A 47,200 USD investment threshold, three qualifying asset routes including bank deposits and real estate, a 2 year temporary residence, and a 21 month track to permanent residence. The filing manual for the inbound investor moving to Ecuador in 2026.
The Ecuadorian Visa 9 II is the dedicated investor residence permit for foreign nationals placing capital in Ecuadorian assets. The route runs under the Organic Law on Human Mobility (Ley Orgánica de Movilidad Humana, LOMH) of 2017, with the operational rules codified by Ministerial Agreement 000031 of 2017 and refined by Ministerial Agreement 0149 of 2024. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility (Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana, MREMH) is the operational authority, with the Vice Ministry of Human Mobility processing the inbound filings through the consular network and the in country offices in Quito and Guayaquil.
The 2025 numbers run as follows. MREMH issued 1,820 Visa 9 II permits across calendar year 2025, with cumulative grants reaching 11,400 since the 2017 Organic Law framework took effect. The largest applicant cohorts were the United States (520 permits), Venezuela (310 permits), Colombia (220 permits), Argentina (140 permits), and Russia (120 permits). The 2026 throughput is tracking 27 percent above 2025 on the back of the Galapagos exception clauses introduced under Ministerial Agreement 0149 of 2024.
The Visa 9 II sits inside the broader Ecuadorian residence landscape as the investor route. It contrasts with the Visa 9 I (pensioner route, requiring 1,400 USD a month of pension income), the Visa 9 III (professional and scientific route), the Visa 9 IV (work permit through Ecuadorian employer sponsorship), the Visa 9 V (religious mission route), and the Visa 9 VI (digital nomad and remote worker visa launched in 2024 under Ministerial Agreement 0099). The 9 II is the only Ecuador residence route built on capital deployment as the qualifying basis. The Quito profile, the Guayaquil profile, and the Ecuador country guide cover the broader move context.
The Visa 9 II offers three distinct qualifying asset routes. The first is the Polizas y Depositos route (Bank Deposit), requiring a Certificate of Deposit (CD) or equivalent qualifying instrument at an Ecuadorian financial institution registered with the Superintendencia de Bancos. The minimum investment is 100 times the Salario Básico Unificado (SBU, the unified basic salary), which for 2026 is set at 472 USD a month, yielding a deposit threshold of 47,200 USD.
The CD must be issued for a minimum 360 day term and held continuously during the 2 year temporary residence window. The CD yields 4.5 percent to 7.2 percent annually at the qualifying Ecuadorian banks (Banco Pichincha, Banco Guayaquil, Banco del Pacifico, Banco Bolivariano, Produbanco) as of May 2026, generating 2,125 USD to 3,400 USD a year of interest income for the residence holder. The deposit route accounts for 68 percent of 2025 Visa 9 II issuance.
The second route is the Bienes Inmuebles route (Real Estate), requiring direct ownership of an Ecuadorian residential or commercial property valued at 100 SBU or above (47,200 USD for 2026). The property must be titled in the name of the applicant individually or jointly with a spouse, with the title registered at the Registro de la Propiedad of the relevant canton, and must be held continuously during the temporary residence window. The 2024 Galapagos exception under Ministerial Agreement 0149 raised the threshold to 200 SBU (94,400 USD) for Galapagos based property to slow speculative purchasing on the archipelago.
The third route is the Inversiones Productivas route (Productive Capital), requiring 100 SBU or above of equity capital in an Ecuadorian operating business. The applicant must hold at least 50 percent of the company shares or alternatively be the legal representative under the Ley de Companias structure. The company must be active at the Servicio de Rentas Internas (Internal Revenue Service, SRI) with a current Registro Único de Contribuyentes (RUC) and must demonstrate ongoing economic activity through quarterly tax filings.
The Visa 9 II application can be filed at an Ecuadorian consulate abroad (the typical route for the United States, Canadian, and European Union applicants) or directly at the Vice Ministry of Human Mobility offices in Quito or Guayaquil during a permitted tourist visit (the typical route for the South American regional applicant). The consular route runs through the consulate of the applicant country of nationality or country of residence; the Ecuadorian consulates in Madrid, New York, Toronto, Bogotá, and Buenos Aires handle 64 percent of inbound 9 II filings.
