The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Heraldo Muñoz, and the Austrian Ambassador to Chile, Joachim Öppinger, today signed a Working Holiday Agreement that will allow young Chileans and Austrians aged 18 to 30 years to stay in the other country for a period of up to twelve months, provided they meet the requirements stipulated by both states.
"We believe that relations at the governmental level have a fundamental complement through these agreements, because they allow people to get to know each other better and give greater support to the already positive relations that we have between both countries", said the Minister after the signing.
The Secretary of State stressed that Chile and Austria have significant bilateral trade. "Chile is Austria's main trading partner in Latin America, we have had a government relationship dating back to the 19th century and I remember with great affection the visit we had with the President of the Republic, Michelle Bachelet, to Austria in December 2015". In that regard, he added that "we have a strong relationship at a governmental, economic and cultural level and now we are adding this other aspect of exchange of young people, which I believe will give it a stronger support and interest".
It should be noted that Chile has been quite active in the signing of Working Holiday Agreements with various countries. They have signed with Australia, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, New Zealand, Korea, Sweden and the Czech Republic. In addition, one was signed with Portugal a couple of months ago and similar agreements are in place with Canada and Switzerland.
"The Working Holiday programs that Chile has had, of these visas for young people who are going to travel and work for up to a year, have been very successful, and I am sure that with Austria it will be the same", concluded the Minister.