Chile Deportation Flight Takes 75 Migrants

CHILE · MIGRATION

The Chile deportation flight of Friday 23 October 2026 took 75 foreigners out of the country and pushed the government’s 2026 total past 2,000 expulsions, officials said. The charter left Santiago for Colombia, Peru and the Dominican Republic, and it was the 11th such flight of conservative President José Antonio Kast’s term, which began on 11 March.

For US readers, the numbers show a Latin American government making charter-flight removals a headline policy, much as the Trump administration does. They also matter to Americans who live in, visit or invest in Chile, because the rules apply to every foreigner in irregular status.

Interior Undersecretary Máximo Pavez, who runs migration policy day to day, said the 2,000 mark came before the end of October. He compared it with an average of 1,096 expulsions a year between 2022 and 2025, La Tercera reported.

Who Was on the Chile Deportation Flight

The charter left Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport in Santiago on Friday morning and stopped in the northern city of Iquique, where the last seven people boarded, La Tercera reported. Those seven were six Colombians and one Peruvian.

Of the 75 people on board, 50 were Colombian, 14 were Peruvian and 11 were Dominican. Sixty-nine were removed by administrative order and six by court ruling, according to Prefect Inspector Ernesto León, national head of the PDI’s migration and international police unit.

León said five of the passengers were of special interest to police, with convictions for drug trafficking and, in one case, rape, and that four of the five were Colombian and one was Peruvian. The government’s statement also listed violent robbery and illegal possession of firearms among the offences in the group, according to Emol and Teletrece.

Frank Sauerbaum, who directs Sermig, said most people on the flight had entered Chile through unauthorised border crossings. He added that the group also included people with records for weapons and drug offences.

Chile’s Expulsion Numbers in 2026

After the latest Chile deportation flight, Pavez said the country had passed 2,000 expulsions in 2026 and that 1,700 had been carried out since 11 March, the day Kast took office. CNN Chile put the count since 11 March at 1,704, while Emol described the 2,000 itself as counted from 11 March.

Pavez said Kast’s government was close to doubling the yearly average of the previous government before October ends. That average, 1,096 a year from 2022 to 2025, is his figure and was not published as a table.

Voluntary departures are a separate count. Between 3 January and 17 October, 11,011 foreigners signed out of Chile with the PDI without a forced order, and 8,834 of them, or 80.2%, were Venezuelan.

Emol and CNN Chile quoted a government statement that put 1,726 expulsions as administrative (89.7%) and 199 as judicial (10.3%). Those two counts add up to 1,925 rather than 2,000, a gap the statement does not explain.

Six Foreigners Held After the 18 October March

On Sunday 18 October, Chile marked the seventh anniversary of the 2019 social unrest with marches that included disturbances. Emol reported that at least 11 foreigners were detained in the disturbances, and T13 said Kast ordered the government to expel those involved.

On Monday 19 October, Sermig said it had started proceedings to revoke the residence of six of them and expel them: three Peruvians, two Haitians and one Venezuelan, CNN Chile reported. Five of the six held permanent residence.

Sauerbaum said Pavez signed the expulsion decrees on Thursday 22 October and that the six have 10 days to appeal. If the appeals fail, he said, they would be removed on commercial flights, so they were not on Friday’s charter.

Sermig gave different reasons for each detention, such as carrying a bladed weapon, an outstanding arrest warrant, a drug-law violation and showing disrespect to an official. These are police findings at the time of arrest, not court verdicts, and the sources reviewed report no convictions.

The New Law and the Money Behind It

Congress finished passing a bill this week that speeds up administrative expulsions, and T13 reported that it cuts the appeal window from 10 days to five. Pavez said it will also make notifications easier.

With a judge’s authorisation, the PDI would be able to enter homes to detain people who hold a final expulsion order, Pavez said. Officials could also ask any public or private body for data on a person to be expelled, except education and health records.

These powers start only once the law is published, and the sources reviewed give no date for that. Our report Chile Expulsion Law Clears Congress Oct 20 explains the home-entry rules.

Money is part of the plan, because Sauerbaum said the 2026 expulsion budget was fully spent by August. The Interior Ministry then found more than 1.76 billion Chilean pesos (about US$1.8 million at 986.58 pesos per US dollar on 23 October) to keep expelling people until the end of the year.

Sauerbaum said removals would continue on charter and Air Force flights and daily on commercial flights, alongside street checks and inspections of employers who hire people without work permits. Our earlier report Chile Seeks 190% More Money for Expulsions covers the budget request.

What It Means for You

For US readers, the flights show a Latin American government using charter removals as a headline policy, much as Washington does. The measures target foreigners in irregular status and those with criminal records, so Americans with valid permits are not the target.

Employers face more inspections, because Sauerbaum said officials will keep checking firms that hire people without legal permission to work. Anyone with an expired or missing permit should expect faster action once the new law takes effect.

Visitors face no new entry rules in the sources reviewed, which describe enforcement inside Chile. Anyone planning a move can check permits, fees and the Kast-era rules in How to Get Residency in Chile in 2026.

Our Chile power structure guide and Chile Population and Ethnic Groups Explained show who holds power and who lives in the country. Our Santiago expat city guide covers permits and daily life.

What Is Not Known

The government’s breakdown of 1,726 administrative and 199 judicial expulsions adds up to 1,925, not 2,000, and the sources reviewed do not explain the gap. The yearly comparisons Pavez gave were not published in a table, so they cannot be checked independently.

On 10 October the government put the 2026 total at 1,874 after the tenth flight, as we covered in Chile Expels 56 More on Tenth Flight, 1,874 This Year. Adding this flight’s 75 gives 1,949, and the statements reviewed do not itemise the other 51 expulsions needed to reach 2,000.

It is not known how many of the six detained marchers will be expelled, because their appeals and any court challenges are still open. The date on which the new law will be published and take effect has not been given.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many people did the Chile deportation flight carry on 23 October?

Chile expelled 75 people on a charter flight on Friday 23 October 2026: 50 Colombians, 14 Peruvians and 11 Dominicans. It was the 11th flight of President Kast’s term.

How many expulsions has Chile carried out in 2026?

The government says it has passed 2,000 expulsions in 2026 and about 1,700 since 11 March. It also counts 11,011 voluntary departures from 3 January to 17 October.

Why were these people expelled?

Most had entered through unauthorised border crossings, and some had records for drug trafficking, violent robbery, illegal firearms or rape. Sixty-nine of the 75 were removed by administrative order and six by a court.

What does the new Chilean expulsion law do?

It would cut the appeal period from 10 days to five and let the PDI enter homes, with a judge’s permission, to detain people with final expulsion orders. Congress finished it this week, but it is not yet published.

What does it mean for US readers?

It shows a Latin American government making charter removals a headline policy, much as the Trump administration does. Americans with valid permits are not the target, but irregular status carries a higher risk of removal.

Sources: La Tercera, 23 October 2026; Emol, 23 October 2026; Teletrece (T13), 23 October 2026; BioBioChile, 23 October 2026; CNN Chile, 23 October 2026; CNN Chile, 19 October 2026; Servicio Nacional de Migraciones (Sermig), Chile.

Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief · Editorial standards · Report an error

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