Decreto 177).
- The relationship must be one of the ties Ley 21.325 art. 74(1-2) recognizes for dependent status:
- Spouse, or an equivalent partner under a civil union,
- A cohabiting partner (proven with a notarized/consular sworn declaration, not a marriage or civil-union certificate),
- Father or mother,
- Minor children,
- Children with a disability (even if not minor),
- Unmarried children under 24 years of age who are still studying at a state-recognized institution.
The titular must also demonstrate the economic capacity to support you: a notarized sworn declaration assuming your maintenance costs, plus documentation of sufficient resources measured against Ministry of Social Development indicators.
Dependent visa vs. family reunification visa
Both visas let you join a family member already in Chile, but they are not interchangeable:
| Dependent visa | Family reunification visa | |
|---|---|---|
| Sponsor's status | Any temporary residence permit holder | Chilean citizen or permanent resident |
| Cohabiting (unmarried) partner | Qualifies, with a notarized/consular sworn declaration | Does not qualify — marriage or civil union required |
| Proof of financial support | Required from the titular | Not required |
| Tied to sponsor's own permit | Yes — your permit depends on the titular's permit remaining valid | No — the sponsor's status (citizen/permanent resident) does not expire the same way |
If your family member later becomes a Chilean citizen or obtains permanent residence, the family reunification visa becomes an option in place of the dependent visa.
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Who does not qualify for a dependent visa?
The following categories of foreign citizens do not qualify for a dependent visa:
- Foreigners whose family member in Chile does not hold any residence permit (for example, a tourist or someone in an irregular migration situation).
- Foreigners whose family member in Chile is a Chilean citizen or a permanent resident — for that tie, the family reunification visa is the applicable route instead, not the dependent visa.
- Foreigners with family in Chile but outside the closed list above — for example, siblings, grandparents, aunts/uncles, or cousins are not recognized ties for dependent status.
- Applicants whose titular cannot document sufficient economic capacity to support them.
How to apply for a dependent visa in Chile
Required documents to apply for a dependent visa
Documents required for all temporary visas
- Copy of your passport (only the page with your photo), valid for at least one year.
- Background check / certificate of criminal records of your country of origin, apostilled or legalized and translated if applicable.
- Background check / certificate of criminal records of your country of residence, apostilled or legalized and translated if applicable, if you have resided in the last five years in a country different from your country of origin.
The certificates of criminal records are mandatory for all applicants over 18 years old.
No document checklist is mapped for this visa yet — check the official source.
Specific documents for this visa
- Proof of the family relationship with the titular. It varies based on the tie you are demonstrating:
- Birth certificate of the titular (if the tie is a parent), or birth certificate of the dependent (if the tie is a child, including a common child with the titular's spouse/cohabitant).
- A marriage or civil-union certificate (if the family member is your spouse or equivalent partner).
- A sworn declaration ratified before a notary or consulate (if the family member is a cohabiting partner, not married and without a civil union).
- For unmarried children under 24 who are studying: a certificate of regular enrollment at a state-recognized institution.
- A notarized sworn declaration from the titular assuming the costs of your maintenance.
- Documentation showing the titular has resources sufficient to support you, measured against Ministry of Social Development indicators (for example, a work contract, bank statements, or income records).
- The titular's own valid temporary residence permit / ID.
Note
Documents issued abroad must be apostilled or legalized by the Chilean consulate in the country of origin and by the Chilean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as stipulated in articles 345/345 bis of the Civil Procedure Code. Foreign public documents must be no older than 60 days and foreign private documents no older than 30 days at the time of application, and any document not in Spanish or English must be translated.
Duration and renewal of the dependent visa
The dependent permit is granted for up to 24 months per period, renewable. Its validity is also subject to the validity of the titular's own residence permit — if the titular's permit lapses, your dependent status is affected.
To renew (prórroga), you must request the renewal of your permit at most ninety and at least ten days before your current permit expires, and continue to meet the relationship and support requirements. See the visa renewal page for the general renewal process.
What happens if the titular's permit ends, or the relationship changes
Because your status is tied to the titular's, the immigration service addresses this directly:
- If the titular's own permit is not renewed or lapses, your dependent status is put at risk along with it, since dependent permits are subject to the titular's permit validity.
