Startup visa in Chile

Legal grounds

The Start-Up Chile program is aimed at foreign entrepreneurs who want to open and grow innovative companies in Chile.

Key conditions

• An innovative idea. The project has to be new, unique and with high growth potential.
• A place in the accelerator. You need to be accepted into the Start-Up Chile acceleration program.
• Financial means. Proof of funds to live on and to grow the business.
• Company registration. The business is registered in Chile once you are approved.
• Meeting the immigration requirements, including a police clearance certificate.

How the accelerator works in 2026

Chile's public accelerator operates under the production development agency, one of the country's main business support institutions. Intakes usually run twice a year and accept technology startups of any country and sector with a scalable product that can serve Chile and Latin America. Funding is equity-free co-financing: founders give up no share capital.

The rate is about 989 Chilean pesos per US dollar. Besides money, participants get coworking space, mentors and introductions to large companies and investors.

Residence for founders

The accelerator does not issue visas itself, but participants get support with temporary residence through the National Migration Service. Under the 2021 migration law temporary residence is granted for up to 2 years. After 24 months of lawful temporary residence you can apply for permanent residence, and after 5 years for citizenship by naturalisation. Russian citizens enter Chile visa-free for up to 90 days, enough to go through selection and start the paperwork.

What it takes to get selected

• A technology product that scales beyond one country.
• Team - at least one founder ready to relocate to Chile for the programme and work there full time.
• Stage - from a validated idea for the early programme to revenue and a funding round for growth.
• Link to Chile - a plan for working with the local market and ecosystem.
• Application in English or Spanish - product, market, metrics, team and a video.

What participation costs

• Application - free.
• Co-financing - founders cover part of project costs themselves, under each intake's rules.
• Company registration in Chile - on the state one-day registration portal, online and free; a tax number is needed.
• Residence - the fee depends on nationality, plus certificates, apostille and Spanish translations.
• Living in Santiago - rent and health insurance during the programme at your own cost.
• Our support - quoted after a consultation, depending on whether you need help with the application, company and residence.

Steps and timeline

1. Preparing the application - 2-4 weeks: product, market, metrics, team, video.
2. Selection - usually 2-3 months from intake close to results, including interviews.
3. Agreement with the agency and company registration in Chile.
4. Temporary residence - online filing with the National Migration Service with the programme's letter.
5. Relocation and programme - 4-8 months of acceleration in Santiago.
6. After the programme - extending temporary residence or moving to permanent after 24 months.

Documents

• Passport and photo.
• Police clearance from the country of citizenship and residence, apostilled and translated into Spanish.
• Acceptance letter and the agreement with the agency.
• Company documents and a Chilean tax number.
• Marriage and children's birth certificates for the family, apostilled and translated.

Requirements and how to get approved

• Not a technology business - services without a scalable product do not get selected.
• No founder willing to relocate - remote participation does not count.
• Weak metrics for the chosen programme - a startup with no customers will not get into growth.
• Incomplete residence documents - a clearance without apostille or translation.
• Breaking co-financing rules - programme money may be spent only on agreed items with reports.

Taxes in Chile

• Corporate tax - 27% under the general regime, 25% for small and medium businesses.
• Income tax - on a scale up to 40%.
• VAT - 19%.
• Relief for new residents - a foreigner who becomes resident pays tax only on Chilean-source income for the first 3 years, extendable.

Details on the Chile taxes page.

Company in Chile: how to set up

Participation requires a Chilean company. Most often it is a simplified joint-stock company: one founder, flexible articles, no minimum capital. It is formed on the state company registration portal in one day, online and free, with an electronic signature. Right after registration the company gets a tax number from Chile's tax service and starts issuing electronic invoices; paper invoices are barely used in Chile.

• A foreign founder gets a personal tax number, if not yet resident, through a representative in Chile.
• Registered address - needed for registration and the tax service; a coworking address works during the programme.
• Accountant - monthly VAT returns and an annual profit return, so an accountant is hired from the first month.

Details: company registration in Chile.

ID card and bank account

Once temporary residence is approved, a foreigner receives a foreigner identity card from the Civil Registry Service. It makes opening a bank account, getting a phone plan and renting much easier. Before the card, banks often open only a limited account, so the paperwork starts right after acceptance into the programme.

Life in Santiago

• Where the programme runs - Santiago, with the coworking space, mentors and events.
• Language - Spanish in daily life and government offices; the business and startup community largely speaks English.
• Healthcare - public and private insurance systems; foreigners usually take private insurance for the programme.
• Region - Chile has free trade agreements with most major economies, and Santiago is a convenient base for Peru, Colombia, Mexico and Argentina.
• Bank - personal account in Chile and business account.

How applications are assessed

• Team - founders' experience, roles, readiness to work in Chile full time.
• Product - technological core, what is already built, how it differs from existing solutions.
• Market - size, first customers or pilots, plan for Latin America.
• Metrics - for launch and growth: revenue, growth, retention, capital raised.
• Impact on Chile - how the startup will work with the local ecosystem, hire and share experience.

Applications are stronger when the numbers are specific and the video briefly shows the product and team.

What changes in 2026

• The 2026 intake closed on 25 May; the next one usually opens in the second half of the year, with dates published by the development agency.
• Funding for the three programmes - 15, 30 and 75 million Chilean pesos - is unchanged.
• The programme remains open to startups of any country and sector with a scalable technology product.

The founder's family

A spouse and minor children obtain temporary residence as the founder's family and receive foreigner identity cards. Children can attend Chilean schools, private or public; Santiago has international schools teaching in English. Marriage and birth certificates must be apostilled and translated into Spanish.

Alternatives to compare

• Japan startup visa - up to 2 years to prepare, but capital of 30 million Japanese yen afterwards.
• Chilean citizenship - naturalisation after 5 years of lawful residence.
• Company registration in Chile - without the accelerator.

How we work

1. We assess which of the three programmes fits the startup and what amount is realistic.
2. We help build the application: product, metrics, team, video.
3. We register the Chilean company and obtain the tax number.
4. We prepare temporary residence documents for the founder and family.
5. After the programme we handle the move to permanent residence.

We fix our fee in writing after a consultation.

Benefits of the startup visa in Chile

How to get the startup visa in Chile: step by step

FAQ