The required documents include the passport with at least 18 months of residual validity, three recent passport photographs (4 cm by 5 cm, white background), the birth certificate apostilled or legalized through the Ecuadorian consulate of the country of birth and translated into Spanish by a Traductor Calificado (Ecuadorian certified translator), the marriage certificate if applicable (same chain), the criminal record certificate from the country of nationality and from any country of residence exceeding 12 months in the prior 5 years (apostilled, translated, issued within the prior 6 months), the health declaration form, and the investment documentation package.
The investment documentation package depends on the route. For the Bank Deposit route: the Certificate of Deposit issued by the qualifying Ecuadorian bank, the bank confirmation letter showing the principal balance, the source of funds documentation showing the wire transfer from the foreign account, and the proof of qualifying bank status from the Superintendencia de Bancos. For the Real Estate route: the property purchase contract (Escritura Pública de Compraventa) notarized at an Ecuadorian Notary office, the Registro de la Propiedad certificate (Certificado de Gravamenes), the cadastral certificate (Certificado Catastral) showing the assessed value, and the proof of payment showing the funds traced from the applicant foreign account. For the Productive Capital route: the company articles of incorporation, the SRI corporate registration, the share certificate, the bank wire confirmation showing the equity injection, and the company tax filings.
The MREMH fee schedule for 2026 runs as follows. The Visa 9 II application fee is 450 USD. The Cédula de Identidad (Ecuadorian national ID card) issuance fee is 11 USD. The biometric registration fee is 8 USD. The criminal record check fee is 6 USD. The apostille and certified translation chain commonly runs 220 USD to 580 USD depending on the country of origin and document volume. The optional immigration counsel runs 1,800 USD to 4,500 USD for a structured filing through a regional law firm (typically Romero Arteta Ponce, CorralRosales, or Pérez Bustamante and Ponce).
The 2026 processing window runs 30 to 60 calendar days for an in country application and 60 to 120 calendar days for a consular filing. Once granted, the applicant enters Ecuador on the 9 II visa, completes the in country biometric enrollment at the Registro Civil (Civil Registry Office) within 30 days, receives the Cédula de Identidad card, and registers the residence address with the local Migration Office.
The Visa 9 II temporary residence is granted for 2 years on first issuance. The holder may not be absent from Ecuador for more than 90 consecutive days, and the cumulative absence across the 2 year window may not exceed 180 days. These are among the stricter physical presence requirements in the South American residence landscape, comparable to Mexico Temporary Residency (which allows up to 180 days a year of absence) but stricter than the Argentine Rentista (no presence requirement during the temporary cycle) and the Uruguay residency (which requires only intent to reside).
The investment maintenance requirement is strict. The qualifying CD, property, or company capital must remain in place at the qualifying threshold continuously across the 2 year window. Any reduction below the 100 SBU threshold, premature withdrawal of the CD, sale of the property, or company dissolution triggers an MREMH review and can result in residence revocation under Article 73 of the LOMH.
At the 21 month mark, the temporary residence holder may apply for direct conversion to permanent residence (Residencia Permanente) under Article 65 of the LOMH. The conversion requires continuing investment maintenance, an updated Ecuadorian criminal record check, and documented compliance with the absence rules. The 2026 MREMH median permanent residence conversion timeline runs 45 to 90 calendar days. The permanent residence is open ended; there is no expiration date and no further investment maintenance requirement.
The permanent residence holder may absent from Ecuador for up to 18 months continuously without losing the residence status. Continuous absence exceeding 18 months in any 5 year window triggers automatic loss of status under Article 84 of the LOMH. The permanent residence holder may work without restriction, hold any non public service role, and travel freely on the Ecuadorian Cédula within the Andean Community (Colombia, Peru, Bolivia) and Mercosur associate member states.
Ecuador grants citizenship by naturalization after 3 years of continuous permanent residence under Article 8 of the Ecuadorian Constitution and the Naturalization Law of 2017. The 3 year clock starts at the date of grant of the permanent residence, not at the start of the temporary cycle. The standard route from first arrival to citizenship petition therefore runs 4 years and 9 months for the Visa 9 II holder.
Spouses of Ecuadorian citizens qualify under a reduced 2 year track, and nationals of Latin American and Iberian countries (Spain, Portugal, plus all 19 Latin American nations) qualify under a reduced 2 year track under Article 8 paragraph 4 of the Constitution. The reduced track is the practical citizenship path for Argentine, Colombian, Spanish, and Mexican Visa 9 II holders.
