***Do this with more than 30 days left on your first 90-day tourist visa.***
We just lengthened our stay by extending our 90-day tourist visas to 90 day 12-IX (12-9) visas in Cuenca. While this is not a difficult process, it requires some running around and fees. It can definitely be done without the help of a lawyer or facilitator. Some knowledge of Spanish is helpful, but there are helpful English-speaking agents at the Minister of External Affairs office in Cuenca.
-First of all find out if you can change your return flight tickets. This was the biggest expense for us. To get the extension you will need to show return tickets out of the country at a date beyond your 90-day expiration. You may have to buy new one-way tickets like we did.
-Go to the Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores (Asuntos Migratorios)
Ordoñez Lazo y Cipreses, Edificio Astudillo (big white building on north side corner)
Cuenca, Ecuador, Phone: (07) 285-0085
Walk in and on first floor go all the way back and turn right. The office is on the left under the sign “Coordinacion Regional, Zone 6.” Go in and take a ticket from the machine. Tell the guards (briefly) “extendo visa.” They will direct you to the back of the office where you will see a sign “Apostillas y Legalizationes. “ Again, tell the guard “extendo visa.” Then sit and wait your turn. The guard seems to be in charge of the line, and will tell you when it's your turn.
The immigrations officer who helps you speaks English and will explain all that is needed. Don't leave without getting:
1) the requirements sheet (only in Spanish, but you can Google translate it if necessary)
2) an application form (You can download this online, but it was different from the one they gave us in Cuenca).
Before you submit your application you will need:
1) A petition letter in Spanish explaining why you want more time in Ecuador. Here's mine explaining that I had been studying Spanish and now want to travel (in so-so Spanish, but they accepted it!) You can write your own on Google translate then email it to yourself and print at an internet café. There is one in the same building right outside the Immigration Offices. Cost less than $1.
-----
Date
Senor:
Yo estoy pidiendo que por favor, extender mi visa de turista por otros 3 meses. Por favor, me permite tener una visa 12-IX por 90 días.
Llegué a Ecuador (your date of entry) y recibió una visa de turista de 3 meses. He estado viviendo en Cuenca y tomando clases de español. Ahora me gustaría viajar para ver más de este hermoso país.
Gracias,
Signature
Name
-----
2) The Application Form. They treat this like a brand new visa, so at the top, check “Solicitud” for a new visa application. Fill out everything and sign the form toward the bottom. If you don't understand something, the agent will help you when you turn it in.
3) Proof of economic means. You must demonstrate that you have $1000/month income or equivalent savings ($100 more for each dependant including spouse). We got copies of our US bank statement online. Must have your name, the bank's name and the amount in savings/checking account. This can be done in the same building at the internet café in the center of first floor - on the left as you leave the immigration office. Less than $1.
4) A color copy of your passport the front page and the page with your visa stamp (must have at least 6 months left on your passport). You can get these copies in the same building on first floor in the center at the little café next to the internet cafe. Cost $1.
These must be notarized. We did this down by Parque Calderon in the office on Mariscal Sucre y Benigno Malo just a few steps south (toward the river) of the old cathedral. Look for the big sign "Notarias” Go to the second floor. We walked into one of the offices showed them our passports and the copies and said “Notarize, por favor.” Cost $5.
5) A passport photo to attach to the form. We had them, but you can get them at most photo shops in town. One place is Fuji in Milenium Plaza, and it takes about an hour.
6) Movimientos Migratorios. This a nice way of saying a police report! We got this in the same office next to the immigration persons' office. Cost $10. You have to get a color copy (2-sides) of the report after he gives it to you and return it to him. Do this in the color copy shop in the same building. Cost $2.
7) Copy of your changed airline ticket showing a return flight out of the country at a date beyond the 90-day expiration of your first tourist visa. Include booking number, name, and details. We printed a copy off the internet. Cost less than $1 (if you don't count the added ticket cost!)
If you are a married couple and you have your apostilled marriage certificate with you (we didn't), you can file
together, if not you need to file as 2 individuals and have 2 copies of everything above. If you have dependent
children, you need apostilled birth certificates for them, too. They must be apostilled by the Secretary of State
in the state where they were first issued.
