I got a friend, a young American guy in his early thirties who goes
by the name Bart Simpson.
He’s rich, specifically, a “dot com” millionaire.
And his hobby in life now is collecting passports, he has six already to be exact.
A South American one is his next target as it would open up the whole continent for him.
He’s done his homework, and according to him, Ecuador is the EASIEST to get.
So that’s why he’s here.
I was helping him out, and here is the exact process you need to follow to get your second Ecuadorian passport.
1. After at least 2 and a half years of residency (technically they say 3 years but my contact who works in the Quito office told me you can really apply after 2 and a half years from the day you get your Ecuador cedula or ID card) you can apply for the dual citizenship which gets you an Ecuadorian Passport. You can not be out of the country during those first 2 and a half years a total of more than 90 days, but you can apply for citizenship anyway even if you pass this limit but you’ll have to submit a letter stating why you passed the limit and hope they still sign off on it.
2. Gather the requirements.
– Birth certificate, apostilled and translated to Spanish.
– Passport color copy of the passport where you have the residency visa stamp. Your passport must have at least 6 months of validity.
-Color copy of Ecuadorian Cedula(ID card).
– Get document from civil registry (registro civil) that states first date of cedula (tarjeta indice de filiacion que dice la primera fecha de cedulacion)
– Certificate of compliance (Certificado de cumplimiento de obligaciones) from the SRI (IRS of Ecuador) stating you are up-to-date on any taxes.
– Certificate of compliance (Certificado de cumplimiento de obligaciones) from your local Municipality stating you are up-to-date on any taxes.
– Certificate of compliance (Certificado de cumplimiento de obligaciones) from the IESS social security system of Ecuador stating you are up-to-date on any payments.
– Police record from all the countries (including Ecuador) where you’ve lived the last 5 years. They are currently accepting only federal level checks from countries with a federal government, for Americans, that means an FBI check, apostilled.
– Migratory movement card, obtained in Ecuadorfrom immigration for $4. (Movimiento Migratorio)
– 4 color passport sized photos.
– Proof of Ecuador solvency: Like a bank certificate, bank statements last three months, for business owners the monthly sales tax declarations, copies of the title (escritura) of any property or businesses you own in Ecuador or a copy of your rental contract properly inscribed in the rental agency (Juzgado de Inquilinato).
3. In person, they require you submit your documentation in Quito in the Immigration office (Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores) on 10 de agosto. You can also submit in Guayaquil.
4. You’ll be called in within a few months to take a written exam in Spanish on basic Ecuadorian history. it is not pass/fail, it is just to put in your file, and they would like to see some effort. It is not verbal in anyway but they reserve the right to do some verbal questions if they wish (but they usually don’t according to my contact).
5. Upon acceptance of application you must publish an ad in local paper announcing your new citizenship.
6. You will then be called in with all the others that day accepted into Ecuadorian citizenship to sing the national hymn (together, not solo) and confirm your new citizenship. You will need to bring three Ecuadorian witnesses. You can then go get your Ecuadorian passport.
Duration: about 6 months.
Cost: $200 application fee, $500 acceptance fee, approx $403 publication fee, $285 Civil Registry fee. All fees are one-time-only, but Ecuador citizenship is for life unless you renounce it. These costs are the cheapest you can do it for without using an attorney.
Total: Appox $1300.
And to prep for the test, simplifying it and giving you just what you need-to-know, you’d love my weekly newsletter, revealing everything you need to know BEFORE you invest in Ecuador. Unsubscribe at any time: