Work permit in Ecuador

• The work category is for foreigners who want to settle in Ecuador and do lawful work under an employment relationship, in the public or private sector, for an employer in Ecuador.
• The Law's work category also covers self-employed people and professional, civil or consulting services. The regulation sets separate rules for those, and for foreign staff sent by a parent company abroad on a sponsorship letter, so the employee route on this page is not the only work route. A degree holder can use the professional category, which needs an apostilled or legalised degree registered with the national authority and has the same fees and two-year term.
• The route is not meant for remote work for an employer abroad. That has its own category in the regulation, and a tourist stay does not allow work of any kind.

Sources: Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH), Asamblea Nacional / Registro Oficial. Checked 17 October 2026.

• The page asks you to show lawful means of living under Ministerial Agreement 70 of 28 June 2024. For the temporary residence categories the Agreement accepts a registered employment contract paying about US$500 a month, one unified basic salary in 2026. To be safe, have a contract paying more than US$500 a month.
• The Ministry checks the employer as well as you: it verifies that the employer has enough money to meet its obligations under the contract, and it can call the employer and the worker to an interview.
• The page asks for no savings balance, deposit or property. To cover an adult child on a dependant visa you must show about US$300 a month more for each one; to be safe, have more than US$300 a month more for each.

Sources: Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH). Checked 17 October 2026.

• Alongside a recent colour photo (JPG, up to 1 MB, 5 x 5 cm, white background) and a passport valid for at least six months, you need a criminal record certificate from your country of origin or any country you lived in during the last five years, translated and apostilled or legalised. It counts as valid for 180 days from issue to your last entry, and a federal certificate counts if it covers national records. Only people aged 18 or over need one.
• The special documents are the personnel action or the work contract issued by the public body or private employer, and the certificate that the contract is registered with the labour ministry.
• Your employer must supply a certificate that it has no pending obligations with the tax authority (SRI), the social security institute (IESS) and the company regulator (Superintendencia de Compañías).

Sources: Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH). Checked 17 October 2026.

• There are three ways to file: online through the Ministry's e-VISAS platform, in person at a zonal office in Ecuador, or through the nearest Ecuadorian consulate abroad, where you hand in the documents and pay the fee.
• Online, you pay the first fee right after submitting the request. That payment covers reviewing the documents and is not refundable, so the category must be chosen correctly. If the request is incomplete you are notified and have 10 working days to fix it, and the Ministry may ask for an interview in person or online.
• Consular offices abroad are open Monday to Friday, 08:30 to 14:00, and the zonal offices in Ecuador 08:30 to 17:00, with bank payments of the fee accepted until 16:15 in Ecuador. The page gives no processing time, so how long a decision takes is unknown.

Sources: Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH). Checked 17 October 2026.

• The government fee is US$50 when you submit the application and US$270 when the visa is granted, with no VAT. The consular fee schedule lists US$270 for the lucrative temporary categories.
• People aged 65 or over get a 50% reduction, and people with a disability of 30% or more are exempt. A spouse or child who joins you on a dependant (amparo) visa pays US$50 to apply and US$200 when it is granted.

Sources: Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH). Checked 17 October 2026.

• The work visa is valid for two years. The Law says temporary residence lasts up to two years and can be renewed on multiple occasions.
• To renew, the regulation asks for a certificate that you are affiliated to the social security system, which shows the date your employer registered you. The page lists no other renewal documents.
• If you change job or employer in a way that removes the basis of your visa, the regulation gives you 30 days to apply for a new temporary visa for the new activity, so that your continuous residence is not broken.

Sources: Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH). Checked 17 October 2026.

• After 21 continuous months of temporary residence you can apply for permanent residence, which has no end date, before the work visa ends. You may not be away from Ecuador for more than 90 days in total across the temporary visa.
• When you apply, the Ministry checks that you still hold the basis on which the visa was granted, which for this route is the job. The permanent visa costs US$50 to apply and US$225 when granted, and asks for an Ecuadorian criminal record certificate and proof of one basic salary a month over the last three months (about US$500 in 2026; to be safe, show more than US$500 a month).
• Once you hold permanent residence you may spend no more than 180 days a year abroad in the first two years, and two continuous years away later ends it. The Law allows a request for naturalisation after three years of regular domicile with permanent residence.

