Resident visa

garyknrd wrote:

When I was 17, 64 now... I was arrested for drug possession and convicted of a felony.

Is that going to stop me from getting a long term visa for Ecuador?

I am coming for a birding trip regardless for a few months. But, would like to have the option of staying if I like it.

Dear Gary,

Welcome to the Ecuador forum.

If you decide to seek a long-term visa in Ecuador, your case will presumably be decided by the Foreign Ministry or Cancillería.

Given that scenario, it would be in your best interests to have your old conviction expunged as soon as possible if you decide to relocate to South America.

Since you were a teenage minor at the time of the conviction for (apparently) a victimless crime, it seems reasonable to believe that the conviction can be expunged and legally withheld from your visa application.

To start your education on the expungement process, you may wish to visit helpforfelons.org ....

Along the way, you may need to seek assistance from a Texas attorney who has experience in this process.

cccmedia

Thank's for your reply.

I do not want the hassle of getting it expunged. I have thought about it. But, I travel internationally now and am happy.

I am in Thailand now but am returning to my home in Texas next month. I will get in touch with the embassy there and let them decide I guess.

Since I have a home in Texas air fair is cheap between there and South America. I am getting tired of the long flights to Asia.

For a reason separate from any felony expungement, you may wish to consult with an Ecuador visa professional later this year.

The following scenario presumes that you would consider living in Texas three months out of the year as you have been doing.

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Through 2016, foreigners arriving in Ecuador on a 90-day tourist stamp were able to extend their tourist time by an additional six months each year with a non-immigrant visa extension.

The immigration law was replaced a few months ago .. a new administration was elected last week .. and the bureaucrats will eventually publish the new rules.  That could happen in August .. or any time.

Given the changing situation, you would do well to hire a visa facilitator in Ecuador to assist you if you decide to live primarily in Ecuador.  Or better yet, hire an experienced immigration attorney.

Under the old immigration law, Expats living in Ecuador up to nine months a year did not need to obtain an immigration/residency visa to stay in the country legally.  That possibility could theoretically still be valid going forward, depending on how the new law is interpreted by the bureaucrats when they publish the official rules based on the new law.

For you, the beauty of this might be to render moot the whole question of the conviction and any need for expungement .. since you could possibly remain in Ecuador for nine months a year without applying for a long-term visa.

FYI, Ecuador is still offering arriving U.S. Expats (and visitors from most countries) free tourist stamps good for a stay of up to 90 days.  However, the EC government has temporarily suspended its acceptance of long-term visa applications while the situation described above is sorted out.

cccmedia

Thanks allot for you help, very good info..

I saw you were in Thailand also. I am curious about why you chose Ecuador for a retirement destination?

Great, when I arrive I will get the 90 tourist visa. If I decide to stay longer I will seek out a professional to help me. If possible.

I am a country boy. So big city life is not for me. I will explore the country side of Ecuador and decide where I want to hang my hat.

I have traveled to the Yucatan, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Laos, Vietnam. So far Thailand is a mixed bag for me. I am tired of it right now. And want to travel south to see if it suites me.

Thanks

garyknrd wrote:

I saw you were in Thailand also. I am curious about why you chose Ecuador for a retirement destination?

I have a condo in Quito, Ecuador .. and have recently obtained a TP-7 visa allowing me to live in Colombia for a year.

I bought the condo in pre-construction in 2005 .. and finally closed on it and moved into it in 2013 when a medical problem forced early retirement on me. 

Between 2001 and 2012 I made many trips to both Thailand and Ecuador. 

I chose Ecuador over Thailand because...

1.  I do not consider Thailand's weather suitable year-round.  It can be delightful in Chiang Mai and the north for a few weeks around November and December .. but I find the heat to be too much most of the year, even in "the Rose of the North."

2.  Same as you, Gary, I eventually found the long air-travel over the Pacific Ocean was too much.  Returning to the U.S. from my final trip to Thailand in 2012, I had trouble sleeping on the plane .. followed by a serious medical condition that was no doubt aggravated by jet lag and sleeplessness.

3.  Although I learned to verbalize about 1,000 words in Thai, I came to realize it was unlikely I would ever learn to read or write the strange language.  The five tones made speaking words difficult even if I knew what they were. 

