Chile Permanent Residence

[nicolewong]

Students, orientation night, Chile

 

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Llanquihue lake in Puerto Varas, Chile

Fancy restaurant in Puerto Varas, Chile

 

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Downtown

Coffee break

 

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Chopstick diplomacy in Chile

SANTIAGO, Chile — Ever ordered fried “wantanes” and “chop suey de pollo”? More and more Latin Americans are doing just that as China tries to quietly promote its food and culture in the region.

A bright red and yellow sign on the front of a Cantonese restaurant in Santiago spells out the restaurant’s name, "Los Chinos Ricos” (The Rich Chinese). It's one of almost 200 Chinese restaurants to have opened in Santiago over the last 30 years.

Ana Yao, whose Chinese father and Chilean mother founded the restaurant, said these days some of the neighborhood’s residents eat at her restaurant every week. “They come with their families,” she said. Chileans like Chinese cuisine because “it’s healthy food,” Yao said. “There are a lot of greens and everything is fresh.”

But it's not just enterprising businessmen who are behind the explosion of Chinese eateries — the Chinese government is now working with expatriate entrepreneurs and restaurant owners to promote Chinese food and culture throughout Latin America.

It’s hard to resist calling the trend "chopstick diplomacy.” After all, the promotion of lo mein and Peking dumplings is meant to be a demonstration of China's growing presence in the region.

China is undeniably weilding its soft power across the continent. Chinese companies spent much of the 1990s buying up resources in Africa, and many are now looking to broker deals in Latin America. China has launched billion-dollar loan and grant projects in Venezuela, Ecuador and Bolivia, and signed trade deals with countries throughout the region, becoming the most important trade partner of two of the region's strongest economies, Chile and Brazil.

In Chile, bright new malls and department stores are filled with products manufactured in China. China has recently emerged as the world’s biggest buyer of copper, Chile's biggest export and the lifeblood of the Chilean economy.

In August, China’s government sent a team of master chefs to teach a two-day training course for 60 Chinese chefs who work in Chile. The class, which was led by five expert chefs, focused on technical skills and ended with participants receiving honorary diplomas from the Chinese government.

Dong Chuanjie, a spokesman from China’s State Council, said the cooking course was part of a broader effort to promote Chinese culture in Latin America. Chinese restaurants in Santiago provide the most direct way for the city’s residents to gain exposure to China’s culture, Chuanjie said.

It is only since the mid-1990s that Chile has had any sort of meaningful relationship with its neighbor across the Pacific.

In a political ad in 1993, left-of-center presidential candidate Eduardo Frei, standing on a beach with the Pacific Ocean behind him, looked at the camera and said, “One of the principal objectives of our foreign policy is integration into the Asia-Pacific region.” Once elected president, Frei worked to help open trade relations with China, fulfilling a campaign promise to turn his country into a “natural bridge to Asia.”

Chile joined the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation group in 1993 and worked steadily to foster ties with China and other Asian nations. In 2005 Chile became the first non-Asian country to sign a free trade agreement with China. Five years later when Chilean President Sebastian Pinera visited Beijing, China had already become the No. 1 buyer of Chile’s exports.

The budding relationship between China and Latin America did not go unnoticed by China’s most entrepreneurial citizens. Chile, with its reputation for stability and good governance, attracted a great deal of attention. Believing Chile to be a good bet, many chefs from China immigrated and set up shop in Santiago.

The emigrant Chinese chefs coming to Chile fostered goodwill with their new customer base by serving fried ham and cheese spring rolls, an adaptation of a popular Chilean empanada.

"Most people I know eat Chinese food twice a week," said Alfredo Merlet, a lifelong resident of Santiago. "Spring rolls, chow fun, and 'dragon's teeth' (a play on the Chinese name for sautéed bean sprouts), those are the favorite dishes here."

From the authentic noodle dishes served at the high-end Violeta de Persia restaurant to more moderately priced items at Los Chinos Ricos, Santiago's residents have plenty of options to sample a variety of dishes.

