On this page, you will find:
To find organisations working for LGBTQI+ rights, visit our Chile LGBTQI+ Resources page.
For Chile country of origin information (COI) experts, reports, commentaries, and relevant documents visit our Chile COI page.
Refugee protection
Click here to see the numbers and origins of refugees hosted by Chile.
The following sections contain information on the most important international treaties and agreements of which Chile is signatory, as well as national legislation relevant to the protection of refugees.
Since 1972 Chile has been both a party to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and to its 1967 Protocol. It has also accepted the UN Statelessness Conventions. Chile has also ratified most UN human rights treaties, including the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.
Regionally, it is part of the Ibero-American Forum on Migration and Development (FIBEMYD), an integral part of the Ibero-American Conference.
The national framework of refugee protection in Chile is set out in the 2010 Refugee Law Nº 20.430 “Disposiciones sobre Protección de Refugiados”. It enshrines high standards of protection, including the extended refugee definition in line with the 1984 Cartagena Declaration.
Chile has also signed the Framework Agreement on Resettlement in 1999, which intended to provide the possibility of the resettlement of people coming from third countries where they were already refugees.
Lastly, since 2021 Chile passed the Migration and Immigration Law (Law No. 21325), through which the State promotes the rights of foreigners, regulates their duties and obligations, and creates the National Migration Service.
Legal aid organisations
Website
Facebook
Tel: +56 2 676 2603
Email: consultaclinicajurídica@mail.udp.cl
The Migrants and Refugees Legal Clinic of the Diego Portales University belongs to the Department of Clinics of the University’s Faculty of Law and the Human Rights Centre of the same university.
This clinic is an academic project whose main objective is to develop skills and abilities in students to solve legal problems from an ethical, creative and critical point of view, through guidance and legal representation of the migrant population, asylum seekers and refugees in Chile, considering their human rights, dignity and the specificity of their needs, the potential for them to be in vulnerable conditions, and their own migration project. The students, supervised by the academic team, offer legal advice and representation to the population they serve.
Website
Address: Av. Eliodoro Yañez 832, Providencia, Santiago.
Tel: +569 3862 6223 and +569 3868 1762
Opening Hours: Monday to Friday, from 09:30 to 13:30 hrs and from 15:00 to 17:30 hrs.
The National Human Rights Institute (INDH) is an autonomous public law corporation created by Law No. 20.405 to promote and protect the human rights of all persons living in Chile, established in constitutional and legal norms; in the international treaties signed and ratified by Chile and which are in force, as well as those emanating from the general principles of law, recognised by the international community. It provides legal assistance to refugees in Chile.
Website
Address: Lord Cochrane 104, Santiago, Chile
Tel: +562 2838 7560
Email: santiago@sjmchile.org
The Jesuit Migrant Service in Chile is part of a network of Jesuit Migrant and Refugee Services present in 53 countries around the world. Its purpose is to fight for a more humane, welcoming and intercultural society, in which we recognise each other as equals in dignity and rights. To contribute to the construction of an inclusive and intercultural Chile, it promotes legislative and cultural changes, based on experience, and provides accompaniment and multidimensional guidance for migrants and refugees through an app that can be downloaded with this link.
Website
Tel.: +56 2 2753 3826 and +56 2 265 41063
Email: ayuda.chile@unhcr.org
The UNHCR Office in Chile is not providing support in person. If you need help, you can call or chat with the UNHCR team in Chile through the telephone provided above.
Organisations providing other support to refugees
Website
Address: Nemesio Vicuña #341, comuna de Puente Alto, Santiago
Tel: +56 2287 20020 and
+56 9 420447945
Email: proyectos@sopenacorporacion.cl
Opening Hours: Monday to Friday from 10:00 to 16:30 hrs.
Corporación Dolores Sopeña provides asylum seekers psycho-social services, legal aid, training courses and a coworking space.
Website
Address: Av. Manuel Rodríguez 33 (metro Los Héroes), Santiago
Tel: 226957534 / 226955931
Email: operativorefugio@fasic.orgg
Fundación de Ayuda Social de las Iglesias Cristianas (FASIC) provides professional counseling services to immigrants in Chile.
Website
Address: Avda. Santa María 0150, Providencia, Santiago
Tel: +569 46348930 (humanitarian and medical assistance) and +569 65051364 (psycho-social assistance).
Email: proyectomigrantes@cruzroja.cl
Red Cross Chile (Cruz Roja) provides asylum-seekers humanitarian assistance, medical assistance and also psycho-social services.
Chile LGBTQI+ Resources
Find organisations working for refugee LGBTQI+ rights in Chile.
Chile COI
Find Chile Country of Origin information (COI) experts, reports, commentaries, and relevant documents.
We are always looking to expand the resources on our platform. If you know about relevant resources, or you are aware of organisations and/or individuals to include in our directories, please get in touch.
Last updated May 2023