Chile holds the strongest Latin American passport for moving to Canada.
No other South American country has visa-free travel, a free trade agreement covering 63 professions, and an open working holiday program. You start with privileges no other Latin American passport offers.
Chile advantage
It started in 1996.
When Chile signed Canada’s first Latin American free trade agreement.
Eighteen years later, in 2014, Canada removed the visa requirement for Chilean citizens. The years between built more: a Social Security Agreement, mutual recognition of professional credentials, and a Youth Mobility Agreement opening Canada to Chileans under 35. Today, that history works in your favor. Most chileans haven’t realized it yet.
Three pathways already built into your Chilean passport.
Each one comes from a separate treaty between Chile and Canada. Click any card to see how it works.
01
Travel
Fly with an eTA+
02
Work
Work without LMIA+
63 professions covered under the Canada-Chile Free Trade Agreement. Permits up to 3 years, renewable.
63 professions
03
Youth
Live and work under 35+
IEC Working Holiday and Young Professionals. No job offer required. Two lifetime participations.
Ages 18 to 35
Learn more →Canada recognizes 63 occupations under the Chile Free Trade Agreement (CCFTA).
LMIA free work permits up to 3 years, renewable. Click any category to see if yours is on the list.
01 General Professional 25 professions
- Accountant*
- Architect*
- Computer Systems Analyst
- Disaster Relief Insurance Claims Adjuster
- Economist (incl. Commercial Engineer in Chile)
- Engineer*
- Forester*
- Graphic Designer
- Hotel Manager
- Industrial Designer
- Interior Designer
- Land Surveyor*
- Landscape Architect
- Lawyer* (incl. Notary in Quebec)
- Librarian
- Management Consultant
- Mathematician (incl. Statistician)
- Range Manager/Range Conservationist
- Research Assistant (post-secondary)
- Scientific Technician/Technologist
- Social Worker*
- Sylviculturist (incl. Forestry Specialist)
- Technical Publications Writer
- Urban Planner (incl. Geographer)
- Vocational Counsellor
02 Medical / Allied Health 12 professions
- Dentist*
- Dietitian*
- Medical Laboratory Technologist/Medical Technologist*
- Nutritionist*
- Occupational Therapist*
- Pharmacist*
- Physician (teaching or research only)*
- Physiotherapist/Physical Therapist*
- Psychologist*
- Recreational Therapist*
- Registered Nurse*
- Veterinarian*
03 Scientist 23 professions
- Agriculturist (Agronomist)
- Animal Breeder
- Animal Scientist
- Apiculturist
- Astronomer
- Biochemist
- Biologist
- Chemist
- Dairy Scientist
- Entomologist
- Epidemiologist
- Geneticist
- Geologist*
- Geochemist*
- Geophysicist* (incl. Oceanographer in Mexico/USA)
- Horticulturist
- Meteorologist
- Pharmacologist
- Physicist (incl. Oceanographer in Canada/Chile)
- Plant Breeder
- Poultry Scientist
- Soil Scientist
- Zoologist
04 Teacher 3 professions
- College
- Seminary
- University
Note: The CCFTA work permit is separate from professional licensing. Regulated professions (marked with *) still require provincial licensing to practice in Canada. Verify your profession at the official CICIC Directory of Occupational Profiles.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) covers Chile too. Most people don’t know it.
The 63 professions above come from the CCFTA. The CPTPP entered into force for Chile on 21 February 2023 and covers a different set of occupations. Neither list contains the other, so the right treaty depends on what you do.
01 / Health and law
The CCFTA is your route
Nurses, physiotherapists, dentists, social workers, lawyers and university teachers appear on the CCFTA list. The CPTPP excludes health, education and social services entirely, and excludes judges, lawyers and notaries except foreign legal consultants.
CPTPP exclusion list, IRCC
02 / Tech and business
The CPTPP is your route
Software developers, data scientists, marketing managers and financial analysts are absent from a list written in 1994. Under the CPTPP, every TEER 0 and 1 occupation qualifies, with six exceptions.
CPTPP professionals category, IRCC
03 / Both lists
You choose the treaty
Engineers, architects, accountants and economists are on both. The CCFTA runs up to 3 years. The CPTPP runs one, renewable, and carries the spousal guarantee.
CCFTA Appendix K-03.IV.1 and CPTPP
The CCFTA covers no trades at all. The CPTPP does.
