Comprehensive Tax Law I Study Notes: From the Chilean Tax Code Framework to Taxpayer Rights and Infractions

Concept, Nature, and Structure of the Tax Code (Código Tributario)

• Legal Definition and Promulgation:

  • The Tax Code (Código Tributario) is enacted under Decreto Ley N° 830, dated December 31, 1974.
  • Legal Nature: Defined as the "organic and systematic set of administrative, procedural, and criminal rules related to internal fiscal taxation taxes".

• General Structure of the Tax Code:

  • A Preliminary Title (Título Preliminar).
  • Book First (Libro Primero): On administration, audit, and payment (De la administración, fiscalización y pago).
  • Book Second (Libro Segundo): On coercive measures, infractions, and sanctions (De los apremios y de las infracciones y sanciones).
  • Book Third (Libro Tercero): On jurisdiction to hear contentious tax matters, procedures, and prescription (De la competencia para conocer los asuntos contenciosos tributarios, de los procedimientos y de la prescripción).
  • A Final Title (Título Final).

• Scope of Application (Article 1 CT):

  • Delimitation of Competence: Article 1 strictly delimits the application sphere of the Tax Code, establishing that its provisions apply exclusively to internal fiscal taxation matters that fall by law under the jurisdiction of the Internal Revenue Service (Servicio de Impuestos Internos - SII).

• Supplementary Application of Common Law (Articles 2 and 148 CT):

  • General Rule of Suppletoriness (Article 2 CT): For matters not expressly provided for by the Tax Code and other tax laws, common law provisions contained in general or special laws apply.
  • General Laws: The Political Constitution of the Republic (Constitución Política de la República), the Civil Code (Código Civil), the Penal Code (Código Penal), the Code of Civil Procedure (Código de Procedimiento Civil - CPC), and the Code of Criminal Procedure (Código Procesal Penal).
  • Special Laws: The Code of Commerce (Código de Comercio) and the Labor Code (Código del Trabajo).
  • Special Procedural Suppletoriness (Article 148 CT): For contentious claim procedures governed by Book Third, Article 148 applies suppletorily the provisions of Book First of the Code of Civil Procedure (rules common to all procedures), provided they are compatible with the nature of tax claims.

Temporal Effectiveness of Tax Laws

• General Rule of Entry into Force (Article 3 Inciso Primero CT):

  • Principle: Any law that modifies a tax provision, establishes new taxes, or suppresses an existing tax begins to apply from the first day of the month following its publication in the Official Gazette (Diario Oficial).

• Exceptions to the General Rule of Entry into Force:

  • A) Laws on Infractions and Sanctions (Article 3 Inciso Primero, Second Part CT):
  • Rule: Laws that establish or modify rules on infractions and sanctions apply to acts occurred prior to their entry into force, provided the new law exempts such acts from all penalty or applies a less rigorous sanction.
  • Pro-reo Principle: This exception explicitly incorporates into Tax Law the Pro-reo principle set forth in Article 18, second paragraph, of the Penal Code.
  • B) Laws Modifying the Moratory Interest Rate (Article 3 Inciso Final and Article 53 CT):
  • Calculation Rule: The final paragraph of Article 3 does not establish an entry-into-force rule per se, but determines the calculation method for moratory interest. Under Article 53 of the Tax Code, taxes paid outside legal deadlines accrue moratory interest calculated using the rate in force at the time of payment, regardless of the date on which the taxable events occurred.

Organization and Powers of the Internal Revenue Service (SII)

• Exclusive Competence of the SII (Article 6 Inciso Primero CT):

  • General Attribution: The administrative application and audit of internal fiscal tax provisions belongs exclusively to the Internal Revenue Service, to the exclusion of any other administrative authority or body.

• Powers of the Director of the Internal Revenue Service (Article 6 Letter A):

  • 1° Administrative Interpretation and Technological Promotion:
  • Concept of Interpretation: Consists of determining the correct meaning, sense, and scope of a legal rule to establish whether it applies to a specific case.
  • Formal Mechanisms: Exercised primarily through:
    • Circulares: Periodic explanatory publications detailing the content and scope of tax provisions, which are mandatory for Service officials.
    • Oficios: Administrative rulings issued in response to specific queries.
  • Public Consultation Procedure (Ley N° 20.780): Modified Letter A of Article 6, authorizing the Director to submit draft circulares or instructions to public consultation so taxpayers or any natural or legal person can express opinions on their content and effects or submit proposals.
  • Technological Promotion: Adopting all measures aimed at fostering and promoting the use of tax documents and electronic/technological tools.
  • 2° Answering Queries: Authority to answer queries regarding the application and interpretation of tax laws submitted by Service officials (through regular channels) or public authorities.
  • Obligatoriness and Effects of Interpretations (Article 26 CT):
  • Director interpretations are not mandatory for taxpayers.
  • However, taxpayers who adhere in good faith to such criteria are legally protected against retroactive tax assessments in the event of a change in administrative criteria. Good faith relates to the lack of knowledge of the new criterion at the time of acting.
  • Change of Doctrine (Article 45 of the Organic Law of the SII):
  • Any report or oficio implying a modification of active administrative doctrine or addressing unprecedented matters requires prior approval from the Director.