“Twenty years ago, Chinese cuisine was concentrated in high income neighborhoods, but now it’s more spread out throughout the city, even in middle and low income areas,” said Luis Valenzuela, a Chilean architect and urban planning expert.

And interest in Chinese and Asian cuisine is piquing all over Latin America, not just in Santiago, said Mariana Torres, an urban planning specialist from Bogota, Colombia.

"There were no Chinese restaurants ... or Thai or anything else," she said about her hometown. "Now there are tons of different restaurants.”

China’s government seems keen to make sure that expatriate Chinese chefs in Latin America do their best to act as ambassadors for the country and its cuisine. The goverment also conducted a culinary program in Costa Rica, another strategic trade partner.

China’s hope, it seems, is that the next generation of Latin Americans will grow up with an appreciation for China’s culture and will work to foster meaningful ties with their neighbor across the Pacific.

After all, said Dong Chuanjie, “Chinese cuisine, which has eye-catching colors, irresistible fragrance and rich taste, can help spread the Chinese culture overseas.”

 

[nicolewong]

Chile China Business Council (CCBC)
http://www.chilechinacouncil.com/

Business Network

Chinese Chapter

China National Cereals
Oils & Foodstuffs Corporation
China National Light Industry
Corporation Aluminium
Corporation of China
Fujian Electronics and Information Group. Ltd.
China Railway Engineering
Corporation China Railway First Group Co. Ltd.
China National Complete Plant Import and Export
Corporation China International Forestry
Corporation China Petrochemical Corporation (SINOPEC)
Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd.
Nuctech Co. Ltd.
Jinchuan Group Ltd.
China Nonferrous Metal Industry´s
Foreign Engenierring and Construction Co.
China Minmetals Corp.
Gree Electric Appliances Inc. Of Zhuhai

Chilean Chapter

Antofagasta Minerals
Banco de Chile
CAP S.A.
CMP S.A.
CMPC
CNC
Codelco
CODELCO CHILE
CSAV
ENAEX S.A.
ETCHEBERRY Y RODRIGUEZ ASOCIADOS
FORESTAL COPIHUE
FUNDICION BRUNO GEARBULK CHILE LTDA.
GRUPO ERNLZURIZ
INVERSIONES Y ASESORIAS LAGO DIAL LTDA
METALCORP
INGENIERIA LTD.
SALMOPRIME S.A.
SIGDO KOOPERS S.A.
SK BERGE AUTOMOTRIZ S.A.
SK COMERCIAL S.A.
ULTRAMAR AGENCIA MARITIMA
VIFIA CASAL GORCHS
VIFIEDOS DEL MAULE S.A.
BHP CHILE INC.

 

[nicolewong]

Forget America, Immigrants With A Dream Are Moving To Chile

February 14, 2012
Talca, Chile

One of the local papers here in Chile ran an interesting story a few days ago about the number of young Spanish immigrants coming to Chile in search of work.

Fed up with the ridiculously high unemployment rate in Spain, and tired of being shut out of every single opportunity imaginable, a handful of intrepid young souls is starting to look for greener pastures abroad. And increasingly, that journey is bringing them to Chile.

The report, published in El Mostrador, profiles several young people who’ve left Spain’s roughly 50% youth unemployment rate. Stymied by the lackluster prospects in Europe, and the even worse prospects (and visa challenges) in the US, they’ve set their sights on Latin America.

Most found success in Chile’s rapidly growing economy where skilled, energetic young people are in demand. For some, the opportunities here in Chile were so plentiful when they arrived that they encouraged their friends and families back home in Spain to hop a flight and make a change for the better.

Like America of the past, Chile is a country that’s friendly to productive, responsible, hard-working people. It’s very easy to obtain a residency visa and work permit – all you need is a work contract from just about any local company, and you’re entitled to what’s called a “sujeto a contrato” visa.

