Ecuador

Conditional customs registration for air travellers: the electronic FRA must be filed only by those who (1) enter with taxable goods (goods exceeding the personal-effects list in quantity, value or measure, or not on it); (2) bring in or take out cash, bearer negotiable instruments, precious metals or stones worth 'igual o superior a USD $10,000' (equal to or above USD 10,000); or (3) are non-resident foreigners who register cash on entry to qualify for the ISD exit-tax exemption (stay up to 90 days). Under Manual General SENAE-SENAE-2026-0041-RE (effective 2026-05-04), every adult traveller — or family group, which files one FRA through the accompanying parent or guardian — meeting these conditions must register the FRA electronically before customs control; unaccompanied minors' tax obligations fall on their legal representatives. The FRA is personal (no one may file it for a third party) and is shown as QR code or PDF with the passport before the scanner; paper is accepted only if the FRA website is unavailable, confirmed by SENAE. Declaring taxable goods means going directly to physical inspection and payment — distinct from mere inspection or the exempt allowance: goods with FOB value up to and including USD 2,000 are cleared in the International Arrival Hall using only the FRA (the inspection report serves as a simplified customs declaration); a single item, kit or set above USD 2,000 may still be cleared there; other goods above USD 2,000 cannot be cleared in the hall and need a customs destination within 5 working days (return abroad, express abandonment or temporary warehouse for formal import). Taxable goods worth between USD 1,000 and 2,000 without an FRA draw a fine for regulatory breach (COPCI Art. 193(d)) in addition to duties (below USD 1,000: duties only; above USD 2,000: offence or contravention proceedings possible). Duties unpaid within 5 working days of arrival mean definitive abandonment. Goods needing permits may enter without them if worth up to USD 500, once per fiscal year (clothing, footwear and made-up textiles excepted). Exempt personal effects include one TV up to 60-inch, one monitor up to 32-inch, one drone worth up to USD 1,000, one new plus one used mobile phone, up to 3 L alcohol (18+), and 500 ml perfume per passenger (1,000 ml per family). Neither page nor the manual states a fee for filing the FRA itself. The manual also applies supplementarily to maritime travellers. Legal basis: SENAE-SENAE-2025-0076-RE (2025-07-28) remains in force — it is not among the resolutions repealed by SENAE-SENAE-2026-0041-RE (which repeals SENAE-2017-0345, 2017-0408, 2023-0079, 2024-0123, 2025-0068 and 2025-0117).

Conditional customs registration for land-border travellers: the FRA filing conditions are the same as by air — only those who (1) enter with taxable goods (goods exceeding the personal-effects or cross-border family-basket limits), (2) bring in or take out cash, bearer negotiable instruments, precious metals or stones worth 'igual o superior a USD $10,000' (equal to or above USD 10,000), or (3) are non-resident foreigners registering cash on entry for the ISD exit-tax exemption must file it; ordinary travellers carrying only personal effects do not ('FRA — sólo cuando aplique'). It is shown as QR code or PDF with the passport or cédula before customs control, and it is personal (no third-party filing). Filing the FRA is distinct from clearing goods: taxable goods that exceed the exception regime's limit require the corresponding customs declaration in addition to the FRA — the FRA alone is not the import declaration. Separate goods channels: cross-border-trade goods up to and including USD 2,000 are registered electronically as a Declaración Aduanera Simplificada (DAS), payable only at authorised banks (never cash to officials); above USD 2,000 the traveller must register as importer, engage an authorised customs broker and file a Declaración Aduanera de Importación (DAI). Once per fiscal year, up to USD 500 of taxable goods may be imported without control documents (permits or technical certifications). No fee for filing the FRA itself is stated. Legal basis: SENAE-SENAE-2025-0076-RE (2025-07-28) and the transborder regime, SENAE-SENAE-2019-0033-RE as amended by SENAE-SENAE-2025-0077-RE.

Land travellers entering Ecuador in a private or tourist-rental vehicle: the Declaración Juramentada de Turista (DJT) is the sworn declaration through which SENAE authorises the vehicle's temporary admission free of import duties and charges, conditional on its mandatory re-export. Required at the border: identity document (passport duly stamped by migration), driving licence and vehicle registration; for rented vehicles, the rental contract, under which the entering vehicle constitutes a special preferential lien in favour of Ecuadorian Customs. The vehicle may remain for the same maximum period granted to the tourist under the migration record; Ecuadorians who prove residence abroad receive 90 calendar days, consecutive or not, within 12 months. A DJT is never issued to residents of Ecuador, and it is used only where no bilateral or international convention in force with Ecuador covers the vehicle. Local passenger transport and taxis instead present the single passenger-transport document; tourist-transport vehicles present the tourist transport document and the group list.