Ecuador & Galapagos Entry Requirements and Tourist Visa

Updated: 25th October 2022

Everyone must go through Ecuador to get to the Galapagos Islands. Please check with your local Ecuadorian embassy regarding entry and visa requirements for Ecuador if you are unsure. Generally, your passport should have at least six months of validity for your entry to Ecuador.

According to art. 131 of the Law of Human Mobility, visitors from the following countries must apply for a visa before entering Ecuador. Recently added countries are in bold.

Corona measures were lifted

Ecuador is abolishing all restrictions on entry to the country that were previously in force in relation to the Corona pandemic. This also applies to the Galapagos Islands. Holidaymakers who want to visit the South American country and the archipelago no longer have to present a vaccination or test certificate with regard to a possible Corona disease when entering the country. Neither a PCR test nor an antigen test is required, nor proof of Corona vaccinations. The COE Nacional, the national committee for emergency measures in Ecuador, which was set up in view of the Corona pandemic since March 2020, has thus reacted to the current decline in incidences and lifted all health-related entry restrictions for Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands after 31 months.

However, travellers still have to – as was already the case before the Corona pandemic – provide (Declaración de salud del viajero), show it before boarding and present it again upon entry.

There are currently no more Corona-related restrictions on exit and transit. The obligation to wear a mask in the country has also been abolished.

The CEO of Galapagos PRO, Beate Zwermann, travelled to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands in October 2022 and experienced a thriving country first-hand. Feel free to call us if you have any further questions. Click here to make an appointment.

A health declaration must be submitted upon entry. Travellers receive a tourist visa by means of a stamp in their passport, which gives them a permit for a stay of up to three months. This is free of charge. Entry data has been stored centrally for several years. So if you are planning a more extended stay in Ecuador, it is best to inform yourself about the residence regulations at the embassies of Ecuador in good time.

Entry to the Galapagos Islands

The Galapagos Provincial Council (Consejo de Gobierno de Regimen Especial de Galápagos, CGREG) tightened the entry requirements for visitors to the Galapagos Islands on July 1, 2020: Visitors must now register their travel program in advance with the Ministry of Tourism through a local travel agency or hotel based in the Galapagos Islands and have it approved. All services must be verifiably booked and paid for. The confirmation (Salvoconducto, SC) must be presented at the airport when purchasing the Transit Control Card (TCC). The itinerary should only include providers (hotels, excursions, and transport) registered and certified by the health authorities, as well as the outward and return flights to the islands.

Further entry formalities, such as the Transit Control Card registration, should be done online, just like the check-in to the flight. Galapagos PRO takes care of the registration for its guests.

To enter the Galapagos Islands, travellers must present the following documents:

• Passport
• Return Flight ticket to and from the Galapagos
• Salvoconducto (travel plan registration). As of July 1, 2020, all travellers must present their itinerary to the Ministry of Tourism through a travel company or hotel with a registered office in the Galapagos Islands.
• Transit Control Card – available at the airport
• Health Declaration, which is filled out upon entry into Ecuador and contains the whereabouts of travellers while travelling in mainland Ecuador
• Private travel health insurance

At airports in the Galapagos Islands, travellers must purchase/present the following:

• Presentation of Health declaration form
• Payment of the national park fee