This particular visa is renewed after one year. After the second year of continuous employment, you’re entitled to permanent residency. Three years later, you can apply for naturalization and a Chilean passport, as long as you meet minimum time-in-country requirements.

Best of all, you don’t even need a lawyer. Compared to what I’ve seen in Europe and North America, the red tape involved in the Chilean immigration process is minimal; local companies in Chile have tremendous latitude in hiring foreign workers without the government getting involved.

I personally know a number of foreigners who have moved to Chile and obtained work visas in this way– South Africans, Americans, Canadians, Spaniards, French, Brits, Russians, Chinese…

One Cuban acquaintance of mine managed to escape the Castro absurdity 3 years ago. Rather than stow away for Miami, though, she opted for a much longer journey, making her way to Chile.

She eventually found a job with a Canadian mining company (an English-language environment) based here. This is remarkable when you think about it– that a foreign company can come to Chile and hire non-Chileans with ease.

In the article, Chile’s Labor Minister Bruno Baranda confirmed his government’s openness to foreigners, indicating that there is a major shortage of laborers, skilled workers, and professionals in mining, construction, and agriculture.

I can personally attest to the shortage of agricultural workers– it’s been extremely difficult to find so much as a day laborer in the town near our farm despite the premium wages we’ve been offering. As a result, I’m considering bringing in additional manpower from abroad under the ‘visa a contrato’ scheme.

Furthermore, agricultural professionals in my area like agronomists and irrigation specialists are often booked weeks in advance… another interesting indicator of the opportunities down here.

I’ve been saying this for a while now, but I’ll say it again: if the job market looks bleak where you are, take matters into your own hands… especially if you’re young and facing absolutely zero prospects. Get your feet wet abroad– the opportunities are much brighter, and the experience can be life-changing.

 

[nicolewong]

Chile Wants Your Poor, Your Huddled Masses, Your Tech Entrepreneurs

This article is about business class immigration in Chile

Editor’s note: This is a guest post by Vivek Wadhwa, an entrepreneur turned academic. He is a Visiting Scholar at UC-Berkeley, Senior Research Associate at Harvard Law School and Executive in Residence at Duke University.

Are you an immigrant who is fed up with waiting for years for a green card which you may never get? Or a tech entrepreneur looking to dramatically cut costs? I’ve got a suggestion for you. Move South. No, I don’t mean to Los Angeles or San Diego, I’m taking about way down South in Chile. They’ll welcome you with open arms and offer you incentives which will cut your burn rate more than half. And you’ll get to live in a land which makes even California look drab.

I just returned from a fascinating trip to Chile. Their government invited me to view the progress they had made in becoming an outsourcing hub. I was impressed with their ability to grow outsourcing from nothing to close to $1 billion in revenue over a mere seven years. But I didn’t see how they could grow much more in the body-intensive outsourcing segment without choking off local industry by sucking all the capable engineers and scientists into relatively high paying IT jobs. I told them that they had as much of a chance to compete with India in outsourcing as India had in competing with them in copper exports. India has a billion people. Chile has only 16 million people, less than some Indian cities. But Chile does have 40% of the world’s copper, a magnificent inflation hedge.

Chile may not become an outsourcing powerhouse. But this South American gem could very well morph into the new land of opportunity for immigrants in general and export-centric tech entrepreneurs. The Chilean government has put together an incredible slate of incentives for technology-based companies that export their products. The government wants you to invest $500,000 over 5 years, but is pretty flexible about how you do this.

So what do you get for your $500,000? To start with, they’ll give you a visa. You can stay as long as you want – even permanently. You need to submit a business plan but you have a lot of latitude for what’s an acceptable business. Any type of high tech products, medical or biotech products, or green or cleantech products get the stamp of approval, as does software or even online gaming or social network software. Even if you want to set up a call center or technical support service that derives revenues from sales to foreign companies and they think you’re legit, you’ll get the visa.

