The Chile Mercosur Visa, Explained
Let's review in depth the Chile's Mercosur visa, a unique opportunity for citizens of the Mercosur country to relocate to Chile. This guide explains the application process, requirements, necessary documents, and the associated costs.
What is a mercosur visa in Chile?
The "Mercosur Visa" is a subcategory of the "international agreements" temporary visa. The Mercosur visa in Chile is a temporary residency visa that is part of an agreement between the member states of Mercosur, Bolivia, and Chile.
Who can apply for a mercosur visa in Chile? Is the mercosur visa right for me?
The Mercosur Visa is the easiest option if you are a citizen of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, or Uruguay. The processing time can take longer than for other temporary visas, but there is less required documentation.
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Who does not qualify for a mercosur visa?
You must be a citizen of the countries that signed the MERCOSUR residency agreement to apply for this visa. If you are not, you cannot apply for this visa.
Note
Venezuela was not a MERCOSUR member when the residency agreement was signed. Furthermore, since 2017, Venezuela has been suspended from the MERCOSUR agreement. Therefore, citizens of Venezuela do not qualify for this visa.
Chile Mercosur Visa eligibility
The requirements to apply for a mercosur visa in Chile are:
- being a citizen of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, or Uruguay, the countries that have signed the agreement on residency for nationals of MERCOSUR member states, Bolivia and Chile.
- having a passport valid for at least one year at the date of the application.
- not having been convicted for a crime in Chile or abroad. See details on the Chile temporary visa page.
There is no need to demonstrate a recurring income or economic resources for this visa.
Required documents to apply for a mercosur visa
Documents required for all temporary visas
- Copy of your passport (only the page with your photo).
- Background check of your country of origin, apostilled or legalized.
- Background check of your country of residence, apostilled or legalized, if you have been residing in the last five years in a country different from your country of origin.
Specific documents for this visa
No additional documents are required, as this visa is based only on citizenship.
Note
Documents issued abroad must be apostilled or legalized adequately 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.
Chile Mercosur visa fees and related costs
The Mercosur visa is a category of temporary visa. For this reason, the associated visa fees vary based on the applicant's citizenship.
Mercosur visa complete application process
The Mercosur visa is one of the types of temporary visas available in Chile. See the application process for the temporary visa for more information.
Frequently Asked Questions about the mercosur visa in Chile
Mercosur visa application process
No. The mercosur visa is itself a subcategory of temporary visas. It does not have any subcategories.
You cannot apply for a mercosur visa after arriving in Chile as a tourist. You must apply for this visa outside of Chile.
The mercosur visa is a category of temporary visa. You can find the current application time on this page, section "Reply Time".
No. The immigration service does not offer a way to expedite the mercosur visa process.
Mercosur visa conditions
Yes. You can bring dependents or family members to Chile under your mercosur visa. The family members that you can include are your spouse or equivalent, children under 18 years old, children with disabilities, unmarried children under 24 years old who are (or will be) studying in Chile, and minors under your personal care or guardianship. Additional documents are needed to establish family links. See the temporary visa application page for more information.
With a mercosur visa, you can stay in Chile for up to two years.
Yes.* There are no travel restrictions linked to this visa.
No. There is no cap regarding mercosur visas in Chile. You only need to abide by the requirements defined above.
Visa renewal / Permanent residency
Yes. You could switch to a different visa type. Yet, as this visa allows you to work and apply for permanent residency after 24 months in Chile, there is no reason to change to another temporary visa type.
Yes. It is possible to renew a mercosur visa in Chile when it expires. You must request the renewal of a residence permit at most ninety days and at least ten days before the expiration of the current residence permit.
Yes, for permanent residency. You can apply for permanent residency in Chile after living on a mercosur visa. To do so, you must be able to prove 24 months of residence in the country, starting from when you obtained the stamp of Temporary Residence that led to the temporary residence you currently hold.
No for citizenship. You must first be a permanent resident (amongst other criteria) to qualify for citizenship in Chile.
References
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