• Powers of Regional Directors of the Internal Revenue Service (Article 6 Letter B):

  • 1º Answering Local Queries: Resolving queries on the application and interpretation of tax provisions within their respective jurisdiction.
  • 2º Request for Coercive Arrest: Requesting ordinary courts to order the arrest of a taxpayer for up to $15\,\text{days}$ (renewable) as a coercive measure to compel compliance with tax obligations.
  • 3º Administrative Sanctions: Applying, reducing, or condoning pecuniary administrative sanctions (fixed or variable fines) resulting from infractions.
  • 4º Condonation of Moratory Interest: Condoning total or partial moratory interest. Condonation is mandatory and total if interest or penalties originated from an error by the Service or non-attributable causes in the judgment of the Regional Director.
  • 5º Resolution of Tax Matters and Correction of Vices or Errors:
  • Plenitude of Functions: Holds authority to hear and resolve administratively all tax matters not specially regulated by law.
  • Ex-officio or Requested Correction: Allows the correction at any time of manifest vices or errors in tax assessments or payment orders (liquidaciones o giros), including adjustments, interest, fines, and other concepts.
  • Express Limitation: This power cannot be exercised if a prior judicial ruling has determined that the act is free of vices or errors.
  • Internal Handling: Requests under this power (via Revisión de la Actuación Fiscalizadora - RAF) are handled in Legal Departments or Administrative Tax Procedure Departments (PAT).
  • 6º Execution of Judgments: Ordering administrative compliance with final judgments issued by Tax and Customs Courts (TTA).
  • 7º Delegation of Functions: Authorizing other officials to resolve specific matters or exercise powers under the Organic Statute acting under the formula "Por orden del Director Regional".
  • 8º Set-off / Imputation of Payments: Ordering, at the taxpayer's request, the imputation of refund amounts toward the payment of other taxes or contributions of any kind.
  • 9º Refund of Improper or Excess Payments: Ordering the refund of amounts paid improperly for taxes, adjustments, interest, sanctions, or costs.
  • Audit by Comptroller General (CGR): Resolutions ordering refunds under items 5, 6, 8, and 9 must be sent to the Comptroller General of the Republic (Contraloría General de la República - CGR) for the toma de razón process.
  • 10º Notice by Public Advertisement: Ordering the publication or notice by public advertisement of general or individual resolutions or provisions.

Statute and Rights of Taxpayers (Artículo 8° bis)

• Normative Evolution and Operational Sources:

  • Ley N° 20.420 (Year 2010): Introduced Article 8° bis to the Tax Code for the first time, establishing an explicit catalog of taxpayer rights.
  • Ley N° 21.210 (Year 2020): Modified Article 8° bis, reorganizing existing rights and incorporating new guarantees.
  • Ley N° 21.713 (October 24, 2024): Introduced the most recent modifications to the statute of rights, restructuring and consolidating subjects (such as moving the right against repeated audits to Article 59).
  • Active Administrative Instructions: Contained in Circular N° 12 of 2021 and Circular N° 19 of 2025.

• Detailed Catalog of Taxpayer Rights:

