The Rentista Visa (Visa de Residencia Temporal — Rentista) grants Ecuador residency to people who earn passive income — money that arrives without active employment. Rental income, investment dividends, annuities, trust distributions, royalties, bond interest: if your money works so you don't have to, this is your visa. The 2026 requirement is $1,446 USD per month in documented passive income (3× the Salario Básico Unificado of $482), governed by Ley Orgánica de Movilidad Humana, Art. 60.
It's one of Ecuador's most flexible visa options because the accepted income sources are broad, there's no age requirement, and it leads to permanent residency after 21 months. If you earn money from something other than a job or a government pension, this is likely your path. For full pricing and service details, see our Rentista Visa service page.
Rentista vs. Other Visa Types
The first question most people ask is which visa fits their situation. This table covers the four most common options for people with income or assets:
| Feature | Rentista | Pensioner | Investor | Professional | Digital Nomad |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Income needed | $1,446/mo passive | $1,446/mo pension | None (invest $48,200) | $482/mo any lawful source | $1,446/mo foreign employer |
| Key requirement | Passive income proof | Pension verification | $48,200 in Ecuador | SENESCYT degree registration | Foreign employment contract |
| Est. total cost | ~$1,900–2,100 | ~$1,900–2,100 | ~$50,000+ | ~$1,900–2,100 + SENESCYT | ~$1,900–2,100 |
| Best for | Investors, landlords, early retirees | Traditional retirees | Property buyers | Remote workers, freelancers | Employed remotely abroad |
| Path to PR | 21 months | 21 months | 21 months | 21 months | 21 months |
Estimated total cost includes EcuaPass service fee ($1,400 for Rentista), government fees ($320), and typical document costs ($200–400). Use our visa comparison tool for a personalized recommendation.
Rentista vs. Pensioner — Which Do I Need?
This is the single most common question I get, and the answer is simpler than most people expect. If your income comes from a government or private pension — Social Security, CPP, a military pension, a company retirement plan — you want the Pensioner Visa. If your income comes from anything else passive — investments, rentals, dividends, trusts, royalties — you want the Rentista.
If your pension alone meets the $1,446 threshold, use the Pensioner Visa. The documentation is simpler: one pension verification letter and bank statements, versus the multi-source portfolio documentation the Rentista requires. If your pension falls short but you have additional passive income that bridges the gap, the Rentista Visa lets you combine everything into one application. And if you have zero pension but substantial investment income, the Rentista is your only option in this bracket.
What Qualifies as Passive Income?
The accepted sources are broad. Rental property income from anywhere in the world qualifies, whether it's a single-family home in Phoenix or a commercial property in Toronto. Investment income qualifies: stock dividends, bond interest, mutual fund and ETF distributions, REIT payments, and CD interest. Trust distributions and annuity payments (non-pension) qualify. Royalty income from books, patents, or music qualifies. Even passive business ownership — where you're an investor, not an operator — can qualify if properly documented with a CPA letter confirming the passive nature of the income.
You can combine multiple sources. If you have $800/month in rental income, $400/month in dividends, and $300/month in bond interest, your combined $1,500/month qualifies. Immigration cares about the total and the consistency, not the number of sources — though each source requires its own supporting documentation.
What Does Not Qualify
Employment income — salaries, freelancing fees, consulting payments — does not qualify because it's active, not passive (use the Professional Visa instead). Pension income doesn't qualify for the Rentista because it has its own dedicated visa category. Cryptocurrency trading gains don't qualify as regular passive income. One-time capital gains from selling assets aren't recurring. And simply withdrawing from savings is not income — spending down a bank balance doesn't demonstrate an ongoing income stream.
Gray Areas
Structured IRA/401k distributions: If you set up systematic monthly withdrawals from retirement accounts, these may qualify as Rentista income rather than pension income. The key is documentation that shows regular, ongoing distributions — not lump-sum withdrawals. This requires careful framing with supporting letters from your financial institution.
Dividend reinvestment: If your dividends are automatically reinvested rather than deposited to your bank account, they're much harder to prove to immigration. For visa purposes, ensure dividends are actually paid out to your bank account so they appear as deposits on your statements.
Crypto staking and yield farming: Regular staking rewards deposited to a bank account could theoretically qualify, but cryptocurrency income is difficult to document in a way immigration accepts. I'd recommend building your application on traditional income sources and treating crypto income as supplementary at best.
