Working in Ecuador: the Trabajo Visa
Answer
The general rule applies to you
No exception is recorded for citizens of Colombia on this topic. That is the answer, not a gap - everything below is the rule you get, unchanged.
81 exceptions recorded across 33 countries · none match Colombia to Ecuador · Residency through work
The work category covers both employment and self-employment, and the two halves are asked for entirely different things. An employee needs a registered contract and a clean compliance certificate from their employer covering tax, social security and the companies regulator - the burden is on the employer's standing, not on a salary threshold, and no minimum salary appears anywhere in the rules we read. The self-employed and consultants instead show a notarised services contract, a tax registration, or a municipal operating permit, and must already hold tourist, residence or business-visitor status when they apply from inside Ecuador. Enrolment in social security is checked at renewal.
At a glance
- Visa length
- 2 years, renewable on multiple occasions
- Minimum salary set by the immigration rules
- None found
No salary floor appears in the statute, the regulation or the ministry's page for this category. Ecuadorian labour law separately forbids paying below the minimum wage, which is USD 482 a month in 2026.
- Employer compliance certificate
- Required, covering SRI, IESS and the Superintendencia de Compañías
- Social security
- Checked at renewal; failure to enrol is a punishable offence
- Changing employer
- 30 days to apply for a new visa, or continuity of residence is broken
- Self-employed applying inside Ecuador
- Must already hold tourist, residence or business-visitor status
Requirements
- Employment: a personnel action or employment contract from a public entity or private employer
- Employment: proof that the contract is registered with the labour authority
- Employment: a certificate that the employer has no outstanding obligations with the tax authority, the social security institute and the companies regulator
- Self-employment or consultancy: a notarised services, civil or consultancy contract, or a Registro Único de Contribuyentes, or a municipal operating permit
- Self-employment applied for inside Ecuador: you must already hold tourist, residence or business-visitor status, and a tourist may not start the work before the change of status is granted
- Intra-company transfers: a legalised or apostilled sponsorship letter stating the length of stay, the activities, that the parent company abroad pays salary and social contributions, and that there is no employment relationship with the local entity
- The general residence requirements: valid passport, clean criminal record, lawful means of support, no security objection, and the fee
- At renewal: a certificate of affiliation to the Instituto Ecuatoriano de Seguridad Social
In detail
The employer is vetted, not the salary
Nothing in the statute, the regulation or the ministry's page sets a salary floor for a work visa. What is checked is the employer: the contract has to be registered with the labour authority, and the employer has to produce certificates showing it is clear with the tax authority, the social security institute and the companies regulator. The ministry may also satisfy itself that the employer has the money to meet the contract, and may interview employer and employee. That is a different filter from Chile's or Colombia's, where the applicant's own income does much of the work.
Thirty days is the number that catches people
A temporary resident whose visa rests on a job loses the fact that justified it the moment the job ends. The regulation gives thirty days to file for a new temporary visa matching the new activity, and it frames this expressly as what preserves the continuous 21 months needed for permanent residence. Miss it and the clock restarts.
What applies to you
Nothing changes for a citizen of Colombia
We have no rule recorded that treats your citizenship differently here, so the general rule above is the one that applies to you. That is an answer, not a gap.