  • 1° Right to Information, Facilitation, and Clarity:
  • Right to be informed regarding the exercise of rights, to have tax compliance facilitated, and to obtain clear information on the sense (objective) and scope (legal effects) of procedures in which the taxpayer has an interest.
  • When handling queries, officials must respond by directing the interested party to normative channels, circulares, oficios, brochures, leaflets, and instructional videos.
  • 4° Rights During Audit Procedures:
  • Right to be informed of the nature of the tax and subject matter under review, as well as the deadline for presenting defense arguments.
  • Every administrative act determining tax differences must explicitly state the available legal remedies and the bodies before which they must be filed.
  • Right to obtain certification from the Service, upon request, regarding the applicable prescription deadline.
  • Letter d) Information on Status: Right to query at any time via expedited channels (website www.sii.cl, MiSii, mobile apps, or in-person) tax status and procedure processing progress.
  • Letter e) Proof of Acts and Contracts: In any proceeding or audit, proof of acts, contracts, or operations executed in Chile or abroad must be admitted according to their legal nature and place of execution, without requiring formal requirements not explicitly set forth by law.
  • 5° Right to Non-Reiteration of Audits:
  • Right preventing the Service from initiating a new audit procedure regarding the exact same facts or taxes.
  • Consolidation in Article 59 CT: Ley N° 21.713 transferred and consolidated the substantive regulation of this right directly into Article 59 of the Tax Code to prevent normative duplication.
  • 7° Right to Electronic Copies and Certifications:
  • Right to obtain electronic copies or certifications of administrative proceedings or submitted documents.
  • 8° Right over Documentation and Assessment of Evidence:
  • Exemption from providing documents that do not pertain to the procedure or are already in the Service's possession.
  • Right to receive original documents back upon conclusion of the procedure.
  • Obligation of the Service to evaluate in a reasoned manner (apreciar fundadamente) all evidence and background submitted by the taxpayer.
  • 9° Right to Privacy and Tax Confidentiality:
  • Right to have private life respected and personal data protected in audit acts in accordance with law.
  • Tax returns are confidential, except for express statutory exceptions.
  • 10° Right to Administrative Celerity and Efficiency:
  • Right to have proceedings conducted without unnecessary delays, requests, or waits, and in the least burdensome manner.
  • Aligns with the principles of celerity, probity, and impartiality set forth in Ley N° 18.575 and Ley N° 19.880.
  • 11° Right of Defense and Consideration of Background:
  • Right to exercise legal remedies and initiate procedures personally or through representation.
  • Right to submit claims and background within legal deadlines, which must be incorporated into the case file and duly considered by the competent official.
  • 12° Right to Submit Suggestions and Complaints:
  • Right to submit respectful and pertinent suggestions and complaints regarding affecting actions of the Service.
  • 13° Right to Tax Certainty:
  • Right to certainty that the tax effects of acts or contracts match those provided by law.
  • To guarantee this right, the Service must maintain an updated public registry of circulares, oficios, and case law on its website for predictability.
  • 15° Right to Notification of Annotations and Restrictions:
  • Right to be notified of any restriction regarding reporting acts or modifications (under Articles 68 and 69 CT) or non-compliance tags affecting taxpayer life cycle, operations, or access to benefits or refunds.
  • Taxpayers may request information on active annotations in Service records at any time.
  • 16° Information in Personal Site:
  • Formal notice and disclosure of background requests issued through the taxpayer's personal online portal.
  • 17° Right to Rectify Declarations:
  • Right to correct and rectify tax returns in accordance with legal procedures.
  • Rectification with Payment Errors (Article 36 bis CT): Allows submitting a new declaration correcting the error and paying resulting differences, even after legal deadlines have expired, applying corresponding surcharges, interest, and penalties.
  • Administrative Rectifications: Rectifications not generating tax differences or requested in error correction procedures (Article 6° B N° 5 CT) or Administrative Reposición (Article 123 bis CT) require prior authorization from the Service.
  • 18° Right to Respect for Prescription and Caducity Deadlines:
  • Right to strict adherence to prescription deadlines for state actions and caducity limits on audit powers.
  • Direct alignment with audit, assessment, payment order, and caducity rules in Articles 59, 63, 69, 200, and 201 of the Tax Code.
  • 19° Presumption of Good Faith:
  • Presumed by law that taxpayers act in good faith in fulfilling tax duties and obligations.

Actions and Remedies Against the Violation of Taxpayer Rights

• Administrative Pathway: Protection Recourse for Right Violation (Recurso de Resguardo por Vulneración de Derechos):

  • Purpose: Restoring the free exercise of rights guaranteed in Article 8° bis of the Tax Code, setting aside violating acts, or ordering necessary actions for compliance.
  • Active Standing: Affected taxpayer (active subject), acting personally or through a representative.
  • Competent Authority: Filed before the Regional Director, Subdirector of Fiscalization, or Director of Large Taxpayers, according to the hierarchical position of the official incurring in the act or omission. If the action comes directly from the Regional Director, the National Director hears it.
  • Deadline for Filing: Presented within $10\,\text{administrative business days}$ (computed Monday to Friday pursuant to Article 10, second paragraph, CT) from the occurrence of the act or omission.
  • Formal Requirements: Written filing detailing taxpayer and representative identification, address, electronic notification channel, facts, rights violated, evidence list, specific requests, and signature.
  • Evidentiary Means and Electronic File: Taxpayers may use any legally admissible evidence. All documentation, proceedings, and resolutions are integrated into an electronic file accessible on the Service website.
  • Resolution Term and Administrative Silence: The authority must resolve the recourse with grounds within $5\,\text{business days}$. Failure to resolve within this term triggers negative administrative silence (Article 65 of Ley N° 19.880), deeming the recourse rejected.
  • Challenging the Administrative Resolution:
  • Ordinary Reposición Recourse: Applies against resolutions denying or partially accepting protection, filed within $5\,\text{days}$.
  • Effect on Judicial Deadlines: Filing an administrative reposición does not suspend the deadline for judicial claims before the Tax and Customs Court (TTA).