4.  I already owned the rights to the under-construction condo in Ecuador.  Although the construction, condo-complex ownership changes and resulting delays, and other issues delayed closing until 2013, darn it if the place wasn't ready just when I needed to move into it in July 2013!

cccmedia from Medellín, Colombia

Yea those flights are a killer. I hate them. Hopefully this will be my last flight here.

I speak very little Thai. Can follow it some that is about it.

Have a pickup here but am signing it over to my GF here. I have been in a relationship with her for 8 years. She will sell it and fly to Ecuador to meet me when I get there.

Have a pickup in Texas and will drive down to the Yucatan in a few months (will do some birding on the coast) then catch a flight to Ecuador to meet her.

A little scared to sell my home in Texas. I am hanging on to it until I find a place I really like. Then I will sell it and buy a place.
In Thailand I cannot buy land, and I do not want a condo so? I am pretty much screwed here.

And I totally agree with you. I hate the weather here. Right now I am in Fang. North of Chiang Mai about 120 K.M.. Really cannot wait to break my ties here for good.

Hoping I can find a place in S.A. to hang my hat. Columbia was another place I will visit when I come to Ecuador. Please let me know when you go and how you like it.

Regards

Sorry I see you are in Columbia now I think.
Please let me know how you like it. Your views will be greatly appreciated.
Actually that was my first choice but changed due to my gf wanting to go to Ecuador.

Cheers

garyknrd wrote:

When I was 17, 64 now. I was arrested for drug possession and convicted of a felony.

Is that going to stop me from getting a long term visa for Ecuador?

Possibly.

Consult with a professional because your drug conviction can result in you being deemed an inadmissible person. Ecuador takes drug offences very seriously even on a micro level as was highlighted on a front page of a popular newspaper this week.

As a tourist you probably won’t have a problem but when scrutiny of a residency application becomes a factor it may very well be.

Also keep in mind under the previous law whether people received 6 months extension to the initial 90 days was discretionary. Some received 90 days extensions (for a total of 6 months stay in one year) and others 180 days (for a total of nine month stay in one year.

To understand more read this immigration thread about an Ecuadorian citizen whose foreigner wife was only given a total of 180  days max in one year period with days counting from her first entrance.

garyknrd wrote:

I see you are in Colombia now....
Please let me know how you like it....
Actually that was my first choice but changed due to my gf wanting to go to Ecuador.

Colombia's been good so far in the two areas I have visited -- Medellín and the cities of the Juan Valdez Coffee Zone. 

Medellín is green, beautiful and modern with gleaming shopping malls of high quality.  The sector I stay in, El Poblado, is loaded with police and security.  Police traffic-stops are common here at night in my experience.  I consider that a positive factor here.

Medellín has been attracting more and more Expats.  Several groups including Inter------- and Medellin------ offer monthly Expat meetups. 

Colombia also has casino blackjack, whereas casinos were banned in Ecuador five years ago.  A couple of years later, due to falling oil prices and then earthquake devastation, Ecuador's economy tanked and unemployment spiked.  I'm curious to see if the president-elect will try to bring back the many jobs in casinos and related support industries that were lost in 2011 and '12 .. by attempting to re-legalize casino gaming in Ecuador.

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Ecuador might be better for you than Colombia, Gary, since you prefer a more rural environment.  I am skeptical of the security situation in rural Colombia, southern Colombia and on intercity roads in most areas after dark.

The U.S. State Department and other governments have been warning folks away from such areas in Colombia.  Colombia signed a peace treaty with the ex-FARC rebels a few months ago.  However, FARCs and ex-drug cartel members were previously marginalized to rural and southern areas of Colombia some years back .. and have not all been re-integrated into lawful society.

Here's a personal reason I encountered showing why rural Colombia is problematic....

https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=634337

cccmedia in Medellín, Colombia

Cuenca, Ecuador, VIP member Nards Barley and I (and other https://www.expat.com members) have discussed Ecuador vs. Colombia in more depth on a thread that Nards started in February.

If you have comments or questions on this comparison, please post at that thread (link below).  To do otherwise on this visa thread might tend to give the impression that we are  .

https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=647243