What the law says
«Es la condición migratoria que autoriza la estadía de hasta dos años en el territorio ecuatoriano, renovable por múltiples ocasiones, a las que acceden las personas extranjeras que ingresan al país dentro de las siguientes categorías:»Our translation - not official
It is the migration status that authorises a stay of up to two years in Ecuadorian territory, renewable on multiple occasions, available to foreign persons who enter the country within the following categories:
The term and the renewals are set once, in the opening words of article 60, and govern every temporary residence category listed under it, work included.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The state's regulations registry. Hosts consolidated texts of laws, decrees and ministerial agreements, each PDF carrying a 'Normativa: Vigente' marker and an 'Última Reforma' line, with amendments attributed article by article.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Cannot be cited for currency. The landing pages carry the state's own warning that the information is referencial and may be out of date, and the consolidations are produced by a commercial legal publisher under state hosting rather than by the gazette. A consolidation appears months after the reform it folds in: the July 2025 LOMH reform surfaced in a September 2025 file. For the date and issue number of an instrument, the Registro Oficial is the authority, not this.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«Trabajo: para las personas que ingresan o se encuentran en Ecuador con la finalidad de realizar actividades laborales bajo relación de dependencia en el ámbito público, privado o de manera autónoma, de servicios profesionales, civiles o de consultoría a favor de personas naturales o jurídicas nacionales o extranjeras legalmente establecidas en el Ecuador;»Our translation - not official
Work: for persons who enter or are in Ecuador for the purpose of carrying out work activities under an employment relationship in the public or private sphere, or autonomously, providing professional, civil or consultancy services for natural or legal persons, national or foreign, legally established in Ecuador;
One category covers employment and self-employment. The requirements diverge at the regulation, not at the statute.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The state's regulations registry. Hosts consolidated texts of laws, decrees and ministerial agreements, each PDF carrying a 'Normativa: Vigente' marker and an 'Última Reforma' line, with amendments attributed article by article.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Cannot be cited for currency. The landing pages carry the state's own warning that the information is referencial and may be out of date, and the consolidations are produced by a commercial legal publisher under state hosting rather than by the gazette. A consolidation appears months after the reform it folds in: the July 2025 LOMH reform surfaced in a September 2025 file. For the date and issue number of an instrument, the Registro Oficial is the authority, not this.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«a) Acción de personal o contrato de trabajo emitido por entidad pública o empleador privado, respectivamente; b) Constancia del registro del contrato laboral ante la autoridad de trabajo competente; y, c) Certificado de que el empleador no mantiene obligaciones pendientes con el Servicio de Rentas Internas, el Instituto Ecuatoriano de Seguridad Social y la Superintendencia de Compañías, expedido por la autoridad competente en cada caso.»Our translation - not official
a) A personnel action or employment contract issued by a public entity or private employer respectively; b) Proof of registration of the employment contract with the competent labour authority; and, c) A certificate that the employer has no outstanding obligations with the Servicio de Rentas Internas, the Instituto Ecuatoriano de Seguridad Social and the Superintendencia de Compañías, issued by the competent authority in each case.
About this source
The state's regulations registry. Hosts consolidated texts of laws, decrees and ministerial agreements, each PDF carrying a 'Normativa: Vigente' marker and an 'Última Reforma' line, with amendments attributed article by article.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Cannot be cited for currency. The landing pages carry the state's own warning that the information is referencial and may be out of date, and the consolidations are produced by a commercial legal publisher under state hosting rather than by the gazette. A consolidation appears months after the reform it folds in: the July 2025 LOMH reform surfaced in a September 2025 file. For the date and issue number of an instrument, the Registro Oficial is the authority, not this.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«Para la renovación de esta categoría migratoria se deberá presentar el certificado de afiliación al sistema de seguridad social, con el cual se verificará la fecha de afiliación del empleado.»Our translation - not official
For the renewal of this migration category, a certificate of affiliation to the social security system must be presented, by which the date of the employee's affiliation shall be verified.