We took everything in and asked if it looked OK, then proceeded to change our airline tickets. They are very
nice and helpful, but there is nobody around from noon – 2:30 or so. When we had everything together, we
submitted it all, paid the $30 fee and waited 5 days for the approval.
Fee to submit your paperwork is $30.
Fee for the approved visa is $200.
Couples with apostilled marriage certificate pay $30 plus $250 total for both. Each added dependent is an
additional $50.
Total cost for each of us with misc expenses: $250. Total time: 6 days.
Extending our 90-day Tourist Visas
Hello e&p, thanks for this sharing!
Harmonie.
I have read your experience in extending your visas; I have a question; you said you had to show proof of income ($1000) permonth. I thought the income level was $800 for Ecuador, has this recently changed?
We had heard that too, but the form they gave us in Cuenca now said $1000.
I have a tourist visa 12-IX. However, when I received it they were out of censos. I've gone back to the Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores multiple times over the past 2 months and they still don't have censos. Is there another location where I can get mine before June?
Hi there
I have a question about visa extension in spain ,
I want to know if I come there with a tourist or business
visa for around 20 days ,is it any way to extend my visa without
go out of there ? or after I will be illegal ?
is it any way to get long term visa there ?
its very important for me ,so it will be great if anybody has knowledge ,give me some advice about it .
Thanx
e&p wrote:We had heard that too, but the form they gave us in Cuenca now said $1000.
I was afraid they'd raise the bar before we could come in late 2014. Our one other chance is an investment visa, but it would take a couple of years or so for us to save $25,000 and I imagine they've raised that requirement as well.
We'd better start looking for options. Anyone know of a Central or South American country with lower monetary requirements? We'll be getting $958 monthly from Social Security (plus $500-$600 from renting out our house).
Thanks,
John
LeftClique wrote:e&p wrote:We had heard that too, but the form they gave us in Cuenca now said $1000.
I was afraid they'd raise the bar before we could come in late 2014. Our one other chance is an investment visa, but it would take a couple of years or so for us to save $25,000 and I imagine they've raised that requirement as well.
We'd better start looking for options. Anyone know of a Central or South American country with lower monetary requirements? We'll be getting $958 monthly from Social Security (plus $500-$600 from renting out our house).
Thanks,
John
Not sure what the income is needed in Panama for pensionado visa. Think over $1,000, but you are allowed to stay 6 months at a time on tourist visa, and then can make a border run to Costa Rica for a day or two, and then return for another 6 months. So really only have to leave the country once a year for a few days.
Although please be advised that this is Latin America, and laws and rules consistently change, especially regarding immigration.
Who knows what the rules regarding immigration will be a couple of years from now.
sweeta wrote:I have a question about visa extension in spain ,
I think you may have made a mistake, unless I misunderstand you. This is the Ecuador forum. Try again in the Spanish forum, and best wishes.
Bob
LeftClique wrote:e&p wrote:We had heard that too, but the form they gave us in Cuenca now said $1000.
I was afraid they'd raise the bar before we could come in late 2014. Our one other chance is an investment visa, but it would take a couple of years or so for us to save $25,000 and I imagine they've raised that requirement as well.
We'd better start looking for options. Anyone know of a Central or South American country with lower monetary requirements? We'll be getting $958 monthly from Social Security (plus $500-$600 from renting out our house).
Thanks,
John
Forgot to mention Nicaragua. Think you only need around $600 a month, maybe a little more. Check with someone who knows better than I do, but am pretty certain the requirements are still pretty cheap.
Now if Nicaragua is a place you want to live or not is another question? It's not a bad place. Years ago when living in Costa Rica a bunch of us used to always go to Nicaragua for a few days then back to CR to renew our visas. We always enjoyed Nicaragua, but that's going back well over 10 years, so not really sure how much it's changed over the years.
j600rr,
Thank you. Panama and Nicaragua were on our short list when we first began thinking about moving overseas. I have a friend in Belize and another friend, a Honduran, who will let me build on his land there. So, there are options. I appreciate your response, because this new, increased requirement has thrown a wrench into our plans. As always, Neil (ZenSpike) has responded with good advice, and another Ecuadorean gringo friend, Nancy, has responded to me as well.
thanks again,
John
LeftClique:
You might also consider Guatemala. It's on my list of possibilities. I understand the retirement visa process is complicated (not sure what the minimum is), but they allow endless renewals of the tourist visa with just a visa run.