Income Requirement Details
The baseline is $1,446 USD per month for a single applicant (3× the 2026 SBU of $482). Immigration reviews 3–6 months of bank statements showing regular deposits, along with source documentation such as brokerage statements, rental contracts, or trust letters. The exact number of months required may vary by visa subcategory — the Nómada/Rentista category on gob.ec specifies three months, while some subcategories may request six. Provide six months to be safe.
Immigration looks at your average monthly income across the review period. Some months can fall below $1,446 as long as the average meets the threshold. Dividend income that arrives quarterly is acceptable — the annualized amount just needs to work out. Consistency matters: monthly deposits look better than sporadic lump sums, even if the total is the same.
Dependent Income Requirements
Adding dependents increases the income you must demonstrate. The sponsor must prove an additional $250/month in income per dependent. This is not a government fee — it's the extra monthly income the sponsor must show on bank statements and income documentation. Some SBU-based formulas break this down differently (spouse at 50% of one SBU, children at 25%), but $250 per dependent is the standard figure used by the Cancillería.
Income documentation requirements are governed by Acuerdo Ministerial No. 70 (June 2024), which specifies what Ecuador accepts as proof of income for each visa category. Your application should align with this regulation.
How Much Do You Need Invested?
If you're building toward the $1,446/month threshold from an investment portfolio, here's what that looks like at different yield levels:
| Annual Yield | Portfolio Needed | Example Investments |
|---|---|---|
| 3% | $578,400 | Bonds, CDs, conservative funds |
| 4% | $433,800 | Balanced portfolio, REITs |
| 5% | $347,040 | Dividend stocks, higher-yield bonds |
| 6% | $289,200 | Growth + dividend strategy |
| 8% | $216,900 | Aggressive dividend portfolio |
Of course, rental property income changes the math entirely. A single rental property netting $1,500/month qualifies on its own. Two properties netting $750/month each qualify combined. Rental income must be documented with current lease agreements and bank statements showing the deposits.
The Rentista Visa and the FIRE Movement
The FIRE community is a natural fit for the Rentista Visa. If you've built a portfolio that throws off $1,500/month in dividends and interest, Ecuador lets you live on it with a legitimate residency visa, in a country that uses your currency, at a cost of living that means your portfolio keeps growing instead of depleting. I've worked with several FIRE-minded clients in their late 30s and 40s who chose Ecuador specifically because the math works here better than almost anywhere else.
The Rentista Visa has no age requirement — unlike the Pensioner Visa, you don't need to be collecting Social Security or have reached any particular retirement age. Your 4% safe withdrawal rate translates directly into qualifying income. And because Ecuador uses the US dollar, American FIRE adherents face zero currency risk on their portfolio.
The math is compelling. With a $500,000 portfolio at a 4% withdrawal rate, you generate $1,667/month — comfortably above the $1,446 threshold. Your actual living expenses in Ecuador might run $1,500–2,000/month for a comfortable lifestyle in Cuenca, which means your portfolio isn't just sustaining you — at moderate market returns, it's still growing. At $435,000 you hit exactly $1,450/month at 4%, which is the practical minimum. I'd recommend a cushion above that, both for market fluctuations and because immigration likes to see income that clearly exceeds the threshold rather than barely meeting it.
What If I Also Have a University Degree?
If you have a bachelor's degree (or higher) and passive income, the Professional Visa is worth considering as an alternative. It only requires $482/month from any lawful source — one-third the Rentista threshold. The trade-off is that you need to register your degree with SENESCYT (Ecuador's higher education authority), which adds 1–3 months to your timeline. But if your passive income is between $482 and $1,446 per month, the Professional Visa gets you residency while the Rentista wouldn't. Always worth evaluating both paths before committing.
Required Documents
Income Proof
The income documentation is where the Rentista Visa gets more involved than other visa types. You'll need 3–6 months of brokerage or investment account statements showing actual distributions (not just portfolio value — immigration wants to see the money leaving the account and arriving in your bank). If you're using rental income, provide current rental contracts that show monthly amounts, translated and notarized. Trust income requires documentation from the trustee confirming the distribution schedule and amounts. In all cases, you'll need 3–6 months of bank statements showing the corresponding deposits. A CPA or accountant letter confirming your income sources and monthly amounts strengthens any application, especially when income comes from multiple sources.
