When you become expats, you also become experts in bureaucracy. There is a lot {A LOT} of paperwork that goes into moving you, legally, from one country and into another. It takes months to gather all of the appropriate forms and signatures. Once you think you have them all {and there is always one missing, or one that got added at the last minute} you get them all signed, stamped and sealed by your home country. They then get sent off to the country you are moving to and they get signed, stamped and sealed all over again. They are airmailed back to your home country and you get to trek back to the embassy again, where you have it all stamped and sealed again by your home country - or the country you are going to. I tend to get confused at this point since so many people have officially signed, sealed and delivered them. By this time, you have had your picture taken umpteen times, driven to the nearest embassy at least twice, been finger printed at least twice {more if they don't accept your fingerprints. And yes, this does happen more than you think}. You are now questioning why it was that you wanted to become an expat in the first place... But what would a new adventure be without a bit of adventure thrown in before you even start?
After a few months, you are finally cleared for take off {hee-hee}. You say goodbye to your land and say hello, bleary eyed and exhausted to your new country. Well, at least in our case. An overnight flight with a 20 month old and a 3 year old will do that to you. They give you a few days to settle in without having to sign anything or have your picture taken. But it's a ruse. Because you still have to have all of your paperwork verified for the last time and have new paperwork and ID's issued. It's almost diabolical. Because I forgot to mention - all of this must be done in person, at various offices, in various parts of the city.
Yes, in person. Even if you are only 20 months old.
It is exhausting. And not a lot of fun for anyone...whether you are 20 months or closing in on 40. Finally they clear you to go unpack your belongings that have finally shown up after 6 weeks at see. And you wonder if that is any better but it has to be. It just has to...
Pretty soon you forget all about it and it becomes just another experience under your belt. You start swapping stories with other expats about your missteps and your mistakes. And you all get a good laugh. You deign to give advice to the newbies because you feel like you are a war torn veteran. You know which embassy needs to emboss their seal and which can get away with putting the placate on. You know what time of day you should show up at the Municipal building so you can get in and out without even having to pay for parking. You can answer how to go about getting your driver's license in your sleep {and that is saying something as it involves certified original copies of your college diploma - yep, must be a college graduate - along with triplicates of your birth certificate that are also embassy certified, copies of bills to prove where you live, a written test [in Spanish, no translator available], a hand eye coordination test, a response time test and last - and least - the driving test. And that is only in my comuna...it changes for each one.} But I digress...
Two years in, and it all just seems like it was a dream...kind of like a root canal. You know it wasn't fun but a couple of years down the road, you can't really remember the actual pain and recovery and it all is just an ancient memore. But, and you knew there was a BUT, if you live out of the country long enough, you get to do it all again.
Yippeeeeeee!
Our Visa's are expiring this month. Though there is a little less paperwork this time, it's only a bit less, and there are new pictures that need to be taken, and still a few trips to various government buildings. There is a Certificado de Antecedentes that needs to be run {a criminal background check on anyone in the family over 18}. And as hard as B tried to get mine for me it was a no go. I had to be there in person and present my RUT card {kind of like your drivers license, social security card and State ID wrapped into one - but the number is given out freely. To everyone. To anyone.} Which, did I forget to mention, all of our RUT cards are expiring too. That means more pictures taken on site at the Municipal building, with the whole family present. And there is no such thing as an appointment. This one is a first come, first served and the wait can be interminable. Oh, and since our Visa's go in our passports, the passports must all be valid for at least 6 months past the renewal date of the Visa. MadHatter's just missed the cutoff. You know what that means, right? Yep, more pictures, more paperwork, more family trips. Because they have different requirements for Visa pictures and passport pictures we had to get another set. And then a family trip to the U.S. Embassy because both parents must show up in person to renew a child's passport. And then a trip back to pick it up in 2-3 weeks.
I guess the bright side is we get to spend a lot of time together as a family. But I think the girls {and the adults} could think of better ways to spend family time!
And I am not done yet...
In addition to this already growing pile of photos, forms and signatures, visits to the Embassy and the Municipal building, we moved right when the country renews ALL of it's Patente's {car registrations} and SOAP {mandatory car insurance}. This one is a bit easier since the whole country has to do it and they have about 6 weeks to get it done. The governments cooperates and all of a sudden little stands pop up all over the city telling you where you can pay and when. Easy peasy, but it is still one more thing that needs to be accomplished in March.
All in all, it's just a lot of bureaucracy. And we all deal with it sometimes. But I will say that in the U.S. it flows a lot faster and many of these things could have been taken care of online. But I guess that is one of the things that encouraged B and I to become expats - the ability to really live in {and be frustrated by} another country's way of doing things. It's what makes us miss and appreciate the U.S. at times. And those times are balanced by the moments that we know we would not want to be anywhere else. It's a give and take, just like anything else in life.
And since all of our paperwork will be renewed for the next two years, I think this may be the last time we will have to do it. At least for our stay in Chile.
Makes me kind of nostalgic for it already...
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