American Citizen Services

U.S. Embassy, Santiago

HOLIDAY EDITION NEWSLETTER NEWSLETTER DECEMBER 2018 American Citizen Services

TRAVELING ABROAD FOR THE HOLIDAYS?

‘Tis the season! And many  Safety and security of you will be traveling back information so you home for the holidays or can assess for your- taking a special trip over- self the risk of travel- SPECIAL POINTS OF seas during this Christmas ing to a particular INTEREST YOU CAN season. Planning ahead can country or region. FIND ON help ensure your time TRAVEL.STATE.GOV  Travelers with special abroad is both enjoyable considerations, such  Information on obtaining U.S. and safe. You can find lots as students, senior Passports of helpful tips on our INSIDE THIS ISSUE: citizens, cruise ship  All you need to know about travel.state.gov website, visas to the U.S. TRAVELING ABROAD 1 passengers and oth- FOR THE HOLIDAYS including: ers.  Travel Advisories and Country SEND US YOUR 1 Specific information for your SUGGESTIONS  Traveler’s checklist to overseas trip.  Helpful tips to plan for remind you of things to  Tips on International Travel CONSUL’S CORNER 2 what to do if some- consider before you go. thing goes wrong  Information on the Bureau of IMPORTANCE OF 2 Consular Affairs. TRAVELLING WITH while overseas. INSURANCE

APOSTILLES 3 CHILEAN VISAS AND 3 EXTRANJERIA

SAFETY AND SECURITY 4 TIPS FOR THE HOLIDAYS

QUESTIONS? IDEAS? ? SUGGESTIONS We want to hear from you! Email us Email us using the subject your suggestions for content for our upcoming line “Newsletter” at newsletters, or questions. One of our consular [email protected] staff will respond and maybe your idea or in- quiry will be featured in our future newsletters! AMERICAN CITIZEN SERVICES PAGE 2

CONSUL’S CORNER Meet our new Consul General Rhonda Wells

Greetings! My name is Rhonda Wells As the Consul General, I am in charge and I am the new Consul General at of the Consular section. We have two the U.S. Embassy in Santiago. I arrived main areas of focus: American Citizen tional security, and facilitate legitimate in Chile in mid-October and will be Services and Visas. We provide emer- travel. I wish all of you the best in here for the next three years. I re- gency assistance to U.S. citizens, deter- 2019. placed Matthew Gillen, who is now mine citizenship, issue passports and

serving in Washington, D.C. Before consular reports of birth abroad, and Caption describing picture or graphic. arriving in Chile, I served two years at provide other types of assistance and the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad, Paki- information to U.S. citizens living or stan. My prior postings include Cara- traveling in Chile. Our daily activities cas, Venezuela, Algiers, Algeria, support the U.S. State Department Guayaquil, Ecuador and Georgetown, mission to protect U.S. citizens and Guyana. their interests abroad, strengthen na-

Rhonda has been a U.S. diplomat with the State Department since 2005

THE IMPORTANCE OF TRAVELING WITH INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL INSURANCE

During the southern summer (December clinics in Santiago may require an imme- For example, does it cover: through March) a large number of tour- diate security deposit from the insurance ists come to Chile to travel through the company before the clinic accepts the  Emergency medical care? different regions of the country. Although patient's hospitalization. the vast majority of visitors’ trips will be  Medical transport back to the U.S.? free of problems, unfortunately some- If you suffer from any illness that requires times diseases or accidents that require the periodic use of prescription medica-  Trip cancellation fees? urgent medical assistance may occur. tions, be sure to bring enough for your entire stay in Chile. The mailing of medi-  The region you will cover in your travels? The Consular Section strongly suggests cines from the United States can be slow that if you intend to travel to Chile (or and require a series of authorizations  The duration of your travel? anywhere overseas!) you purchase medi- from the Ministry of Health in Chile,  Lost luggage? cal insurance with international coverage, which in many cases means that you can- including medical evacuation. It is im- not have timely access to your treatment.  Activities you plan on doing? portant to keep in mind that a medical evacuation from Chile to the United For those travelers who come to Chile to States can easily cost US $ 150,000. In do adventure tourism or extreme sports, it the same way, admission to the main is recommended to verify that their insurance covers this type of activities. BE READY-BE INFORMED! Be advised that pensioners who receive  Learn about the country you will visit, Medicare benefits in the U.S. do not have including visa requirements, local laws and medical care. Check out any kind of coverage for medical expens- any Travel Advisories on the U.S. es overseas. Department of State website for your destination. Travel insurance varies widely and one should carefully read the terms of an in-  Enroll in the Smart Traveler Enroll- surance policy to make sure it fits the ment Program (STEP) needs of the traveler.  Read more about Insurance overseas coverage tips on travel.state.gov HOLIDAY EDITION NEWSLETTER PAGE 3 APOSTILLES, LEGALIZATIONS, AUTHENTICATIONS, OH MY!