Bank statements should clearly show income deposits. If your account has mixed transactions — personal spending alongside dividend deposits — highlight or annotate the relevant entries. Immigration officers are reviewing dozens of applications; make yours easy to understand.
Standard Documents
Beyond income proof, you'll need the standard documents required for any Ecuador residency visa: a valid passport with at least 6 months of remaining validity, an apostilled criminal background check (for Americans: order through identogo.com, ~$18, 2–8 weeks, valid 180 days from issuance to your last entry into Ecuador), an apostilled birth certificate, a health certificate, passport-style photos, and a marriage certificate (apostilled) if including a spouse. All foreign documents require apostille plus certified Spanish translation.
Health Insurance Requirement
The Rentista/Nómada visa category requires proof of health insurance valid in Ecuador per the gob.ec requirements page. This may be a private international policy or evidence of IESS enrollment eligibility. Requirements may vary between the standard Rentista subcategory and the Nómada subtype — confirm the specific insurance requirement for your visa subcategory during consultation.
Application Process and Timeline
The process starts with document gathering, which takes 2–4 months and is the longest phase. Order your FBI background check first (the longest lead time), then request birth and marriage certificates, submit everything for apostille, and arrange certified Spanish translations. Your income documentation — brokerage statements, rental contracts, bank statements, CPA letter — should be assembled in parallel.
Ecuador uses an online e-visa system through serviciosdigitales.cancilleria.gob.ec where you can begin your application before arriving, though some steps require an in-person appearance at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Application preparation itself takes 1–2 weeks once all documents are in hand. After submission, immigration processing runs 4–8 weeks. Once approved, visa issuance and cédula registration take another 1–2 weeks. Total timeline from start to residency card: 4–6 months.
Costs
Government fees total $320: a $50 application fee plus a $270 visa grant fee. Document costs (apostilles, translations, certified copies) typically run $200–400 depending on how many documents you need and where you get translations done. If you use EcuaPass for the Rentista Visa, our service fee is $1,400, covering income qualification review, document preparation, application submission, and immigration communication. Total estimated cost with professional assistance: $1,920–2,120.
Renewal and Permanent Residency
Your temporary Rentista Visa is valid for two years. At renewal, you'll need to demonstrate that your income still meets the $1,446 threshold with updated bank statements and source documentation, and pay the government renewal fee. But here's the better play: at 21 months, you become eligible to apply for permanent residency. Permanent residency has no ongoing income requirement — once approved, you never need to prove passive income again.
This is especially important if your investment income fluctuates. Lock in permanent residency while your income qualifies, and you're protected against future market downturns or changes in your income sources. Most of my Rentista clients convert at 21 months, and I strongly recommend it. For details on the conversion process, see our permanent residency guide.
Common Questions
Can I work in Ecuador on a Rentista Visa?
No. The Rentista Visa does not permit employment in Ecuador. If you want to work remotely for a foreign employer, you need a Professional Visa or Digital Nomad Visa. Managing your own investment portfolio and rental properties, however, is not considered “working” — it's managing the income sources that qualified you for the visa in the first place.
What about income from a US LLC or corporation?
If you own a business but don't actively work in it, distributions may qualify. The distinction is between passive ownership (you're an investor receiving distributions) and active work (you're an employee or operator). Documentation from a CPA confirming the passive nature of the income is essential. This is one of those areas where professional guidance before submission prevents problems during review.
What if my investments lose money?
If your passive income drops below $1,446/month, you won't be able to renew the Rentista Visa at the two-year mark. This is exactly why converting to permanent residency at 21 months is critical — permanent residency has no income requirement. If you haven't reached 21 months yet and your income has dropped, you may need to restructure your portfolio to restore the income stream, switch to a different visa type (Investor or Professional), or leave and reapply when your income recovers.
Is the Rentista harder to get than the Pensioner?
The income threshold is identical ($1,446/month), but the Rentista typically requires more documentation. A pension comes from a single source with one official verification letter. Passive income often comes from multiple sources — a brokerage account, two rental properties, and a trust — each requiring its own documentation. The complexity is in organizing the paper trail, not in the approval difficulty. With properly prepared documents, both visa types process the same way.