I was looking into Quetzaltenango (aka Xelaju or Xela). Seems like a good place with a Quito-ish climate, and very inexpensive (e.g., furnished 2br/1ba for $300 or so). From there it's an easy day trip to renew visas at the Mexican border once every ninety days.
For a bit more you can live in the expat center, Antigua.
Downside: Don't travel between cities after dark -- the bad guys are numerous.
Bob
LeftClique wrote:e&p wrote:We had heard that too, but the form they gave us in Cuenca now said $1000.
We'll be getting $958 monthly from Social Security (plus $500-$600 from renting out our house).
Thanks,
John
Perhaps if you do not start collecting SS at age 62 but wait a year or two the delay could push you over the $1,000 mark per month. If you go online to the SS website you can run different combinations for both of you to see at what age you hit the magic number. By waiting until age 66 I get $300 a month more than if I retire now at age 64. Good luck!!
Mugs, your advice is always sensible and authoritative and I appreciate it. I'll take a look at the Social Security website, however there are two things on my mind. One, the requirements could go up again. Two, we haven't been able to afford health insurance for over three years already and the prospect of going another two, three or four years without it is unacceptable. We've been focused on Ecuador, but I believe we could be just as happy and content in any of a number of Central or South American countries.
Thanks,
John
I got info from lawyers in Cuenca with in the last two weeks and there paperwork still says $800 per month.
their paperwork, sorry
LeftClique wrote:Mugs, your advice is always sensible and authoritative and I appreciate it. I'll take a look at the Social Security website, however there are two things on my mind. One, the requirements could go up again. Two, we haven't been able to afford health insurance for over three years already and the prospect of going another two, three or four years without it is unacceptable. We've been focused on Ecuador, but I believe we could be just as happy and content in any of a number of Central or South American countries.
Thanks,
John
Pretty safe bet that the requirements will go up in the future.
An unfortunate situation you are in regarding health insurance. Unfortunately seems many people are in that same situation these days. Just going to throw this out there, but have you ever considered international insurance as an option?
Am currently in the process of getting some quotes myself at the moment from several different companies. The prices seem very reasonable for the coverage that they offer. Am only in beginning stages of researching, and looking around, but have found several companies so far that appear to be very respectable.
movinon wrote:I got info from lawyers in Cuenca with in the last two weeks and there paperwork still says $800 per month.
Great News!!!
If you look at the top of this page they were saying $1000 a month in 2011, but it is still $800. Neil got there in July and he stated $800 per month, just rumors for now, and old ones at that. If it goes up it goes up, but still cheaper than US. Just can't be all about the money, has to also about the adventure. Can't wait till my day comes.
LeftClique wrote:e&p wrote:We had heard that too, but the form they gave us in Cuenca now said $1000.
I was afraid they'd raise the bar before we could come in late 2014. Our one other chance is an investment visa, but it would take a couple of years or so for us to save $25,000 and I imagine they've raised that requirement as well.
We'd better start looking for options. Anyone know of a Central or South American country with lower monetary requirements? We'll be getting $958 monthly from Social Security (plus $500-$600 from renting out our house).
Thanks,
John
Do you really want to live in Ecuador and have rental property in the U.S.? Ugh! Sell it before you move.
movinon wrote:If you look at the top of this page they were saying $1000 a month in 2011, but it is still $800. Neil got there in July and he stated $800 per month, just rumors for now, and old ones at that. If it goes up it goes up, but still cheaper than US. Just can't be all about the money, has to also about the adventure. Can't wait till my day comes.
Oh, man! Not again! This is the second time I've been stampeded by an old post. You'd think I'd have sense enough to check the date by now.
Well, it's not all bad. I've learned about Nicaragua and Guatemala, and Mugs tutored me on tax law.
John
Sawman: Do you really want to live in Ecuador and have rental property in the U.S.?
