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Visas & Embassies







Visas are not needed for visits to Ecuador for up to 90 days.  For longer trips, apply to your nearest Ecuadorian Embassy or Consulate.

Visas, Embassies and Consulates

Visa regulations in Ecuador can change without notice, so it is advisable to check the situation with your nearest embassy or consulate and ask them to put the information in writing.  Some of the visa requirements, such as a police report, may take up to six weeks or so to obtain.  Note that the Ecuador visa and consulate information on this page is given in good faith based on personal experience and does not replace advice from the consulate.

Visas are not required for tourists of most nationalities staying in Ecuador up to 90 days (as of 20 June 2008), but it is best to check the latest situation directly.  Whilst it used to be possible to extend your time for a further 90 days, this does not now seem to be allowed.  Note that guidebooks written before June 2008 will now be out of date in terms of information about visas for Ecuador.  Since September 2010, nationals of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan and Somalia require a visa to travel to Ecuador, and Chinese citizens should apparently contact their embassy before travelling.

For 91-180 days, i.e. three to six months in Ecuador, a 12-IX (commerce) visa from your local Ecuadorian consulate might be your best bet - ask them.  It is likely to cost around $230.  

For a stay of more than 180 days, you will probably need the cooperation of an organisation in Ecuador, who will need to guarantee to cover any debts you run up or any costs involved in your deportation if necessary.  Needless to say, most will not undertake this responsibility lightly.

For the latest information, see the government´s Ecuador visa information (in Spanish) and then contact your local Ecuador Embassy or Consulate, who may have additional requirements to those listed by the government site.  

The Embassy of Ecuador in the UK is at 3 Hans Crescent, London SW1X 0LS, round the back of Harrods.  Telephone 0207 7584 1367.  The Consulate of Ecuador in London is completely separate from the embassy and is at 1st Floor, Uganda House, 58-59 Trafalgar Square, London WC2N 5DX.  Don't just drop in, they prefer you to phone or make an appointment to visit.   Telephone 0207 451 0040 between 3-5pm weekdays - they do not answer the phone outside of these times.

For visas, it is usually the Consulate that you need and the current visa requirements are on their website.  For specific questions, you can telephone.  To obtain a visa, you need to phone to make an appointment, which they will not usually arrange for more than a week after your phonecall or more than a couple of weeks before you travel.  Visa appointments seem to be in the mornings and passports can often be collected at 5p.m. the same day.

The consulate usually want to see your flight ticket or booking in order to grant the visa.  If you are not sure if you meet the visa requirements (for example, whether your income will be considered sufficient for a tourist visa), it may be best to phone beforehand to ask, thus avoiding a traumatic day of phoning Ecuador asking for additional documentation or financial guarantees at the last minute.  

The staff at the Ecuadorian Consulate in London were kind, helpful and proactive about suggesting alternative visa options or acceptable evidence, but very strict about documentation.  In particular, of the two types of "permission to operate" that community enterprises can legally operate under, only the "certificado ministerial" was acceptable to the Consulate for a volunteer visa.  The commonly used "escritura publica" for an "associación de cuentas en participación" was rejected.  The certificado ministerial can take weeks to obtain, so your sponsoring organisation needs to have this before you apply for your visa.

Other Ecuadorian Embassies & Consulates around the world, as listed by the government of Ecuador. 

Visas usually need to be registered with the Extranjería within a month of your arrival in Ecuador.  Allow sufficient flexibility in your itinerary as this might take a few days.  The Extranjeria in Quito is currently (late August 2011) at 6 de Diciembre N26-05, between Colón and La Niña, and is open from 8a.m. to 4.45p.m., Monday to Friday.  You have to pay a fee of $10, ask at the Extranjeria for the bank account number and which bank to pay at.   Take the receipt, copies of the relevant pages of your passport and the original "certificado de visación" given to you by the Consulate, plus a folder and clip (carpeta con bincha) and envelope, to the Extranjeria along with your passport.  You will be told when to collect your passport, which might take up to three or four days.  

You will then be instructed to obtain a "censo", a type of ID card, at Migración, diagonally opposite El Jardin Mall, on Amazonas y República.  Their opening hours are a little random, but they are pretty helpful and efficient once they get going and you should be all done in half an hour or so.  You need copies of your passport including the page with the new stamp on it, 2 passport photos, a large envelope and evidence of your address.  The censo is obligatory but only costs $4 (as at October 2009).   It might get you local rate rather than tourist prices on flights to the Galapagos Islands and entry to the National Park there, amongst other destinations.  Take care of your censo, as losing it will get you into trouble requiring the help of a lawyer to sort out. 

If you need a new or different type of visa once you are in Ecuador, you need to go to the Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Comercio e Integración at 10 de Agosto y Carrión in Quito.  Take a book and be prepared to spend the best part of several days getting things sorted out, a month before your existing visa expires.  For visas, you usually need to arrive between 7 and 8am in order get a place in the line to then be allocated a number which then permits you to wait much of the morning to hand in your application (or be told that something is missing from it).  

If you are asked for a police records check, take your passport and $5 to the office at Amazonas y Roca - the process is quick and efficient and the staff are helpful.