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90 Day Tourist Visas

If I only have a passport, can after 90 cays, take a week visit to say, Peru or Columbia and return to Cuenca for another 90 days?

*****

No, you can't. You have 90 days in the 12 month period that starts when you first land in the country. And that includes the day you land, even if you get in at 11:50 p.m.

At least 30 days before your tourist visa will expire, you can apply for a 12-IX visa, which allows you another 90 days total. At that time, you have to leave the country or have applied for your permanent residency.

Jeff

Comments for
90 Day Tourist Visas

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Visas
by: sonia

Thank you very much for explaining the visa crisis.

We all seem to misunderstand plus the rules keep on changing. We need to help each other on this matter.

My husband and I are planning a trip to Cuenca Sept. or Oct.

Again, thanks.
Dates
by: Anonymous

It would be great to see the date an article is written and the date a comment was left.

*****

Okay, I'm starting with yours...

April 20, 2012
Response to Tourist Visa Limits
by: Rick Marcum

Your response states,
"At least 30 days before your tourist visa will expire, you can apply for a 12-IX visa, which allows you another 90 days total. At that time, you have to leave the country or have applied for your permanent residency."

I interpret that to mean, that once I apply for a 12-IX visa, I am granted another 90 days from the date of that application...which tells me, I can stay if I have applied for permanent residency. Correct?? If so, that is very good news, as that is what I would like to do while down there.

Please advise if my interpretation is correct.

Thanks
Rick

*****

Hi Rick.

Here's how it goes...

You come in on the 90 day tourist visa, although if you knowing you're moving here, you can apply for and receive the 180 day visa before you come down.

If you come in on the tourist visa, no later than Day 60, you apply for the extension visa, which takes you to 180 days total.

No later than Day 150, you apply for your permanent residency (this may have been changed recently, because they know that it's take 1-3 months to issue visas).

You don't have to wait until Day 150. You can apply as soon as you get here if you want.

The good news is that, once you've applied and have a trámite (tracking number), you can stay beyond the date that your visa expired. However, that has now turned into a problem for those planning to ship containers down.

You now have to have everything through customs within 6 months of your last entry, with the departure date from your home being after you have your residency visa.

So, if you plan to bring a container, make sure you leave the country by air just before your 6 months of tourist visas end. You'll then have another 6 months to get your container here, once you have the permanent residency visa.

Just so that you're clear, applying for residency doesn't mean that you'll be approved. In the past couple of months, 1 out of every 3 has been turned down, usually with no reason being given. They've even approved one spouse and denied the other.

Jeff

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I just want to thank you both soooo much for creating this web site. I am originally from Cuenca but moved to New York 11 years ago and have not being back since. My husband and I are planning on visiting Cuenca over the Summer and this web site has helped me a lot.

When I came to the US we still had the "sucre," the bus ride cost 1,000 sucres and a pack of trident gum would cost 3,000 sucres. I am very nervous to go back, but thanks to your web site I now know what to expect.

My husband is American and Captivating Cuenca has taught him a lot about what my great city has to offer, things that I had forgotten about myself! :)

Thank You both so much! I cannot wait to visit Cuenca!!

Sofia Hoffman