Heck, no! I hate it, but it makes sense, I think, in our particular situation. I bought a lot in the worst neighborhood in town in 2010, built a house, and am adding on to make it a duplex. The area is rapidly gentrifying. Lots of college students, coffee shops opening up, etc. We feel it's worth the risk and hassle to hang on for a few years before we sell.
While I've got your ear, I want to say I enjoy your point of view and always pay attention to your comments.
John
I'd like to slip in one more question. Under everyone's photo/avatar is your name, date of joining, and number of posts made. Why am I stuck at 39?
@ LeftClique -> You're now at 40 If you have more questions, feel free to Contact Us. Thanks. Karen
[Sorry for the off topic]
This was spectacularly helpful. We are still in the U.S. and were trying to get answers on line and by calling the consulate. This really helped. BTW, what is a good Spanish school in Cuenca?
karen wrote:@ LeftClique -> You're now at 40
[Sorry for the off topic]
Weird. I've been at 39 for a long time.
LeftClique wrote:karen wrote:@ LeftClique -> You're now at 40
[Sorry for the off topic]
Weird. I've been at 39 for a long time.
Just 159 more posts and you will reach the exalted position of "Serial Expat" Spruces up a resume'.
I got a 6 month Visa from the consulate in Los Angeles before leaving the US. I didn't want to hassle with an extension in Ecuador. It was painless and I recommend this route for anyone who knows ahead of time that they wish to stay longer than 90 days. I didn't know my return date so I purchased a one way ticket. They were fine with that.
I'd like to add that hiring someone is absolutely NOT necessary. It is simply collecting your paperwork and then presenting it. Watch out for disreputable people that will charge you lots of money and try to sell it as difficult. It is more work than say going to the DMV (you might have to go to the consulate twice) but certainly less than a refinance. Also, it is better to err on the side of bringing extra paperwork e.g extra copies.
I do not understand the problem. Even if the requirement actually now is $1000, $958 plus $500-600 is well over that amount. When I got my retiree visa I showed only $600 from SS and cooked up papers to document $1200 as we were advised to show a bit more than the $800 minimum several years ago.
Most of my retirement income comes from rentals in the US, which poses very little problem as I have good tenants and units with few problems. I specify that they pay automatically from their bank to mine. If I sold I would take a serious tax hit and my kids would lose out as the properties go to them if I die (via living trust).
smitty88 wrote:I do not understand the problem. Even if the requirement actually now is $1000, $958 plus $500-600 is well over that amount. When I got my retiree visa I showed only $600 from SS and cooked up papers to document $1200 as we were advised to show a bit more than the $800 minimum several years ago.
Most of my retirement income comes from rentals in the US, which poses very little problem as I have good tenants and units with few problems. I specify that they pay automatically from their bank to mine. If I sold I would take a serious tax hit and my kids would lose out as the properties go to them if I die (via living trust).
This is the first time I've heard of anyone "cooking up" paperwork to increase their income. I've read many times that rental income is specifically not allowed, that income must be from a pension. What happens if you're found out?
John
"John" must be living on another planet. "Cooking up paperwork" is universally standard practice on Planet Earth. What this means is creating the paperwork to match the situation. Although my 'real' income is many times what is required, documenting that meant creating paperwork that would be approvable by the various agencies so they could sign off. In my case it meant getting my friend, who has some of my limited partnership shares, to write an official-looking letter as president of the LLD certifying that I have a specific amount of regular income from his company. Of course, in reality, it could vary widely, but my bank statement, showing substantially more income from rentals, was not deemed acceptable. Having lots of documents with official (especially silver) stamps can be very helpful.
smitty88 wrote:"John" must be living on another planet. "Cooking up paperwork" is universally standard practice on Planet Earth. What this means is creating the paperwork to match the situation. Although my 'real' income is many times what is required, documenting that meant creating paperwork that would be approvable by the various agencies so they could sign off. In my case it meant getting my friend, who has some of my limited partnership shares, to write an official-looking letter as president of the LLD certifying that I have a specific amount of regular income from his company. Of course, in reality, it could vary widely, but my bank statement, showing substantially more income from rentals, was not deemed acceptable. Having lots of documents with official (especially silver) stamps can be very helpful.
Smitty,
I guess I'm missing something, so I'll ask you point blank. Are you advising me to lie on the retirement visa application?
John
would not go there myself.......
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