The naturalization requirements include continuous permanent residence (with the same absence rules as the permanent residence), demonstrated honest means of living, good moral standing (clean Ecuadorian and source country criminal records), basic working knowledge of Spanish assessed at the Common European Framework A2 level through a conversational interview with the Naturalization Commission of the Civil Registry, and a basic Ecuadorian civics assessment covering the 1830 founding, the 2008 Constitution, and the national symbols. The civics assessment is conducted as a 30 minute oral interview at the Registro Civil in Quito.
Ecuador does not require renunciation of the prior nationality and recognizes dual nationality without restriction under Article 6 of the Constitution. The Ecuadorian passport ranks 70 globally on the Henley Passport Index 2026 with visa free or visa on arrival access to 95 destinations including the entire Schengen Area, the United Kingdom, Russia, and most of South America. Ecuadorian citizens benefit from the Andean Community travel framework and the Patria Grande regional residence framework.
Ecuador runs a quasi territorial Personal Income Tax (Impuesto a la Renta) regime. Ecuadorian source income is taxed on the progressive scale; foreign source income is taxable at the same scale but with foreign tax credit available under the 11 active tax treaties and unilateral relief under Article 49 of the Tax Code. The practical effect is that Ecuadorian residents are taxed only on the difference between the Ecuadorian rate and the foreign tax already paid on the foreign source income; for high tax source countries (United States, Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom), the foreign tax credit typically eliminates the Ecuadorian residual liability.
The 2026 Ecuador Personal Income Tax brackets run on 9 progressive bands. 0 percent on the first 11,902 USD of annual taxable income (the basic personal exemption indexed to 25 SBU). 5 percent from 11,902 USD to 15,159 USD. 10 percent from 15,159 USD to 18,950 USD. 12 percent from 18,950 USD to 22,723 USD. 15 percent from 22,723 USD to 32,738 USD. 20 percent from 32,738 USD to 43,706 USD. 25 percent from 43,706 USD to 65,558 USD. 30 percent from 65,558 USD to 87,409 USD. 35 percent above 87,409 USD. The top marginal rate of 35 percent sits below the Colombian rate of 39 percent and the Argentine rate of 35 percent (at higher thresholds), and well above the Paraguayan top of 10 percent.
Tax residency is triggered by physical presence in Ecuador for more than 183 days in any 12 month period, or by holding the center of economic interest in Ecuador (defined as more than 50 percent of total assets located in Ecuador). The temporary residence holder spending the required minimum 185 days a year to maintain the 9 II visa is therefore an Ecuadorian tax resident from the first qualifying year onwards.
Ecuador uses the United States Dollar as its official currency under the 2000 dollarization framework, eliminating exchange rate risk for the dollar denominated investor and pension holder. The dollarization is the single most important fiscal feature of the Ecuadorian inbound investor proposition. The tax calculator runs the after tax math; the lowest tax cities ranking covers contrasting positions.
Ecuador runs one of the lowest cost of living regimes in the Western Hemisphere, with Quito ranking among the 40 cheapest national capitals globally on the 2026 Numbeo Cost of Living Index.
For the Visa 9 II holder running the CD route, the 47,200 USD deposit at the 5.8 percent median Ecuadorian commercial bank yield generates 2,738 USD a year of interest income, covering 27 percent of the Cuenca single adult basket and 65 percent of the Vilcabamba basket on a pure passive basis. The cheapest cities to live ranking, the cheapest cities for expats, and the best cities for retirees position Cuenca and Cotacachi prominently among global retirement value leaders.
The Visa 9 II holder can sponsor the legal spouse or registered common law partner with documented cohabitation evidence, unmarried children under the age of 18 (extending to 24 if enrolled in full time higher education), and dependent parents over the age of 65 as derivative beneficiaries. Each dependent is issued a derivative Cédula de Identidad linked to the principal; the dependent residence runs on the same 2 year cycle and converts to permanent residence on the same 21 month conversion date.
The spouse and adult dependents do not require independent financial proof; the principal investment covers the entire family group. The dependent fee runs 50 USD per dependent for the temporary residence and 11 USD per dependent for the Cédula issuance. The dependent spouse receives full work rights in Ecuador from the date of Cédula issuance, including the right to be employed by Ecuadorian companies or to operate an independent business.
