Working Holiday - Chile

The primary purpose of your stay should be to holiday for an extended period of time and secondarily to work in order to supplement your travel funds.

With a Working Holiday residence permit you are allowed to work to a limited extent. This means that you are allowed to work a number of months during a period of 1 year. You are also allowed to attend an educational course of limited duration.

Normally, if you have been on a working holiday stay in Denmark before, it is not possible for you to be granted a permit for a new working holiday stay.

It is a requirement that you are a citizen of and live permanently in Chile.

This also means that you must hold a valid passport issued by Chile.

You must submit your application for Working Holiday in Chile. If you submit your application in another country, we will reject your application.

You must submit your application using a printable form. You therefore cannot use SIRI's online application form. If you are a citizen of Chile and you apply using SIRI's online form, we will reject your application.

You must submit your application in person.

It is therefore important that you follow the instructions on the tab 'How to apply'.

The Working Holiday agreements have been made to give young citizens from these countries the opportunity to learn about each other’s cultures and ways of living. It is therefore a requirement that you are of a certain age.

You must be at least 18 years but must not have turned 31 at the time you submit the application for a Working Holiday residence permit.

It is a requirement that you have enough money to support yourself during your stay in Denmark.

Documentation that you can support yourself can, for example, be in the form of a statement from your bank.

The documentation must show the date and your name.

The documentation must be translated into English or one of the Nordic languages.

Bank statement must show the balance of the account and not be more than 30 days old. If the currency of the account is not evident, the currency must appear in the statement. If you attach more than one bank statement, all statements must be dated the same day.

You must document that you have sufficient funds equal to DKK 15,000. In addition, you must either hold a return ticket to your homeland or sufficient funds to buy one equal to DKK 5,000.

This means that you must show funds equal to DKK 20,000 or DKK 15,000 + a return ticket to your homeland.

Please note that if you present a return ticket as proof of additional means of support (equivalent to DKK 5,000) and the return date on the return ticket is earlier than one year from the date of your permit, your permit will be shortened accordingly. 

It is a requirement that you have insurance.

You must document that you have taken out an insurance covering hospitalization.

The documentation must be translated into English or one of the Nordic languages.

In addition to your Working Holiday residence permit you will be granted a limited work permit.

Your work permit only grants you the right to carry out salaried work. This means that you are not allowed to work as an entrepreneur, i.e. you are not allowed to run your own business in Denmark.

Your limited work permit allows you to work for up to 6 months during a 12 months stay.

The number of months is calculated from the number of months in which your employer reports payment of a salary. It is therefore irrelevant for how many days or hours in any given month you have been working.

If you work more than your limited work permit allows you to or if you work as an entrepreneur, the work will be considered as illegal work. Illegal work can, among other things, mean that your residence permit will be revoked.

You are allowed to participate in an educational or study programme with a duration of up to 6 months.

With a residence permit in Denmark, you are entitled to free Danish lessons. However, you must have turned 18 years and have your Danish address registered in the Danish National Register.

If you have a residence permit in Denmark based on work, study, etc. you have to pay a deposit before you can start receiving lessons. Be aware that you can lose your deposit if you do not pass the different modules within a specific timeframe.

Your municipality of residence is obliged to offer you Danish lessons and refer you to a language centre. If you have not been offered Danish lessons within a month after registering your address in Denmark, you can contact your municipality. 

You will (typically) be taught together with other foreign nationals who have arrived in Denmark recently.

You must be able to support yourself during your stay. Therefore, you are not allowed to receive benefits under the terms of the Active Social Policy Act, study grants or housing benefits.

If you receive such benefits during your stay, your permit can be revoked – and you will lose the right to stay in Denmark.

If an authority, e.g. a municipality, disburses benefits to foreign nationals, SIRI will be notified.

A residence permit can only be valid until 3 months before the expiry date of your passport.

If your passport has a shorter validity than the otherwise possible period of stay, your residence permit will be shortened. This means that the validity of your residence permit will be shorter than it could be. When you have renewed your passport, you can apply for an extension of your residence permit – however, this can only be done 3 months before your permit expires at the earliest.

Read more about the passport requirements.

The permit can only be granted until the date to which your insurance is valid.

If your insurance does not cover you for a full year from the approval date of your permit, your permit will be shortened. This means that the validity of your residence permit will be shorter than it could be.

You can apply for an extension of your residence permit when you have taken out a new insurance.