Renewal is where enrolment is actually enforced: the certificate shows the date you were enrolled, which is the number that reveals a gap.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The state's regulations registry. Hosts consolidated texts of laws, decrees and ministerial agreements, each PDF carrying a 'Normativa: Vigente' marker and an 'Última Reforma' line, with amendments attributed article by article.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Cannot be cited for currency. The landing pages carry the state's own warning that the information is referencial and may be out of date, and the consolidations are produced by a commercial legal publisher under state hosting rather than by the gazette. A consolidation appears months after the reform it folds in: the July 2025 LOMH reform surfaced in a September 2025 file. For the date and issue number of an instrument, the Registro Oficial is the authority, not this.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«Además de los requisitos previstos en la Ley Orgánica de Movilidad Humana, para aplicar por esta categoría migratoria en el Ecuador, la persona extranjera deberá ser titular de una categoría migratoria de turista, de residencia o de una visa de actos de comercio y además deberá presentar uno de los siguientes, según sea el caso: 1. Reconocimiento de firmas ante Notario Público del contrato de servicios profesionales, civiles o de consultoría; 2. Registro Único de Contribuyentes – RUC, únicamente aplicable a aquellas personas que ostenten una categoría migratoria de residente al momento de aplicar para el cambio de categoría; o, 3. Permiso de funcionamiento otorgado por un Gobierno Autónomo Descentralizado para»Our translation - not official
In addition to the requirements provided in the Ley Orgánica de Movilidad Humana, to apply for this migration category in Ecuador the foreign person must hold a tourist, residence or business-activities migration category and must also present one of the following, as the case may be: 1. Notarised signatures of a professional services, civil or consultancy contract; 2. A Registro Único de Contribuyentes, applicable only to persons holding a resident migration category at the time of applying for the change of category; or 3. An operating permit granted by a Decentralised Autonomous Government for
The list ends mid-line at the publisher's page break; the third item continues 'el desarrollo de actividades económicas' on the next page.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The state's regulations registry. Hosts consolidated texts of laws, decrees and ministerial agreements, each PDF carrying a 'Normativa: Vigente' marker and an 'Última Reforma' line, with amendments attributed article by article.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Cannot be cited for currency. The landing pages carry the state's own warning that the information is referencial and may be out of date, and the consolidations are produced by a commercial legal publisher under state hosting rather than by the gazette. A consolidation appears months after the reform it folds in: the July 2025 LOMH reform surfaced in a September 2025 file. For the date and issue number of an instrument, the Registro Oficial is the authority, not this.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«Sin perjuicio de lo antes mencionado la persona extranjera titular de una visa de turista no podrá realizar actividad distinta a la de turismo, hasta que no haya cambiado a la nueva categoría migratoria.»Our translation - not official
Without prejudice to the foregoing, a foreign person holding a tourist visa may not carry out any activity other than tourism until they have changed to the new migration category.
The self-employment route can be started from tourist status, but the work cannot: the permission arrives with the change of category, not with the application.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The state's regulations registry. Hosts consolidated texts of laws, decrees and ministerial agreements, each PDF carrying a 'Normativa: Vigente' marker and an 'Última Reforma' line, with amendments attributed article by article.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Cannot be cited for currency. The landing pages carry the state's own warning that the information is referencial and may be out of date, and the consolidations are produced by a commercial legal publisher under state hosting rather than by the gazette. A consolidation appears months after the reform it folds in: the July 2025 LOMH reform surfaced in a September 2025 file. For the date and issue number of an instrument, the Registro Oficial is the authority, not this.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«Las personas extranjeras residentes en el Ecuador incluidos los sujetos de protección internacional, tienen derecho al trabajo y a acceder a la seguridad social, para lo cual sus aportes se calcularán con base en los ingresos reales declarados para la obtención de su residencia.»Our translation - not official
Foreign persons resident in Ecuador, including persons under international protection, have the right to work and to access social security, for which their contributions shall be calculated on the basis of the real income declared in order to obtain their residence.
The link between the two systems is explicit and worth noticing: the income you declared for the visa is the base your social security contributions are calculated on.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The state's regulations registry. Hosts consolidated texts of laws, decrees and ministerial agreements, each PDF carrying a 'Normativa: Vigente' marker and an 'Última Reforma' line, with amendments attributed article by article.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Cannot be cited for currency. The landing pages carry the state's own warning that the information is referencial and may be out of date, and the consolidations are produced by a commercial legal publisher under state hosting rather than by the gazette. A consolidation appears months after the reform it folds in: the July 2025 LOMH reform surfaced in a September 2025 file. For the date and issue number of an instrument, the Registro Oficial is the authority, not this.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«La persona extranjera titular de una visa de residente temporal que cambie de actividad, de empleador o auspiciante, de tal forma que afecte el hecho que motivó el otorgamiento de su visa, tendrá treinta (30) días término para solicitar una nueva visa de residencia temporal, conforme a la actividad que desarrolle, a fin de mantener el periodo de permanencia continúo previsto en este artículo.»Our translation - not official
A foreign person holding a temporary resident visa who changes activity, employer or sponsor in a way that affects the fact that motivated the grant of their visa shall have thirty (30) days to apply for a new temporary residence visa corresponding to the activity they carry out, in order to maintain the continuous period of stay provided in this article.
