EC
Ecuador · Visa de Rentista · Passive income · apply online · processing 30–60 days
Temporary residence for a foreign national with lawful income, in their own name, of at least three times Ecuador's basic salary. The income can come from Ecuador or from abroad, including leases, investment instruments and similar sources. For 2026 the floor is USD 1,446 a month.
The 2026 basic salary is USD 482, so three times that salary is USD 1,446 a month. Ecuador uses the US dollar, so the local and USD amounts are the same. The floor moves every January with the basic salary. USD 17,352 is twelve times the monthly test. The rentista category has no separate annual-income or savings alternative. That annual alternative belongs to the remote-work rentista, which is a separate nomad visa. The government fee is USD 50 to file and USD 270 to issue, with no VAT. Applicants aged 65 or older pay half. A disability of 30 percent or more, with the health-ministry card, pays nothing. A sponsored relative files a separate amparo visa at USD 50 plus USD 200. The identity card is extra. Each grant is up to two years and can be renewed more than once. The temporary visa allows multiple entries and does not limit time abroad. Permanent residence needs 21 continuous months as a resident, requested before the temporary visa expires, and absences during the whole temporary visa cannot exceed 90 days. Naturalisation needs three years of permanent residence, Spanish, and an interview. The three years do not run from this visa. A spouse or legally recognised partner, and children of any age, can be included. Parents cannot. The rentista rule asks for USD 250 more income a month for each sponsored person. The general amparo rule asks for that USD 250 only for each adult child. Residents have the right to work. The income that justified the visa has to continue. Health insurance, national or foreign, must last the visa. A foreign policy must say that it covers Ecuador. Applicants aged 18 or older need a criminal-record certificate, apostilled or legalised and translated, counted as valid for 180 days. This is not a territorial tax visa. Tax residence is generally 183 days, and residents are taxed on worldwide income at 0 to 37 percent. An optional five-year election limited to Ecuador-source income is a separate tax filing. It does not come with this visa. Apply only on e-VISAS and pay the same day, by 23:55 Ecuador time, or the draft is deleted. Someone already in Ecuador needs a regular tourist stay or a current visa. Consulates and zonal offices issue the visa. They are not a separate filing channel. Language: Must speak and write Spanish; no CEFR level stated.
Ecuador also offers a digital nomad visa for remote workers
Last verified Oct 9, 2026 Last changed Oct 10, 2026 Source
Spanish requirement for naturalisation filled from LOMH art. 72. No CEFR level is stated (gob.ec).
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