The list of 63 above holds university professions only. A Chilean electrician, plumber or construction technologist has no LMIA exempt route under the CCFTA. The CPTPP opens a technician category: TEER 2 or 3, a technical degree of two years or more, and four years of paid experience in the sector of the contract. One year permit, renewable, with an open work permit for your spouse.
01 Technical occupations 15 occupations
- Electrician*
- Plumber*
- Civil engineering technologist or technician
- Electrical and electronics engineering technologist or technician
- Mechanical engineering technologist or technician
- Industrial engineering technologist or technician
- Computer and information systems technician
- Construction inspector and estimator
- Engineering inspector, tester and regulatory officer
- Industrial instrument technician and mechanic
- Aircraft instrument, electrical and avionics mechanic, technician and inspector
- Oil and gas well driller, servicer and tester
- Graphic designer and illustrator
- Interior designer
- International purchasing and selling agent
02 Supervisors 10 areas
- Food, beverage and tobacco processing
- Forest products processing
- Machinists and related occupations
- Mineral and metal processing
- Mining and quarrying
- Oil and gas drilling and service
- Petroleum, gas and chemical processing and utilities
- Plastic and rubber products manufacturing
- Printing and related occupations
- Textile processing
03 Supervisors and contractors 9 areas
- Carpentry trades
- Electrical trades and telecommunications
- Heavy construction equipment crews
- Installers, repairers and servicers
- Mechanic trades
- Metal forming
- Other construction trades
- Pipefitting trades
- Shaping and erecting trades
Note: unlike the CCFTA, the CPTPP requires licensing or certification at the time you apply if your trade is regulated in your destination province, not after you arrive. Electricians and plumbers are compulsory certification trades in most provinces. Find your occupation and its TEER level in the official NOC finder.
Two windows for chileans under 35.
Canada offers two IEC categories. Same age range, very different odds. The math matters before you apply.
Working Holiday
Open work permit for up to 24 months. No LMIA, no job offer required. For chileans 18 to 35, one lifetime participation.
Learn more about Working Holiday →The 2026 math
Nearly 11 chileans in the pool for every available spot.
670
spots allocated for Chile in 2026
7,897
chileans currently in the pool
23
spots still available
Very low 🙁
IRCC official rating for next round
Young Professionals
In 2026, IRCC officially redistributed Chile’s IEC quotas across categories. Working Holiday allocation dropped from 725 to 670 spots, and the difference moved to Young Professionals.
Young Professionals requires a job offer in Canada related to your studies. Your employer pays a $230 compliance fee. In exchange, IRCC prioritizes this category in invitation rounds.
For chileans with a professional degree and Canadian employer contacts, this is the more strategic path in 2026.
Beyond the headlines, three more advantages that are easy to miss.
These don’t make headlines but they shape how immigration works for chileans in practice. All verified with official Government of Canada sources.
01 / Pensions
Pensions cross borders
Years contributed to AFP in Chile count toward your Canadian pension (CPP and Old Age Security) under a bilateral treaty.
Social Security Agreement, in force since 1 June 1998
02 / Spouse
Your partner works too
If your own permit is issued under the CPTPP, your spouse or common-law partner can get an open work permit guaranteed by treaty. The CCFTA does not carry that guarantee.
CPTPP, in force for Chile since 21 February 2023
03 / Transfer
Transfer with your employer
If your Chilean employer has operations in Canada, you can transfer with a CCFTA Intra-Company permit.
CCFTA Chapter K, modernized 2019
A Vancouver office led by a chilean-canadian.
Who has been bringing Latin Americans to Canada for over 30 years.
We are a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consulting firm based in Vancouver, British Columbia. Our practice is led by a Chilean-Canadian RCIC. For more than three decades the firm has guided Chileans, Mexicans, Colombians, Peruvians and other Latin Americans through the Canadian immigration system.
We know the cultural context, the language, the documents required in your home country, and the practical questions that government websites never answer. We work in Spanish and English, and our approach is built on transparency, accurate legal advice, and long-term relationships with the people we represent.
Learn more about us →related services
Your move from Chile to Canada deserves precise treaty analysis and complete documentation.
Book a free assessment with a licensed RCIC. We review your case against CCFTA, CPTPP, and IRCC requirements and design the right pathway for your specific situation.
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