Ecuador updates visa requirements for Venezuelans living in or entering the country

Jul 28, 2019 | 28 comments

President Lenin Moreno on Friday signed a decree requiring Venezuelan citizens, who until now could cross the border with a passport or other form of identification, to have a visa to enter the country.

Venezuelans at the Ecuadorian border. (El Comercio)

The measure “will also normalize the status of Venezuelan nationals that are already in the country and that have not broken the law, due to a humanitarian visa exception that offered them temporary residence,” Ecuador’s presidency said in a statement.

The new requirement was announced as part of a security plan for migrants, which includes tighter regulations like those adopted by Chile and Peru in recent months.
Venezuela’s economic collapse under President Nicolas Maduro has led to the largest migratory crisis in recent Latin American history. The United Nations estimates nearly four million people have fled shortages of basic foods and medicines, forcing neighboring countries to adapt to an unprecedented surge in immigration.

Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Chile have borne the brunt of the mass exodus.

Ecuador also plans to conduct a non-obligatory census of Venezuelans living within its territory to help them access education, health and welfare benefits.

“The idea is formality, regularization,” Interior Minister Maria Romo said in a press conference on Friday.

Associations of Venezuelan migrants in Ecuador applauded the regularization plans, saying it would help combat labor exploitation and improve migrants’ living conditions, but criticized the visa requirement.

“We are concerned about the measure requiring a visa for entrance, it could violate certain rights,” said Eduardo Febres Cordero, president of the Foundation of Venezuelans Abroad.

The government will recognize passports and other forms of identification up to five years after their expiration when granting visas for Venezuelans, as renewing government documents has become nearly impossible in the crisis-stricken country. But the new measures could complicate travel for migrants who plan to traverse Ecuador to other countries in South America.

Ecuador has received some 350,000 Venezuelans and estimates the number could hit half a million by the end of the year. The migrants have concentrated in the country’s largest cities, with Quito, Guayaquil, Cuenca, Santo Domingo and Machala being favorite destinations.

CuencaHighLife

Dani News

Google ad

Amazon Eco lodge News

Property 3br News

Fund Grace News

Google ad

Hogar Esperanza News

The Cuenca Dispatch

Week of March 24

“They are pressuring me to resign so they can remove me from office,” denounced Verónica Abad, Vice President of the Republic.

Read more

Ecuador Navigates Economic Challenges with IMF Agreement Looming.

Read more

“Since when does thinking differently mean being a traitor?” Pierina Correa questions in reference to the Tourism Law.

Read more