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South American Countries Reach Visa Agreement

In previous years, when travel between countries was much less frequent than today and globalization did not exist, it made sense for countries to have visa agreements with one another. However, as global trade grew and the internet started to create a world of virtual borders, many regions started to rethink their visa policies. Europe was the first continent to create a visa-less region for citizens of most of its countries. The latest continent to join them is South America.

Citizens from all twelve countries in South America will now be able to travel freely on the continent, without the need to produce a visa each time. The list of countries is as follows: Argentina, Venezuela, Bolivia, Uruguay, Brazil, Suriname, Chile, Peru, Colombia, Paraguay, Ecuador and Guyana. At a meeting between foreign ministers on Friday, representatives said that the policy should come into effect within three months.

In previous years, the region?s visa policy has been extremely erratic. The frequent changes in governments in many South American countries has meant that visa policies changed from one month to the next, causing confusion and frustration for travelers. The new decision hopefully means greater stability on the visa front, despite the wide difference in political policies amongst South American nations.