Sources: Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH). Checked 17 October 2026.

• Your days decide your Ecuadorian tax residence: 183 days or more in a tax year, or in any 12 months across two tax years unless you prove tax residence elsewhere. Once you are resident, your Ecuadorian salary and any income from abroad are both taxed, and tax paid abroad earns a credit up to the Ecuadorian tax.
• Income from work done in Ecuador is Ecuadorian-source income, which is how a salary from your Ecuadorian employer is treated. The 2026 income tax table for individuals runs, in US dollars a year, from 0% up to 12,208 through 5% to 15,549 and 10% to 20,188 to 37% above 109,956.

Sources: Servicio de Rentas Internas (SRI). Checked 15 October 2026.

• Digital nomad visa in Ecuador
• Retirement visa in Ecuador
• Family visa in Ecuador
• Investor visa in Ecuador

• Visas in Ecuador
• Ecuador

1. List of countries whose nationals need a visa to enter Ecuador, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH), Ecuador. Checked 15 October 2026. Read on 15 October 2026. The page carries a 2020 date in its address but lists China, Chad and other countries added since, so it has been updated; it shows no date of its own. Australia is not on the list.
2. Identity History Summary Checks (FBI criminal record check), Federal Bureau of Investigation; Internet Archive copy. Checked 15 October 2026. Internet Archive capture of 6 October 2026, read on 15 October 2026. Gives the US$18 fee and says the FBI does not forward requests to the State Department for the apostille, so the apostille is a separate step.
3. US citizens and residents abroad: filing requirements, Internal Revenue Service. Checked 15 October 2026.
4. Figuring the foreign earned income exclusion, Internal Revenue Service. Checked 15 October 2026. Page reviewed 14 March 2026; tax year 2026 figure.
5. Foreign earned income exclusion: physical presence test, Internal Revenue Service. Checked 15 October 2026.
6. Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR), Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). Checked 15 October 2026.
7. US international Social Security agreements, US Social Security Administration; Internet Archive copy. Checked 15 October 2026. Internet Archive capture of 4 October 2026, read on 15 October 2026. Ecuador is not on the list of agreements in force.
8. United States income tax treaties, A to Z, Internal Revenue Service. Checked 15 October 2026. Read on 15 October 2026; Ecuador is not listed.
9. Criminal record checks: where to go, Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). Checked 15 October 2026. Date modified 6 August 2024. Certified criminal record check with fingerprints, through a local police service or an RCMP-accredited fingerprinting company.
10. Authentication of documents: frequently asked questions, Global Affairs Canada. Checked 15 October 2026. States that the Apostille Convention entered into force in Canada on 11 January 2024.
11. Authentication of documents: processing time, Global Affairs Canada. Checked 15 October 2026. Read on 15 October 2026: requests received about 25 business days ago, plus 5 to 10 business days of mailing; no expedited service.
12. Republic of Ecuador: Agreement on Social Security, Government of Canada. Checked 15 October 2026. Page details 6 October 2026: the agreement was signed on 24 June 2024 in Quito and will enter into force once both countries have completed their legal procedures.
13. Tax treaties in force, Department of Finance Canada. Checked 15 October 2026. Date modified 18 December 2024; Ecuador is listed (convention signed 28 June 2001).
14. Apply for a National Police Certificate, Australian Federal Police (AFP). Checked 15 October 2026. No date shown; read on 15 October 2026. A$57 online (a digital certificate, with a hard copy on request) or A$114 with fingerprints, which must be posted and take 15 to 30 business days. The certificate lists disclosable court outcomes from all Australian police services, subject to spent-conviction laws.
15. Notarial services and fees (fee schedule from 1 January 2026), Australian Government, DFAT (Smartraveller), Internet Archive copy. Checked 15 October 2026. Internet Archive capture of 7 October 2026, read on 15 October 2026 (the page was updated on 30 September 2026): apostille A$105 per document; payment in Australia by card only.