About this source
The state's regulations registry. Hosts consolidated texts of laws, decrees and ministerial agreements, each PDF carrying a 'Normativa: Vigente' marker and an 'Última Reforma' line, with amendments attributed article by article.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Cannot be cited for currency. The landing pages carry the state's own warning that the information is referencial and may be out of date, and the consolidations are produced by a commercial legal publisher under state hosting rather than by the gazette. A consolidation appears months after the reform it folds in: the July 2025 LOMH reform surfaced in a September 2025 file. For the date and issue number of an instrument, the Registro Oficial is the authority, not this.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
Practical notes
We did not find a labour-market test, a quota, or a percentage-of-foreign-staff rule in the pages read here. Ecuadorian labour law has historically capped foreign staff in a payroll; we did not read the Código del Trabajo, so we make no claim either way.
The intra-company transfer route is a sponsorship letter rather than a separate visa, and the letter must state that salary and social contributions stay with the parent company abroad and that there is no employment relationship with the Ecuadorian entity.
Failure to enrol a foreign resident in the IESS is stated by the statute to be punishable, but the statute leaves the sanction to other rules, which we have not read.
- consolidatesLey Orgánica de Movilidad Humana - texto vigente con la última reforma de 14-VII-2025
Registro de regulaciones del Estado ecuatoriano (gob.ec)
About this source
The state's regulations registry. Hosts consolidated texts of laws, decrees and ministerial agreements, each PDF carrying a 'Normativa: Vigente' marker and an 'Última Reforma' line, with amendments attributed article by article.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Cannot be cited for currency. The landing pages carry the state's own warning that the information is referencial and may be out of date, and the consolidations are produced by a commercial legal publisher under state hosting rather than by the gazette. A consolidation appears months after the reform it folds in: the July 2025 LOMH reform surfaced in a September 2025 file. For the date and issue number of an instrument, the Registro Oficial is the authority, not this.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
- consolidatesReglamento a la Ley Orgánica de Movilidad Humana - texto vigente con la última reforma de 18-XI-2025
Registro de regulaciones del Estado ecuatoriano (gob.ec)
About this source
The state's regulations registry. Hosts consolidated texts of laws, decrees and ministerial agreements, each PDF carrying a 'Normativa: Vigente' marker and an 'Última Reforma' line, with amendments attributed article by article.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: Cannot be cited for currency. The landing pages carry the state's own warning that the information is referencial and may be out of date, and the consolidations are produced by a commercial legal publisher under state hosting rather than by the gazette. A consolidation appears months after the reform it folds in: the July 2025 LOMH reform surfaced in a September 2025 file. For the date and issue number of an instrument, the Registro Oficial is the authority, not this.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
- administersConcesión de visa de residencia temporal trabajo por actividades laborales bajo relación de dependencia
Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana (catálogo de trámites, gob.ec)
About this source
One page per visa procedure, with requirements, fees, validity and a legal basis panel. Pages carry a last-updated date and monthly usage statistics.
Standing: Applies the rule
Cannot be cited for: Cannot be cited for what the law says. Its legal basis panels demonstrably quote superseded statutory text - the tourist pages still carry the pre-July-2025 wording of LOMH art. 56, and the Mercosur page quotes an art. 60 renumbered in 2021. Cite it for fees, forms, channels and processing, and read the statute for the rule.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source