Residence routes to Chile: retired, living on income, work or family

You move to Chile with a residencia temporal, a temporary residence permit that you apply for online, from abroad, with the Servicio Nacional de Migraciones (SERMIG). Retirees and people living on income have their own subcategory, jubilados y rentistas. What stands out: SERMIG gives no fixed amount. According to the subcategory, your pension must be enough for "at least your basic needs", measured against the indicators of the Chilean Ministry of Social Development.

The rules are in Ley 21.325, the migration law of 2021. A temporary residence permit is valid for two years at most and can be extended by two years at a time. After 24 months you can, as a rule, apply for the residencia definitiva, permanent residence.

Route	Who	Fees for Dutch citizens	Valid
Permanencia transitoria	tourist, no visa needed	extension US$ 100	90 days, once +90
Residencia temporal, jubilados y rentistas	pension or steady income from property or investments	US$ 192	up to 2 years, renewable
Residencia temporal, actividades remuneradas	salaried work or work on assignment	US$ 321	up to 2 years, renewable
Residencia temporal as dependiente	partner, and children under 18 (or under 24 and studying)	US$ 15; children nothing	as long as the main applicant
Residencia definitiva	after 24 months of temporary residence	142,726 pesos	unlimited

The dollar amounts are in the table per nationality that SERMIG cites on its fees page (Resolución Exenta 129194); you pay them in pesos. That resolution dates from 2020 and still uses the names from the old law. The page itself was updated on 1 October 2026.

Can you first go and look as a tourist?

Yes. With a Dutch passport you need no visa for a stay of 90 days or less, NederlandWereldwijd writes. You then get a permanencia transitoria: 90 days at most, extendable once by 90 days. That extension costs US$ 100.

As a tourist you cannot apply for temporary residence inside Chile. SERMIG says it plainly: the application is made from abroad, apart from a few exceptions, such as family ties with a Chilean. If you go and look first, plan a trip back before you submit the application.

What does the route for retirees ask?

You upload to SERMIG's digital portal:

• a passport that, for an application from abroad, is still valid for at least a year;
• a criminal record certificate from your country of origin or from every country where you lived in the last five years, if you are 18 or older, no older than 60 days;
• a pension statement showing the amount and duration, with an apostille;
• proof of the latest pension payment, also with an apostille.

Someone living on income shows instead the ownership of the property or the investments, and the income from them. For rented property the lease goes with it. For assets in Chile itself no foreign proof of ownership is needed; see buying a house in Chile.

Documents in a language other than Spanish or English need an official translation. A document from a private institution, such as your pension fund, must be uploaded within 30 days of issue, a government document within 60 days. How the AOW and your pension are taxed in Chile is in AOW, pension and tax.