Q's (visa, marriage, getting children, insurance, land price, papers)

Dear all,

Me and my partner are thinking of moving to South America. We will visit Chile coming December and January. But we have a list of questions at this point.

About us: we are 28 & 31, from the Netherlands, not married, not rich, 1 of us has Master degree in Psychology. We want to leave Europe because we want to live somewhere more quiet and with more space. Ideally we would like to buy a piece of land (min 5 hectares) and build a simple house. We might want to make a hostel/camping/b'n'b at this location. We would like to start a family soon too. We are thinking of the lake District as a good place to live (climate-wise and nature wise).

Here are our questions:


Voor forums:

1.  What visa's are most applicable for us as a couple that would like to buy a house and some land?
2. What are the cost for the particular visa's that might apply to me for arranging temporary & permanent residency? We are not necessarily looking for a work visa, but mostly a resident visum.
3. What are the standard and extra documents that are required for each relevant visa?
4. After 1 year on a temporary visa, is it possible for me to apply for permanent residency straight away, or do we first have to do 2 years of temporary visa? 
5. How long does the application process usually take until we are granted a temporary or permanent visa? We have heard that the offices in Santiago city are very busy. Any recommendations for less busy immigration offices (between Santiago and the Lake District) ?
6. Concerning the work visum. If we get a work visum, are we obliged to work officially for a certain period? What kind of jobs would be good enough to earn a work-visa? I have several professional projects in mind, like to set up a camping ground, hostel, but also I can co-manage with my friend to do modelling & massage work. Do these jobs count as work visa compatible? What kind of taxes apply to people with our background, possible visa's choices and residency tax-requirements? Would the process to acquire the visa's go more smoothly if I had a company to my name? What extra tips can you give me that would be ways to make the visa process go more smoothly in general?
7. To gain a dependent work visa (if this exists for this country), do we have to be married or is it possible to not be married and get registered as a couple looking for a dependent visa? If yes, are there any types of proof & documents needed from us to prove I am in a relationship with this person? If no and we need to be married to acquire, can we get married in the county or do we need a marriage document from our country of origin? 
8. Health insurance, how do we acquire this? What are the requirements for us as possible residents to be able to gain health insurance based on the visa choices? How expensive is health insurance for us in your country? What insurance agencies does your office recommend? Is there a possibility to have a pregnancy insurance at home and/or at the hospital under the visa conditions? 
9. At the moment of birth of a new child and in the period soon after, is it required for us to create a birth certificate by law? How expensive is this and what kind of nationality will the child get? Is there something like an insurance arrangement for the new mother, to get a child support fee from the government?
10. Under what conditions of visa, can we get (in time) a drivers licence, car, house and/or legally buy land? For example: can we already buy land/house when we are on a temporary visum?
11. After what period of time would we need to have a drivers licence of the country? What are the cost to acquire this license? What type of vehicles can we drive without a license? In what languages are licenses taught?
12. What is the list of points and/or motivational topics, that are required to be mentioned in our letter of (immigration) motivation? How long does this letter need to be? Would general information be relevant & sufficient like: A loving, reasonable intelligent, calm and caring couple has the wish to live quietly in nature. We are looking to buy a house that can support visitors in the form of a hostel or bed & breakfast. We want to live self-sufficiently.
13.  Any tips for legal translators or lawyers to help with the paperwork process? (in the Lake District or Santiago)
14.  What is the best way to find property in Chile, or the Lake District specifically? Any recommendations for real estate agents? Our ideal price would be between 10.000 and 40.000 euros for a few hectares. Can anyone give an indiciations for property prices?
15.  Are there government-funded programs to support the wildlife/nature? For example: growing a specific plant or animal with financial support from the government.
16.  What is the rules/culture concerning hunting and fishing?

Thank you in advance,

Fleur

Hi,

We have just moved to Chile over the last year. My wife and kids are down in Pucon. I am still back and forth from the US. I can answer a bunch of your questions and give you a couple of recommendations as well.

You don't even need a visa to buy a house and land in Chile. Foreigners can buy without anything. But you will need someone you trust and that knows the system to help you.
A great real estate agent that has been selling down in Chile and in the US for 30 years is Graeme Shaw. [email protected]
He knows the lake region very well and how things work down there. He also will fill you in on pitfalls and the bad things about doing business and real estate in Chile.

We love it down in the lakes region. Great quality of life. Clean water. Great food. Lots to do.

There is a hostel in Pucon that is up for rent in December if you are interested. 9 bedrooms. I have not seen it personally yet, but plan to when I go back down this month.

You get a 90 day visa for free when you go to Chile. Some people just drive across into Argentina every 90 days, camp out, then come back the next day to renew it for another 90 days. I know people that have done that many, many times. Even years.

You can also ask my Chilean attorney about the visa questions. He has helped us get permanent visas pretty easily and could be a big asset to you if you buy property as well. Jaime Barrientos    [email protected]
It takes a few months to get visas, but Jaime can work you through the system. He knows how to expedite things if you need.

We use our US drivers licenses. You could take the Chilean drivers license test, but it is a long written test in spanish.

You definitely need someone trustworthy to help you buy land or you will get ripped off. Also, a friend of mine Scott just bought 80 acres east of Pucon and is selling off about 5 pieces of it if you wanted to talk to him. His contact info is Scott Viers. [email protected]

You can also message my wife in Chile if you have any more questions. She knows a lot more than me since her and the boys have been down there since November. Monica  [email protected]


cheers,
Eric