But first, you want to check out the country, right? The government will give you 60% of your due diligence costs, or up to $30,000, to visit and explore Chile. And they’ll grant you another $30,000 to launch your company in Chile. If you work from one of their tech centers, the government will pay for 5 years of rent (up to $1 million) or split the costs if you want to locate elsewhere in this gorgeous country.

How about workforce incentives? Chile has you covered. The government will pay you (as an approved entrepreneur) up to $25,000 for the first year of “training costs” for any locals you hire. By the way, Chile has some excellent engineering schools so it’s not terribly difficult to pick up a good Java or C# programmer. They typically make $15,000-30,000 per year. Can’t find the local talent you want? Chile will subsidize your efforts to bring folks from Sunnyvale, Mumbai or wherever you may find them. And you can train these folks on Chile’s dime as well. And if you decide to buy some land and build your own labs or offices, they’ll give you 40% of your costs up to $2 million. How about for H-1B immigrants or other talented folks who want to move to Chile? Simple. Get a legitimate tech job and they’ll give you a visa, no questions asked. Are you starting to get my drift? (Note: If Chile took even one-quarter of all the H-1B holders current working in tech jobs in America, they would probably come close to doubling the size of their technology workforce).

But wait, there must be a catch. Not that I can find. I visited Vina Del Mar, a beautiful beach resort about an hour from Santiago. The weather and landscape is just like California (except they’ve got their seasons reversed – when its summer in the U.S., it’s winter down under). Vina del Mar is located right next to Chile’s wine country, boasts magnificent beaches and looks like a modern version of Miami. Guess what a fully furnished 2 bedroom apartment on the beach costs? $500 per month. Even the capital city of Santiago looks and feels like a new European city, with very low crime rates, great weather and friendly natives. For those true California boys, Chile even has great surfing.

To top this off, Chile is a thriving democracy with one of the most open economies in South America. In fact, if I was starting a new tech company and didn’t need to be in any particular area, I’d start it in Chile in a heartbeat. What really struck me was how many Chileans I met who boasted of their country being a “land of immigrants.” Everyone told stories about how Chile was built by immigrants and welcomed the world’s most skilled and most oppressed. This reminded me of how America used to be before the xenophobes started blaming immigrants for all their own shortcomings and misery. Seems too good to be true, doesn’t it? There are some downsides. Chile is a 15 hour flight from the West Coast. And if you’re going to stay long-term, you’ll need to learn Spanish. That’s not a big price to pay for all the benefits.

Yearning to be free of the costs and constraints of the tech landscape in North America? Go South, young techie.

 

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Chile boosts funding for science and technology

Paula Leighton

SANTIAGO - Chile has launched five new science and technology centres as part of the country's attempt to boost investment in research and development.

The 'centres of excellence' — formed around the work of five research groups — were launched earlier this month (2 September) with funding from the country's National Commission for Scientific and Technological Research (CONICYT).

They join eight other centres launched last year as part of the same US$101 million funding programme.

"These centres are the leading initiative of [Chile's] national science policy, both in terms of the amount of money invested and the broad professional experience of their research groups," César Muñoz, director of CONICYT's Associative Research Programme, told SciDev.Net. "This funding will allow researchers to consolidate and sustain work they were already doing."

The new centres involve the country's Centre for Optics and Photonics (CEFOP), the Science and Technology Centre of Valparaiso, the Centre for the Development of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, the Advanced Mining Technology Center, and the Institute for Complex Engineering Systems.

Areas of research at these centres are based on guidelines issued by Chile's National Innovation Council for Competitiveness. They are also in line with recommendations made by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) — a governmental forum of mostly developed nations.

In a report issued last April, the OECD urged Chile to prioritise science funding for "more excellence centres and regional initiatives, and [to] support research areas strategic for the economic development".

It also recommended that more investment in infrastructure, focused on a small number of centres. In addition, these centres should seek partnerships and financing from the business sector. The centres should also engage in research agreements with local and international centres, and commit to training young scientists.

CEFOP, which is developing remote sensing technologies and optic instruments for space and satellite missions, is working with the European space consortium EADS-Astrium.