16. International social security agreements, Australian Government, Department of Social Services, Internet Archive copy. Checked 15 October 2026. Internet Archive capture of 9 September 2026, read on 15 October 2026. Lists agreements with 32 countries (Chile is the only one in South America) and five under negotiation; Ecuador is not listed.
17. Income tax treaties in force, Australian Treasury. Checked 15 October 2026. Table last updated 24 March 2026, read on 15 October 2026; Ecuador is not listed.
18. Embassy of Ecuador in Australia (Canberra) and its consular section, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH), Ecuador. Checked 15 October 2026. Read on 15 October 2026; undated. Gives the embassy and the consular section at 6 Pindari Crescent, O’Malley ACT, with a telephone number. It does not list visa requirements for Australians; the residence visa is filed online (V1).
19. Get your own criminal record, Ministry of Justice (New Zealand). Checked 15 October 2026. Page last updated 18 December 2025, read on 15 October 2026. It is free to request a copy of your own record; the Ministry aims to answer within 20 working days (around 90% in under a week). If another country asks for it to be authenticated or apostilled, send the record to the Department of Internal Affairs. It does not say whether Ecuador accepts the record as issued.
20. Use your NZ documents overseas: apostille and authentication, Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), on govt.nz. Checked 15 October 2026. Page last updated 15 September 2026, read on 15 October 2026. Apostille NZ$37 a certificate (paper or electronic); processed within 15 working days; urgent service within 5 working days for NZ$120 more, not available if the document needs translating; courier extra (NZ$62 to the rest of the world). Own translations must be notarised by a New Zealand notary public, not a justice of the peace or solicitor. The page does not say whether Ecuador accepts an electronic apostille.
21. Social security agreements, Work and Income (Ministry of Social Development, New Zealand). Checked 15 October 2026. Updated 25 August 2026, read on 15 October 2026. Eleven agreements listed (Australia, Canada, Denmark, Ireland, Jersey, Guernsey, Greece, Malta, the Netherlands, South Korea, the United Kingdom); Ecuador is not one of them.
22. Tax treaties: double tax agreements and tax information exchange agreements, Inland Revenue (New Zealand), Tax Policy. Checked 15 October 2026. Read on 15 October 2026; the page shows no update date. 41 double tax agreements in force, plus agreements signed and under negotiation; Ecuador is in none of the lists, nor among the tax information exchange agreements.
23. Temporary residence for work under an employment relationship (relación de dependencia): requirements and fees, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH), on the government procedures portal gob.ec; Internet Archive copy. Checked 17 October 2026. Internet Archive capture, opened 17 October 2026; gob.ec does not connect from our network, so it was not compared with the live page. The page shows a last update of 31 December 2024. Capture of 28 January 2026. Employment contract or personnel action, contract registration, employer certificate of no pending obligations; US$50 plus US$270; valid 2 years; filing in person or online.
24. Regulation to the Organic Law of Human Mobility (Executive Decree 354, Official Register 3rd Supplement 18, 10 March 2022): articles 61 to 67, 79, 83 to 87, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH), copy of the Official Register text. Checked 17 October 2026. Opened on 17 October 2026; the copy dates from 2022 and may not include later changes. Art. 61: work under an employment relationship; art. 63: rentista and art. 64: remote work (three salaries a month, US$1,446 in 2026, or 36 a year, US$17,352); art. 65: retiree (three salaries); art. 66: investor (100 salaries, US$48,200); art. 79: dependants; arts. 83 to 87: permanent residence.
25. Organic Law of Human Mobility, consolidated text to 14 May 2021: articles 60, 63 to 65, 71 and 73, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH), copy of the Official Register text. Checked 17 October 2026. Opened on 17 October 2026. It predates the October 2025 reform. Art. 60: temporary residence up to two years, renewable on multiple occasions, and its categories; art. 63: permanent residence; art. 65: absences; art. 71 and 73: naturalisation.