Any US Citizen who has moved to District of Columbia and other US Chile has experienced that for any jurisdictions have their own au- trámite, apart from having to stand thority that issues the apostille, so What is an Apostille, in line for quite some time, you will there isn’t one overarching author- anyway? ity that issues all U.S. apostilles. inevitably be asked to submit Apostille is a French word that “apostilled/legalized/authenticated If you need to apostillize any U.S.- means certification. It is the name documents” (in essence, they all issued document, please check of a specialized document issued mean the same thing). Whether it’s which would be the competent (in most cases) by the Secretary a U.S. birth certificate, death cer- authority per U.S. jurisdiction on of State which is attached to your the Hague conference’s website tificate, university degrees, or oth- original document to verify that it here: https://www.hcch.net/en/ is a legitimate document. Once a er U.S.-issued document, they are states/authorities/details3/? document is apostilled, it has legal not valid in Chile unless they have aid=353 an Apostille. Many U.S. citizens are validity in any of the 117 countries signatories of the 1961 Hague mistakenly told to come to the Em- Convention Abolishing the Re- bassy to get the Apostille, or this quirement of Legalization for For- “additional stamp.” Although it’s eign Public Documents. Once you true that some countries allow have the apostille, the document is their diplomatic missions overseas ready to go. It does not require to apostille their government- additional certification by the U.S. issued documents, the U.S. is not Department of State or legaliza- Caption describing picture or graphic. one of them. Each U.S. state, the tion by a U.S. Embassy or Consu- late overseas. Apostilles cannot be obtained at U.S. Embassy Santiago. You must contact the U.S.-granting authority directly

GETTING VISAS IN CHILE

The Chilean Immigration De- https://www.extranjeria.gob.cl/ partment (Departamento de Ex- Extranjería also has an office at tranjería y Migracion) has recent- Santiago’s Comodoro Arturo ly launched an updated version Merino Benítez International “Oh no! I lost my PDI tourist card! of their website. Depending on Airport, where certain services, the service that you need, you What do I do???” are offered such as resolving may need to either call or sched- an irregular visa status for ule an online appointment before those foreign tourists who over- going in person to their offices. In stayed their visas. “Don’t worry! In Santiago you can obtain a duplicate at June 2018, their main office in the Jefatura Nacional de Extranjería, located in Eleuterio

Santiago for public services The U.S. Embassy has no part in Ramirez 852, Santiago, or at the Santiago International moved from San Antonio 580, the process for U.S. citizens ob- Airport (Mon-Fri 8-14hrs). In other Chilean regions go to Santiago to Matucana 1223, San- taining Chilean visas or resi- the closest PDI office. tiago. Their services are provided dence, so any further questions through appointments only, should be directed to Extran- which you can schedule on their jería. website. ‘Tis the Season to be jolly…

...and especially aware of increased criminal activity!

Based on historic trends, it is likely that there will be an increase in the rate of criminal activity during the upcoming holiday season. Exercising increased vigilance during the summer months is critical. Be especially conscious of your surroundings, cognizant of suspicious activity, and proactive in ensuring your own safety and security. Crimes frequently occur in crowded markets, parks, and tourist attractions and most victims are targets of opportunity. Below are a few tips which we hope are helpful! Vehicle Theft and Carjackings Petty Theft and Violent Robbery  Vary routines and routes to and from your destination.  Shop before dark and coordinate shopping  Keep your doors locked and windows closed when inside a vehi- trips with friends. Limit time walking alone cle. and do not wander into unfamiliar areas by  Make sure all doors and windows are locked before leaving vehi- yourself. cles in parking areas.  Do not wear excessive/expensive jewelry. Avoid doing anything that draws unnecessary  Park in a well-lit area. Do not loiter in parking areas while hold- ing shopping packages. attention.  Do not leave your valuables in plain sight,  Do not leave your valuables in plain sight. Instead, consider se- curing them in the trunk. especially at cafes and restaurants. Wallets and purses should be placed in front of you  The most likely places for a carjacking are: high crime areas, and never left over a chair. intersections where you must stop, isolated areas in parking lots,  Avoid carrying large amounts of cash residential driveways and gates, and traffic jams or congested while shopping. areas.  Exercise heightened vigilance and be  In traffic, be mindful of possible avenues of escape. aware of who is around you. Criminals frequently work in tandem to mark potential tar-  Keep some distance between you and the vehicle in front of you gets. so that you can maneuver around it if necessary. (You should  Persons distracted by their cell phones always be able to see the rear tires of the vehicle in front of you.) tend to be heavily targeted by thieves and  When stopped, use your rear and side view mirrors to check your

pickpockets. surroundings. Be alert to anyone who is overly friendly,   “Portanazos” (attacks at your carport gate) have become increas- as it may be a scam. ingly common in Santiago. Remember, if there is a suspicious  If you are being followed or harassed by vehicle or person in front of your gate, do not open the gate. anyone, try to find the nearest police station,  Avoidance is the best way to prevent an attack. hotel, or other public facility to contact the  Non-confrontation is often the best response. The objective is not police. Never lead the person back to your home or stop and engage. to thwart the criminal but to survive!

Home Burglaries

 Do not let anybody into your apartment or into your condominium area unless you know who they are or an appointment was made prior. There have been many scams recently in Lo Barnechea and Santiago where criminals attempt to trick occupants into admitting them into their homes. Always err on the side of caution.  If your residence is equipped with an alarm system and controlled entry system, use them. Please turn on your alarms even if you are leaving home for a short time.  Never close the curtains when you leave on a long weekend or holiday, as it alerts criminals that the home is unoc- cupied. If possible, use electronic timers to turn lights on and off when not at home.  Criminals almost always conduct surveillance of homes and apartment buildings prior to breaking in for greater ef- fectiveness and success.