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- Types of visas in Chile
22/12/2018, updated 11/08/2025
Are you looking to relocate to Chile? This comprehensive guide covers all temporary visa types available in Chile, along with specific requirements and required documents for each category.
Temporary Residence Visas
Temporary visas are the visas that allow you to stay legally in Chile. They are usually issued with a validity of one or two years. You can renew them or apply for permanent residency if your temporary visa category allows it and if you meet the criteria for a Permanent Residency application.
There are multiple types of temporary residence visas. Here is a list of all kinds of temporary visas in Chile:
The decree 277, published in May 2022, details the new categories of temporary visas in Chile following the implementation of the new immigration law in February 2022. The list presented in this article takes into account the updated categories introduced by this decree.
Temporary visa for a foreigner with a link with a Chilean citizen or a Permanent Resident Foreigner
This visa is for you if you have a direct link with a Chilean citizen or a foreigner with permanent residence, who can be:
- your spouse (married or civil union),
- one of your parents,
- one of your children.
This visa that you can apply for while residing in Chile as a tourist. You must apply for other visa types before coming to Chile.
Temporary visa for a former resident in Chile
This visa category is for foreigners who were living in Chile with permanent residency and have left Chile for more than two years, leading to the tacit revocation of this permanent residency.
Work contract visa / Visa de Residencia Sujeta a Contrato
The work contract visa (visa sujeta a contrato) allows foreign citizens who come to Chile to work for a Chilean company. To qualify for this visa, you must already have a work contract signed with a company, or a signed offer. This visa does not allow to relocate to Chile to look for a job.
Do not use this visa if you come to Chile while maintaining your work contract with a foreign company. In that case, you may qualify for an investor visa, but not for the work visa. See the work contract visa page of our guide for more information.
You can only apply to this visa with a work contract signed by a Chilean company, which you will send yourself at the nearest consulate of Chile. Therefore, do not come to Chile as a tourist and expect to switch of visa category by signing a work contract after arriving. It won't work.
The Chilean company will also be required to submit some documents to prove it is operating and is not a fake or new company created to apply for visas. This is due to the high level of fraud in the past years, where some people created empty companies to file visa applications.
If you want more information, read the article about the work visa in Chile.
Temporary visa for religious persons
This temporary visa allows religious foreigners from churches, orders, or congregations recognized in the country to come to Chile to carry out religious, educational, or assistance activities. You cannot use this visa if your church/congregation has no legal presence in Chile.
This visa is only granted to religious persons joining an existing, registered religious institution. You cannot get a religious visa to create a new religious institution.
You can find more information in the article about the Chile religious visa.
Temporary visa for retirees and foreigners with recurring income
This temporary visa class is for retirees or foreigners who can demonstrate a recurring income outside Chile, from:
- a pension,
- income generated by real estate rentals,
- dividends generated by financial assets.
It allows them to stay in Chile for one or two years. Since the new immigration law came into for, all visas in this category have been issued for two years.
You need to demonstrate a recurring income, but if you can, this is one of the most flexible visas for people looking to come to Chile.
Temporary visa for investors
This temporary residence is for entrepreneurs, investors, or business owners who travel to Chile for more than ninety days due to their activities and interests in the country.
The investor visa requires USD 500,000 investment in Chile, so it is not for everyone. It can also be granted to foreign companies with a Chilean branch, which need to send employees to Chile. If you are an entrepreneur or a small investor, other visa categories might be more useful.
Temporary visa for pregnant women and foreigners undertaking a medical treatment
This visa allows the following categories of foreigners to stay in Chile for one year:
- pregnant women,
- foreigners coming to Chile to undertake specific medical treatments.
You need to be able to justify economic means while you stay in Chile.
Principle of international reciprocity
This visa allows nationals of Mercosur member states: Argentinians, Bolivians, Brazilians, Paraguayans, and Uruguayans, to stay in Chile as temporary residents, regardless of the activity they come to perform, as long as they do not have criminal records.
For more information, see our guide about the Chile MERCOSUR visa.
Multiple-entry business permit.
This permit is for foreigners who, for business purposes or to manage investments that foreign companies maintain in Chile, must regularly come to the country but only stay in Chile for up to six months per calendar year.
This visa category is less restrictive in terms of required documents, but please note that it does not allow you to apply for permanent residency, nor bring your family with you.
Student visa
The student visa is for foreigners who travel to Chile to study as regular students. It only allows studying, which means you are not authorized to work with this visa, except if you apply for a work permit at the same time as the visa (for example, if you come to do an internship or need to work to pay for your studies). The maximum duration usually is one year (except in the case of a scholarship, where the visa is issued for the duration of the scholarship), renewable until you terminate your studies.
Other visa types
There are a few other types that we do not detail as they are unlikely to apply to our clients:
- Foreigners subject to the custody of the Gendarmerie of Chile
- Foreigners who are in Chile by order of National Courts of Justice.
- Humanitarian reasons
- Seasonal workers
Permanent Residency, the next step
After holding a temporary visa for a certain period, you may be eligible to apply for permanent residency in Chile.
You can read the permanent residency article for more information on qualifying criteria.
Frequently Asked Questions regarding temporary residency in Chile
It is a temporary authorization (for a determined period) to live in Chile and perform any activity authorized by law.
If you enter Chile as a tourist, most probably No. Following the 2022 immigration reform, you must apply from abroad. Only applications for certain temporary visa types are allowed to be sent while in Chile, such as the family link visa, for people having a link with a Chilean or a permanent resident in Chile.
There are specific requirements for each type of Temporary visa. The major criteria for Chile to grant a temporary residence, is to be sure that you have recurring income, or a lump sum of money allowing you to live in Chile upon arrival, while you are looking for a job, creating your company, studying…
There are no fixed requirements regarding income.
It depends on the nationality of the applicant. See our page Cost of visa in Chile.
You can apply for a temporary visa for "Family link" if you have a first-grade family link with a Chilean citizen, which means, if you are:
- father or mother of a Chilean citizen,
- spouse of a Chilean citizen,
- child of a Chilean citizen.
You can work with a student visa if you have applied for a work permit with the visa. If not, you shall apply for a separate work permit.
It depends on the type of visa/work permit you request and your nationality. See our page Cost of visas in Chile.
Within 30 days of receiving your visa, you must request your Chilean identity card: go to the nearest civil registry office. It may take more than 30 days to receive it, but as long as you have requested an appointment within 30 days of receiving your visa, you are good to go.
Do you want to go more in detail?
I wrote the Chile Handbook for Foreigners for anyone and everyone looking to move permanently and enjoy life in Chile. It's a 265-page book that goes over all aspects of relocating to Chile. Here is what you get:
✅ Practical tips based on 7-year relocation experience
✅ To-do lists to help you start
✅ Last updated in 2025