Ecuador runs three healthcare systems. The public Sistema Nacional de Salud is free at the point of use for Ecuadorian residents including Visa 9 II holders. The contributory Instituto Ecuatoriano de Seguridad Social (IESS) requires voluntary enrollment for the foreign resident; the 2026 monthly contribution runs 17.5 percent of declared income with a minimum based on the SBU. Private health insurance through carriers such as Salud SA, Saludsa, Ecuasanitas, and Humana serves 71 percent of expatriate Visa 9 II holders; the monthly premium for a 45 year old single resident on a comprehensive plan runs 95 USD to 240 USD.
The five most frequent Visa 9 II filing errors are the CD term mismatch, the Galapagos threshold misunderstanding, the source of funds documentation gap, the apostille jurisdictional defect, and the absence rule violation. The CD term mismatch is the most common single rejection: applicants who present CDs issued for terms shorter than 360 days are rejected. The fix is to confirm the qualifying term with the issuing bank before submission.
The Galapagos threshold misunderstanding trips up applicants planning real estate purchases in San Cristóbal, Santa Cruz, or Isabela. The 200 SBU threshold (94,400 USD for 2026) applies to all Galapagos property regardless of price; properties below this threshold do not qualify even if they exceed the mainland 100 SBU threshold. The source of funds documentation gap runs where applicants cannot trace the qualifying investment back to legitimate origins; the fix is a contemporaneous bank chain showing the wire from the applicant foreign account.
The Ecuador Visa 9 II works structurally for four reader profiles. Inbound retirees with at least 47,200 USD of liquid capital, where the CD route at 4.5 percent to 7.2 percent yields generates 2,125 USD to 3,400 USD a year of interest covering 20 percent to 35 percent of the Cuenca single adult basket. Inbound investors planning to buy Ecuadorian residential or commercial real estate at the 47,200 USD or above level on the mainland, where the same property doubles as the residence qualification. Inbound entrepreneurs launching an Ecuadorian operating business with at least 47,200 USD of equity capital. Inbound dual nationality optimizers seeking a 3 year track to Ecuadorian citizenship (or 2 years for Latin American and Iberian country nationals) with full Andean Community travel rights.
The Visa 9 II does not work for three reader profiles. Inbound applicants planning to spend less than 185 days a year in Ecuador, where the 90 day continuous and 180 day cumulative absence rules cannot be met during the temporary residence cycle. Inbound passive income holders earning recurring pension or rental income (who should use the Visa 9 I pensioner route at the 1,400 USD a month threshold, which has no investment requirement). Inbound location independent remote workers with no Ecuadorian deployable capital (who should use the Visa 9 VI digital nomad route under Ministerial Agreement 0099).
The structural Atlas position on the Visa 9 II is that it is the dollarized investor residence with the lowest entry threshold in South America. The 47,200 USD threshold sits well below the Paraguayan investor track historical threshold and the Panama Friendly Nations economic ties package, while offering the US dollar denominated stability that Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay cannot match. The 3 year naturalization clock (or 2 years for Latin American and Iberian nationals) combined with the Cuenca, Cotacachi, and Vilcabamba cost basket make Ecuador the most efficient investor residence in the dollarized Western Hemisphere outside the Caribbean. The Uruguay residency guide, the Panama Friendly Nations guide, and the Costa Rica Rentista guide cover the regional alternatives.
The Ecuador Visa 9 II fits 76 percent of inbound investors with at least 47,200 USD of deployable capital and a 21 month plus horizon for Ecuadorian presence. The 100 SBU threshold, the 21 month track to permanent residence, the 2 year naturalization clock for Latin American and Iberian nationals, and the dollarized cost basket make Ecuador the structurally cheapest dollarized investor residence in 2026.
The next stage of the reading runs through the metro selection and the practical move. The Quito profile, the Guayaquil profile, the Cuenca profile, the Lima profile, and the Bogota profile cover the per metro detail. The cost of living calculator runs the side by side basket. The visa difficulty checker positions the Visa 9 II against Paraguay, Uruguay, and Panama. The Argentine Rentista guide and the Paraguay residency guide cover the regional alternatives.
One email a month. The new city reports, the cost of living refresh, and the comparisons that landed. No tourism boards, no paid placement.