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First of all: Chile Tourist Visa
Before buying a property we strongly recommend you see it first. What’s more, if you are planning on moving to your overseas property we advise you to spend some time in the country before taking such an important decision. Traveling in Latin America is easy for American and most European Countries passport holders. Tourist visas are not always necessary and, if they are, getting one is not a problem. In this section we provide some general information on visas and residence permits. Since this information might change, particularly regarding red tape and form filling, in January First Real Estate we are always ready to answer your questions and provide research in order to give all necessary answers with up-to-date information. Once you have been in the country and decided to become a resident the staff in January First Real Estate will gladly help you out finding out requirements and most advantageous choices for your residence status.
Tips on applying for a visa
Several things need to be considered here, including whether you’re living part-time or full-time in the country, and what you intend to do there. There are many kinds of visas, but here are a few common elements that may be required of you:
- Verify that your passport is valid for the required length of time.
- Some countries require that you have a passport valid for at least six months when the visa is granted.
- Find a notary (or other approval authority) acceptable to the consulate.
- Get a physician’s health certification.
- Most countries require some sort of health certification. Find out what they need, and make sure the doctor addresses it specifically.
- Visa photos will likely be a different size than any photo you have so far, so check this in advance.
- Criminal record checks are required in many cases. Allow plenty of time for this, as the process to get one from your state police or other law enforcement agency may not be quick.
- Pension verification is your most important document if you’re applying for a pensioner’s visa, while your foreign property deed will be needed if you’re getting a visa based on property ownership.
- In some cases the copy of the property deed needs to be notarized in the country where the property is located, so allow time for this if it hasn’t been done already.
- Document certification: Be sure to allow enough time to notarize or certify all required documents—and resolve any issues your country’s notary may have—and then submit your visa application.
It is helpful to make an interim stop or two at the consulate to have them review how you’re processing the required paperwork. This can help to avoid any surprises at the end when you turn in your final visa application for approval.
In case you need more information or have doubts on any of these issues, the specialised staff in January First Real Estate will be glad to answer all your questions, click here.
Red tape and visas
Most foreign visitors to Chile do not need a visa, with the exception of citizens of New Zealand (at a cost of NZ$90) and a small number of other countries. Visitors of all nationalities are issued a tourist card (Tarjeta de Turismo) on arrival in Chile, which is valid for ninety days, and can be extended once for an additional ninety days. It will be checked by the International Police at the airport or border post when you leave Chile – if it's expired you won't be allowed to leave the country until you've paid the appropriate fine at the nearest Intendencia (up to US$100, depending on the number of days past the expiry date). If this happens when you're trying to fly out of the international airport in Santiago, you'll have to go back downtown to Moneda 1342 (Mon– Fri 9am–1pm; Telephone2/672-5320).
If you lose your tourist card, ask for a duplicate immediately, either from the Fronteras department of the Policía Internacional, General Borgoño 1052, Santiago (Telephone2/698-2211), or from the Foreigner's department of the Intendencia, Moneda 1342, Santiago (Telephone2/672-5320).
If you want to extend your tourist card, you've got two choices. You can either pay US$100 at the Intendencia of Santiago or any provincial capital, or you can simply leave the country and re-enter, getting a brand-new ninety-day Tarjeta de Turismo for free. The latter option is usually cheaper, not to mention easy, given the many opportunities for border crossing up and down Chile.
Chile, make your dream investment come true. |
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