LOANS AND LOCAL PARTNERS IN CHILE

It is almost near to impossible for a just arrived foreigner to obtain a checking account and a loan in Chile. If you begin from scratch, this could take you easily two years. This apparently underdeveloped way of doing business here, is one of the reasons of the financial and economical strenght of Chile. Scam and money laundery is slower and harder to acomplish.
A SOCIETY IS AN OPTION.
Being a partner in an already running business is the shortest option to someone just arriving to the country to get a job and be a businessman with all the normal advantages of a Chilean businessman.
INVESTING WITH CHILEANS
Many foreigners bring on their mental "hard disk" the usual way of doing business of their home country. Local practices are A MUST to know, to get the advantages of Chile. This is the reason normally large investors, investing hundreds of millions of dollars try to buy an already running company or become a partner on it. They usually keep most of the local management.
However on my own experience with small foreign businessmen, most of them try to create a business from zero, on their own. This usually finds the VISAS problems for residency, not understanding the language, the laws and most important of all, the non written practices, which are by far more critical to a business. Many foreigner just loose money. At the end of many years, they finish paying this expensive introductory course into living in Chile and in South America.
So, my practical sugesstion is to become initially a PASIVE INVESTOR, while learning the language, the laws and the culture. Finance a new venture guided by locals, or invest on a running business. On both cases you supress the COUNTRY COST. If you do it by yourself alone, your chance of failure, or of increasing the cost by far, is a real fact.

STRATEGIC PLANNING INTO LIVING IN CHILE
If you plan to invest less than US$ 200.000 in Chile, then this is probably your whole life savings. So, more than investing money you are investing your life. If this is the case, then invest on a joint venture trough a Chilean, as a way to learn about the country, while you get some profit.
If you don't invest trough a third party, then you will find at the end of year with a lot of travelling, high start up cost, and no money earned at all. And no VISA to be an independent businessman.
Instead, our suggestion is that you invest for instance a quarter of your total investment fund on a venture guided by Chileans, while you keep your learning process of the Chilean Culture. At the end of a year, I guarantee you will have some profits on your pocket plus a new life, without the headeaches of dealing alone with the " Chilean Jungle ".
This is the deal we offer you. If you are interested, Contact us to businessinchile@gmail.com