The Chile Work Visa, Explained

There is one paid-work temporary residence permit (Residencia Temporal – Actividades Lícitas Remuneradas), not multiple formal subcategories. The required documents vary based on your situation: 1) your employer is a for-profit company, a non-profit institution, or an individual, and 2) you apply with a signed employment contract, a signed job offer, or a self-employed services contract.^[1][2]

You must apply for the work visa from abroad. The permit is built around a contract that the worker signs before the competent Chilean consulate, so the application is filed there. You cannot file it from inside Chile as a tourist.^[1][2]

The work visa is a category of temporary residence. You can find the current application time on this page, section "Reply Time". SERMIG does not publish a fixed processing deadline for this permit.^[2]

Yes, but... Self-employed foreigners can qualify, but through a different route than employees. You must sign a civil or commercial services contract with a Chilean citizen or a foreigner holding permanent residency, for services lasting more than 90 days, and the contract must be executed before the competent Chilean consulate before you enter Chile. This route does not cover people who invoice a foreign company from Chile while remaining outside this contractual structure.^[1][2]

Yes. The Chilean employer or contracting party must have a domicile or branch in Chile. If it operates commercially, it must also have an active registration with the Servicio de Impuestos Internos (SII). The employer's legal representative signs the contract before a Chilean notary. You sign it before the competent consulate.^[1][2]

Yes. The contract's purpose must be consistent with the activity the employer has declared to the SII (an exception applies where the employer's activity type does not require SII registration). The application must also include the employer's Carpeta Tributaria (tax folder) or, if the employer has no registered SII activity, proof of sufficient financial solvency to cover the contract.^[1][2]

No. This permit is granted on the basis of an employment, job-offer, or services contract with a Chilean-based employer. The employer signs it before a Chilean notary, and the worker signs it before the competent consulate. It is not granted on a contract with a foreign parent company. If you want to work in Chile for a local subsidiary while your employment relationship stays with the foreign parent company, look at the investor visa instead. That visa separately covers senior managers and specialized technical staff hired by a Chile-based company that is controlled (directly or indirectly, with at least 10% of voting rights or an equivalent equity stake) by a foreign investor.^[1][2][9]

Both are accepted. You can apply with a signed employment contract or with a formal job offer notarized in Chile and accepted by you before the consulate. The difference is that the job-offer route is more restrictive: it only grants a 90-day permit. Once you enter Chile, you have 45 calendar days to present a notarized employment contract with that same employer. If you miss that deadline, SERMIG voids the 90-day permit and orders you to leave the country, without prejudice to the offering employer's own civil or criminal liability.^[1][2]

Yes. The contract's form and content must comply with the Código del Trabajo, and its object must match the activity the employer has declared to the SII. The employer must also complete the written-contract and electronic-registration duties set out in Articles 9 and 9 bis of the Código del Trabajo.^[1][2]

Yes. You can relocate with the following family members: your spouse or civil partner, 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. You must demonstrate you can economically support them. Additional documents are needed to establish the family link. See the temporary visa page for more information.^[3][6]

SERMIG grants the work visa for up to 24 months, and it can be extended for successive 2-year periods as long as you keep meeting the renewal requirements. After enough time on this permit, you may also become eligible to apply for permanent residency.^[1][4][6]

Yes. Valid temporary residents can enter and exit Chile without a limit on the number of trips. Make sure you are separately allowed to enter your destination country. Being allowed to leave Chile does not guarantee entry elsewhere.^[6]

No. Decreto 177 and Ley 21.325 do not set a quota for this subcategory. That is different from the seasonal-worker subcategory, which is explicitly quota-based.^[1]

No. Decreto 177's requirements for this permit (Articles 17-22) do not include a language or cultural test.^[1]

No, with one exception. Once you hold the temporary residence permit, the end of the contract that founded it, or a voluntary change of employer, is not by itself a reason to revoke it. You do not have to notify SERMIG. The exception is the 90-day permit granted on a job offer. If the promised contract does not go through, that permit is voided.^[1]

This permit is not limited to specific sectors or job types. The contract's object simply needs to match the activity your employer has declared to the SII.^[1]

Losing the job that founded your permit, or voluntarily changing employers, is not by itself grounds for revocation. You do not need to inform SERMIG. The one exception is the 90-day permit granted on a job offer. If the underlying contract does not materialize, SERMIG voids that permit and orders you to leave the country.^[1]

SERMIG itself does not add extra visa requirements for regulated professions. Separately, Chilean law lets accredited state universities recognize, revalidate, or validate foreign professional and technical qualifications. Some regulated professions (for example healthcare or engineering roles) may require this recognition before you can practice, even once your visa is approved.^[6]

No. This permit requires a signed employment contract, a formal job offer, or a self-employed services contract with a Chilean-based party. The only route that does not require the final contract upfront is the job-offer route, and even then SERMIG only grants a 90-day permit and requires the signed contract within 45 days of your entry.^[1]

The contract's form and content must comply with the Código del Trabajo, which sets Chile's minimum-wage rules. Like any employment contract in Chile, the salary cannot fall below the legal minimum.^[1]

Yes. Temporary residents can change subcategory if they meet the new subcategory's requirements, by filing the request between 90 and 10 days before their current permit expires.^[3]

Yes. Request the renewal between 90 and 10 days before your current permit expires. To renew specifically, employees need a current employment relationship and must show they worked for at least 60% of the just-completed permit period. Self-employed workers need a current civil/commercial contract and SII certificates showing activity for at least 60% of that period.^[1][3][4]

Yes for permanent residency: the paid-work subcategory is one of the temporary-residence categories that always allows applying for permanent residency, after at least 24 months of continuous, eligible temporary residence. That minimum can be extended up to 48 months if you show insufficient income, employment instability, or migration infractions, or reduced to as little as 12 months if you have a qualifying family tie, investment, pension, or similar contribution. No for citizenship directly: you must hold permanent residency first, then show more than 5 years of continuous residence for standard naturalization (reduced to 2 years with a qualifying family tie to a Chilean citizen). See the citizenship page for details.^[3][6][7][8]