"We are looking forward to training the next generation of engineers and opticians who will take part in the development of specific instruments for the next generation of satellites," CEFOP director, Carlos Saavedra, told SciDev.Net.

 

[neddy]

Is Classism still a big problem in Chile?

 

[chuckyworld]

What a big change isn't that city of Santiago, it look so much different from the 70's, I prefer city like Valparaiso, Antofagasta and Pucon which would be a nice place to retired.

 

[nicolewong]

Apartment building

 

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Valle Nevado Ski Resort
Santiago Metropolitan Region, Chile

 

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Downtown Santiago, Chile

Chilean girls at rooftop of hi-rise at Las Condes, Santiago, Chile

Rooftop party at Las Condes, Santiago, Chile

 

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Easter Island

 

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Penguins in Chile

Penguins at Punta Arenas, Chile

 

[winnipegjets]

There is hope for sinkees ...Chile, here we come.

 

[winnipegjets]

Chile wants you and will give you $40k to go there.

Countries Seek Entrepreneurs From Silicon Valley

A bold new billboard looms over U.S. 101, the highway that runs through the heart of the global technology industry. "H-1b problems?" it reads. "Pivot to Canada."

That sassy invitation is directed at the thousands of foreigners having trouble getting temporary visas, known as H-1b's, to work in the United States. Canada's new so-called start-up visa offers them the prospect of permanent residency and with it, the country's relatively low business taxes and public health insurance.

Canada is not alone in reaching out to foreign entrepreneurs. In a bid to create their own versions of Silicon Valley, Britain and Australia have dangled start-up visas like this too. Chile is even offering seed money to lure foreigners to come to Santiago and get their start-ups off the ground.

But the seductions of this Silicon Valley are hard to resist for the men and women who dream of building the next Google (or at least being the next Google acquisition). This is where they want to be.

"It's like being in Florence during the Renaissance," is how Xavier Lasa, a Spanish computer coder, put it recently. He sounded dead serious. He had come to Mountain View, just south of San Francisco, on a short-term business visa to join a technology incubator program called 500 Startups. He was building a tool for brands to advertise on the Web.

Like many foreign tech entrepreneurs angling to stay here, he had his eyes on Washington, not Ottawa. The landmark immigration bill that the full Senate is to take up next week includes a provision that Silicon Valley investors have pressed hard for: a new visa category for entrepreneurs who have persuaded American investors to back them with at least $100,000 in financing.

Never mind that immigrants don't need special visas to be entrepreneurial; research shows that they are far more likely than native-born Americans to start businesses. Start-up visas are an easy political sell, which also explains Canada's latest gamble.

When Canada's immigration minister, Jason T. Kenney, came to visit 500 Startups recently, on a gloriously sunny Friday afternoon, he got a taste of what attracts foreigners. Dave McClure, a co-founder of the incubator, took him straight to the wall-to-wall 12th-floor window.

"Facebook is that way," Mr. McClure said, pointing to the 360-degree view. "You can see Apple over there."

"There's Sand Hill Road," he continued cheerfully, motioning toward the wide boulevard lined on both sides with big-name venture capital firms. "Stanford is just up that way."

The room was full of foreign entrepreneurs, huddled over laptops or sketching out business plans on whiteboards.

Julian Garcia, a programmer from Chile who was building a tool for marketers to target potential customers by location, explained his view of the Valley. "Here, you build something incredible, in two years, you get acquired."

Aditya Sahay, the founder of a men's fashion site, from India, retorted, "Even if you build something not incredible, you still get acquired — in four months!"

Mr. Kenney kept his game face on as Mr. McClure waxed about the attractions of the Valley. In an interview later, he said he was certain that some of the foreign entrepreneurs, uncertain about their immigration status in the United States, could be tempted by, say, Manitoba. He called them "a captive audience," and said he hoped to take advantage of what could be a short window of opportunity for his country while Congress argues over how to fix its own immigration law.