- On the death of the titular, or on dissolution of the family/dependency bond (for example, divorce or separation), you may either be granted titular temporary residence in your own right, or you must leave Chile within 6 months. Criminal proceedings connected to the circumstances can delay that departure deadline.
- If you are a dependent and a victim of domestic violence from the titular, you receive automatic titular residence upon the aggressor's conviction, or while the relevant proceedings are pending.
- At any point, you may apply to become a titular yourself — of the same subcategory as the person you were a dependent of, or of a different subcategory you separately qualify for — rather than remaining tied to someone else's permit. If you lose dependent status while that application is being processed, SERMIG issues a pending-permit certificate so you are not left without status.
Chile dependent visa fees and related costs
The dependent visa is a category of temporary visa. For this reason, the associated visa fees vary based on the applicant's citizenship.
Dependent visa complete application process
The dependent visa generally follows the temporary visa application process in Chile: filed online, generally from abroad before you travel. You have two ways to become a dependent:
- Grouped application: when the titular first files their own temporary residence application, they can select a grouped application and add you (and other qualifying family members) as a dependent in the same process.
- Separate application: filed afterward, once the titular already holds their permit, following the standard temporary-residence process for the dependent category.
The only in-country exception for the dependent category itself is a change of subcategory: if you already hold a different temporary residence permit in Chile, you can request a change to dependent status without leaving the country.
Path to permanent residency and citizenship
The dependent visa leads to permanent residency. The typical stages are:
Statutory minimums — actual processing adds time on top. Details on the visa page.
Dependents can apply for permanent residency (Residencia Definitiva) without being bound by the standalone 24-month residence rule that otherwise applies — instead, eligibility opens up once the titular has met their own required residence period. This route does not extend to dependents of a titular holding a seasonal-worker, Gendarmería-custody, court-ordered, or medical-treatment permit; those dependents are excluded from applying for permanent residence through this pathway.
Once you hold permanent residency, standard naturalization (Carta de Nacionalización) requires 5 years of continuous residence in Chile, counted from the date of your Temporary Residence Electronic Stamp, provided you are 18 or older. Because the dependent visa's underlying tie is to a temporary resident rather than a Chilean citizen, the faster 2-year "qualified" naturalization route is not available through this visa. See the citizenship page for the full picture.
Frequently Asked Questions about the dependent visa in Chile
Dependent visa application process
Generally, outside Chile only. The default rule for the dependent category is to file the application online from abroad, before traveling to Chile. The main exception is if you already hold a different temporary residence permit in Chile and request a change of subcategory to dependent status — that request can be filed while you are in Chile. Family reunification and humanitarian permits have their own separate in-country rules that do not extend to the dependent category itself.
Both are possible. When you file your own temporary residence application, the platform asks whether you want to do a grouped application and lets you add family members, including future dependents, in the same process. You can also apply for a dependent separately later, once you already hold your own temporary residence permit, as long as your dependent meets the relationship and support requirements at that time.
The dependent permit is a category of temporary residence. Processing times are set by SERMIG and vary; you can find the current indicator in the "Reply Time" box on the Chile immigration hub page.
No. SERMIG does not offer an option to expedite the processing of a temporary residence application, including the dependent category.
Dependent visa conditions
Family members listed in Article 74(1-2) of Ley 21.325: your spouse or an equivalent civil-union partner, a cohabiting partner, your father or mother, your minor children, your children with a disability, and your unmarried children under 24 years old who are studying at a state-recognized institution. The tie can be to the titular directly, or to their spouse or cohabitant (for example, a stepchild).
The dependent permit itself does not carry a further family clause — it is your qualifying family member who applies as a dependent of you, the titular. If you are yourself a dependent of another titular, additional dependents (for example, your own minor children) can be added to the same application if they also meet a qualifying relationship to the titular or their spouse/cohabitant.
Yes, unlike the family reunification visa. A cohabiting partner (conviviente) qualifies as a dependent by presenting a sworn declaration ratified before a notary or consulate, instead of the marriage or civil-union certificate required for a spouse. This is a meaningful difference from the family reunification visa, which requires a marriage or a civil union producing effects equivalent to marriage — cohabitation alone does not qualify there.