26. Temporary residence for professionals, technicians, technologists and craftspeople: requirements and fees, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH), on the government procedures portal gob.ec; Internet Archive copy. Checked 17 October 2026. Internet Archive capture, opened 17 October 2026; gob.ec does not connect from our network, so it was not compared with the live page. Capture of 28 January 2026. Apostilled or legalised degree plus its registration with the national authority; US$50 plus US$270; valid 2 years.
27. Organic Reform Law to the Organic Law of Human Mobility (Official Register 7th Supplement 151, 24 October 2025): articles 15, 17, 21 and 22, Asamblea Nacional / Registro Oficial. Checked 17 October 2026. Opened on 17 October 2026 (an image-only PDF, read with text recognition). Art. 15: tourist stay up to 90 days, extendable once by up to 90; art. 17: national criminal record certificate valid 180 days and a migratory record certificate; art. 21: lawful means of living; art. 22: naturalisation by marriage now also asks for lawful means of living in Ecuador.
28. Ministerial Agreement 70 of 28 June 2024 on lawful means of living for visa applications: articles 16 to 24, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH). Checked 17 October 2026. Opened on 17 October 2026 (a scanned PDF, read with text recognition). Article 19 accepts, for the temporary residence categories and for dependants, a registered employment contract paying at least one unified basic salary (US$482 in 2026), bank statements showing income of at least one salary, or pension and rent documents; article 22 asks for one salary a month over the last three months for permanent residence after 21 months; article 24 on foreign electronic-signed statements.
29. Temporary residence as a dependant (amparo), all categories: requirements and fees, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH), on the government procedures portal gob.ec; Internet Archive copy. Checked 17 October 2026. Internet Archive capture, opened 17 October 2026; gob.ec does not connect from our network, so it was not compared with the live page. The page shows a last update of 31 December 2024. Capture of 28 January 2026. For children, spouse or registered partner of a temporary resident; US$50 plus US$200; valid for as long as the holder's visa has left; US$250 a month more for each adult child covered.
30. Permanent residence after more than 21 months of temporary residence: requirements and fees, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (MREMH), on the government procedures portal gob.ec; Internet Archive copy. Checked 17 October 2026. Internet Archive capture, opened 17 October 2026; gob.ec does not connect from our network, so it was not compared with the live page. The page shows a last update of 31 December 2024. Capture of 28 January 2026. Ecuadorian criminal record certificate, proof of 21 continuous months, application before the temporary visa ends; US$50 plus US$225; no end date.
31. Law of the Internal Tax Regime (LRTI), codification with the latest reform of 1 April 2026: articles 2, 4.1, the temporary tax residence article, 8 and 49, Servicio de Rentas Internas (SRI), Ecuador tax authority. Checked 15 October 2026. Read on 15 October 2026. Article 2: income earned abroad by individuals domiciled in Ecuador is income. Article 4.1: residence tests. The article added by Law 461 of 20 December 2023: five-year temporary tax residence, taxed only on Ecuadorian-source income, for people never previously resident who invest at least US$150,000 or prove at least US$2,500 a month of non-Ecuadorian-source income and join social security, with the conditions met between day 1 and day 120 after entering. Article 8: income from work done in Ecuador is Ecuadorian-source. Article 49: credit for tax paid abroad.
32. Income tax tables for individuals, 2026 (Resolution NAC-DGERCGC25-00000043), Servicio de Rentas Internas (SRI), Ecuador tax authority. Checked 15 October 2026. Read on 15 October 2026. 2026 table in US dollars: 0% up to 12,208; 5% to 15,549; 10% to 20,188; 12% to 26,700; 15% to 35,136; 20% to 46,575; 25% to 62,005; 30% to 82,679; 35% to 109,956; 37% above.