The new Canadian visa is not for tech entrepreneurs per se, but the venture capital requirements favor technology start-ups over more traditional immigrant businesses, like corner shops and restaurants. And the offer is far more generous than its American counterpart.

Anyone with one year of college and 75,000 Canadian dollars from an approved Canadian angel investor, or 200,000 Canadian dollars from an approved Canadian venture capitalist, can apply for the visa. Applicants need to be able to speak basic English or French. They need not prove they will create any jobs.

Mr. Kenney said he believed that investors, rather than workers in his ministry, were more capable of vetting who would be good for his country.

"The kind of rigorous assessment made by investors will ensure that the qualified applicants have really a high level of human capital and they are going to be able to move around the economy," the minister said.

Asked what happens if their businesses fail, he said he was confident that skilled, entrepreneurial foreigners would dust themselves off and find jobs in Canada's technology industry. "It's a risk we're willing to take," he said.

American lawmakers have opted for a more cautious approach. The proposed Senate bill would grant temporary visas valid for three years, unlike Canada, which would grant permanent residency. The Department of Homeland Security would have to report to Congress every three years on what kinds of businesses the recipients create, how many jobs they produce, and how much revenue.

It is not geared toward entrepreneurs in any specific industry, though the rhetoric around it has centered mainly on technology. Technology investors, like Mr. McClure, have been actively pushing for it.

"From a political perspective, the goal of the start-up visas is to demonstrate they're bringing in the sexiest, highest-value people," said Madeleine Sumption, assistant director for research at the Washington-based Migration Policy Institute, who has studied start-up visa programs worldwide.

But, she pointed out, most immigrant entrepreneurs — Google's co-founder, Sergey Brin, included — come in on other visas. "You don't need an entrepreneur visa to have entrepreneurs," she added. "You would have to let in a lot of people before you guarantee some Sergey Brins."

Australia offers its version of a green card to those who secure 1 million Australian dollars in financing from approved Australian venture capitalists. Britain offers temporary visas to those who procure £50,000 from a venture backer. Chile doles out $40,000 in equity-free seed capital to foreign visitors who want to start a technology business.

Ayan Barua, from India, has already spent six months in Chile and taken advantage of its offer. Even though his girlfriend, who is Australian, has tried to persuade him to apply for her country's start-up visa, he has resisted. Instead, he and his business partner, Vamshi Mokshagundam, have returned to Silicon Valley repeatedly to develop their business, a recommendation engine for businesses shopping for software.

Their funders are here, they said, as are their initial customers. So too are other entrepreneurs whose guidance they seek. "It's hard to find advice and mentorship anywhere else," Mr. Mokshagundam said. "That's a big deal for us."

Mr. Barua described California as the N.B.A. of the start-up world. "The adrenaline rush you need as an entrepreneur is here," he said.

If the omnibus immigration bill winding its way through the Senate were to become law, he said, he would absolutely apply.

If it did not, he and his partner said they might consider the Canadian visa. They would still want to come to Silicon Valley as often as possible. But they could use Canada as their base, as they use Bangalore, India, now. "It would be a shorter flight," Mr. Mokshagundam said.

 

[fanta]

Chile wants you and will give you $40k to go there.

$40K is cheap compared to the money given out by Singapore to prospective PRs from China, India, Malaysia, Phillipines, Indonesia, Vietnam etc. in the form of tuition grants, scholarships, etc money given to foreigners easily.

Still it is good that Chile is encouraging people to migrate there, seems like they are the Singapore of the Americas..

 

[nicolewong]

Chinese in Santiago performing cultural show

Terracota in Chile

He Yuan Restaurant, Santiago, Chile

Chinese Exhibition in Chile

 

[nicolewong]

Chinese New Year Parade, Santiago, Chile

Pagoda inaugurated at O'Higgins Park, Santiago, Chile

Chinese pilgrims in Chile, 1965

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and ECLAC Executive Secretary Alicia Bárcena at United Nations' commission headquarters in Santiago, Chile