The sponsor's status. The dependent visa is available when the person you are joining in Chile — the titular — holds any category of temporary residence permit (work, student, investor, rentista, and so on). The family reunification visa is available only when the person you are joining is a Chilean citizen or holds permanent residence. If your family member in Chile is only a temporary resident, the dependent visa is the applicable route, and unlike family reunification, it requires the titular to show economic activity or stable income to support you. If your family member becomes a Chilean citizen or obtains permanent residence, family reunification becomes an option instead.
The dependent permit is granted for up to 24 months per period, renewable. In practice, its validity is also tied to and capped by the titular's own residence permit: SERMIG states that residence permits obtained as a dependent are subject to the validity of the titular's residence permit.
The regulation creating the dependent permit does not set out a travel restriction tied to holding it; standard passport-control and re-entry rules apply, as for any temporary residence permit. Note that leaving Chile with children below 18 requires a notarized certificate of authorization from the other parent.
No. There is no cap on the number of dependent visas issued each year by Chile.
No. Decreto 177 arts. 72-76 do not require proof of Spanish proficiency or a cultural course to obtain the dependent permit.
Yes. Holders of the dependent permit are authorized to carry out lawful paid activities, subject to the general Labor Code restrictions on the employment of minors.
Through two documents from the titular: (a) a notarized sworn declaration in which they assume the costs of your maintenance, and (b) documentation showing they have resources sufficient to cover those costs, measured against indicators set by the Ministry of Social Development.
If the titular's permit or the relationship changes
Your dependent permit is subject to the validity of the titular's own residence permit. Practically, this means your status as a dependent is at risk if the titular's own temporary residence lapses. Before that happens, you may be able to switch to titular status yourself (if you meet the requirements of a subcategory in your own right) to avoid depending on someone else's permit.
On the death of the titular, or on dissolution of the family/dependency bond (for example, divorce or separation), dependents may either be granted titular temporary residence in their own right, or must leave Chile within 6 months. If criminal proceedings are underway (for example, connected to the circumstances of the separation), the departure deadline is delayed.
Yes. Dependents who are victims of domestic (intra-family) violence receive automatic titular residence upon a conviction of the aggressor, or while the relevant proceedings are pending — you are not left dependent on the abuser's immigration status.
Yes. You can apply to become a titular — of the same subcategory as the person you were a dependent of, or of a different one — as long as you meet that subcategory's own requirements. If you lose your dependent status while a subcategory-change or titular application is still being processed, SERMIG issues you a pending-permit certificate rather than leaving you without status.
Dependent visa renewal / Permanent residency
Yes. You must request the renewal (prórroga) of your residence permit at most ninety and at least ten days before your current permit expires. Because your permit is tied to the titular's, you will also need the titular's permit to remain valid and the underlying relationship to still exist. See the visa renewal page for the general renewal process.
Yes, for permanent residency, and generally faster than the standard route. Dependents can apply for permanent residency (Residencia Definitiva) without being bound by the standalone 24-month rule that otherwise applies, once the titular has met their own required residence period. This does not apply to dependents of a titular holding a seasonal-worker, Gendarmería-custody, court-ordered, or medical-treatment permit — those dependents are excluded from this route. Not directly for citizenship. You must first hold permanent residency. Standard naturalization (Carta de Nacionalización) then requires 5 years of continuous residence in Chile as a permanent resident aged 18 or older, counted from your Temporary Residence Electronic Stamp date. Because the dependent visa's underlying tie is to a temporary resident (not a Chilean citizen), the faster 2-year "qualified" naturalization route does not apply through this visa; see the citizenship page for the full picture.
The dependent permit is one of the temporary residence categories, and the associated fee varies by the applicant's citizenship. See the temporary visa fees page for the fee schedule, and the required-documents section above for the specific paperwork.
See the checklist and the "Required documents" section on this page for the full list: proof of the family relationship, proof of the titular's economic capacity to support you, your passport, and your criminal background certificate.
Note
This page is a private, independent information service and is provided for general information only; it is not legal advice. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or authorized by SERMIG (Servicio Nacional de Migraciones) or the Government of Chile — official applications must be filed directly at serviciomigraciones.cl. For legal representation in a Chilean immigration matter, consult a licensed attorney in Chile; this page does not replace professional legal advice.
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