What is SENESCYT and do I need it for my Ecuador visa?

SENESCYT (Secretaría Nacional de Educación Superior, Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación) is the Ecuadorian body that recognises foreign university degrees. You only need SENESCYT recognition if you are applying for the Professional Visa, which requires a recognised bachelor's degree or higher. The process involves submitting your apostilled and translated degree, transcript, and sometimes a curriculum. Processing time is typically 2–8 weeks depending on the country of issue and current workload. SENESCYT is not required for Retirement, Rentista, Investor, Digital Nomad, or MERCOSUR visas. Starting SENESCYT before ordering other documents is a common efficiency strategy.