• Judicial Pathway: Special Claim Procedure for Right Violation (Procedimiento Especial de Reclamación por Vulneración de Derechos - Article 155 CT):

  • Nature and Incorporation: Jurisdictional mechanism under Article 155 of the Tax Code to safeguard rights against administrative acts or omissions not subject to general claim procedures.
  • Protected Guarantees: Protects rights under Article 8° bis CT and constitutional guarantees under Article 19 of the Political Constitution:
  • N° 21: Right to develop any economic activity.
  • N° 22: Non-arbitrary discrimination in economic matters.
  • N° 24: Right to property.
  • Active and Passive Subjects: Interposed by the affected individual or taxpayer against the Internal Revenue Service (a parallel procedure exists in the Customs Ordinance regarding the National Customs Service).
  • Competent Court: The Tax and Customs Court (Tribunal Tributario y Aduanero - TTA) corresponding to the jurisdiction where the violation occurred.
  • Deadline for Filing: $15\,\text{business days}$ from occurrence or actual knowledge (which must be recorded in the record).
  • Appearance: Exception to Ley N° 18.120; appearance without legal counsel is permitted.
  • Grounds for Inadmissibility / Inapplicability:
  1. When the General Claim Procedure, Assessment Claim Procedure, judicial determination of Stamp Tax, or penalty enforcement procedures apply.
  2. When a Constitutional Protection Recourse (Recurso de Protección) has been previously filed for the same facts.
  • Stages of the Judicial Procedure:
  1. Discussion Period:
     • Admissibility Review: The judge verifies deadline, legal grounds, and absence of duplicate procedures.
     • Service Response (Traslado): Service granted a term of $10\,\text{days}$ to answer.
     • Mandatory Conciliation Hearing: With or without SII response, the TTA must call parties to conciliation with proposed settlement bases.
  2. Evidentiary Period:
     • Case received for evidence for a $10\,\text{days}$ probatory term if conciliation is rejected and substantial, pertinent, controverted facts exist.
     • Witness List: Must be filed within the first $5\,\text{days}$ of the probatory term.
     • Any evidence capable of producing proof is admissible.
     • Written Observations on Evidence: Parties have $10\,\text{days}$ to submit observations.
  3. Decision Period:
     • Once summoned for judgment, the TTA has $10\,\text{days}$ to render final judgment.
     • Proof Evaluation: Evaluated under rules of sana crítica.
     • Content of Ruling: Judgment must contain necessary orders to restore legal rule and protect the applicant.
     • Service of Ruling: Service notified via web publication; Taxpayer notified via registered letter.
  4. Appeals: Only an Appeal (Apelación) is admissible within $15\,\text{days}$ before the competent Court of Appeals, heard in account and preferentially (unless parties request oral arguments).

Tax Auditing (Fiscalización) and Its Limitations

• Definition: Authority of the SII to verify correct compliance with tax obligations. Exercise is subject to strict legal limits:
  • Principle of Legality (Article 63 CT): The Service must use exclusively legally authorized methods to verify declaration accuracy and obtain tax information.
  • Scope Limit (Article 1 CT): Applies exclusively to internal fiscal taxes within Service competence.
  • Bank Account Confidentiality: Limitations related to bank secrecy and confidentiality laws.
  • Lapse of Time: Limits arising from state prescription rules and procedure caducity terms.

Specific Audit and Fiscalization Tools

• The Background Request (El Requerimiento de Antecedentes - Article 59 CT):

  • Concept: Administrative act requesting documentation from the taxpayer to formally initiate an audit procedure.
  • Purpose: Verifying tax compliance, checking accounting records or databases, and confirming timely tax payment into arcas fiscales.
  • Evidentiary Proof (Article 8° bis N° 4 letter e): Proof of acts and contracts executed in Chile or abroad must be admitted according to their legal nature without non-statutory formal requirements.
  • Computation of Audit Deadlines (Ley N° 21.713 modification):
  • Audit periods begin running formally once the taxpayer provides all requested documentation.
  • Certification of complete delivery marks the starting point for caducity terms.
  • Caducity Terms for Audits (Article 59 CT):
  • General Term of $9\,\text{Months}$: Counted from complete delivery certification. Service must issue summons, assessment, demand, resolution, or certify absence of differences within this window. May conclude with rectifying return certifying no other items to review.
  • Special Term of $12\,\text{Months}$:
    • Transfer pricing.
    • Net Taxable Income (RLI) determination for taxpayers with sales/income exceeding $5\,000\,\text{UTM}$ as of December 31 of prior commercial year.
    • Review of tax effects of corporate reorganizations.
    • Related-party operations.
  • Special Term of $18\,\text{Months}$:
    • Background gathering for tax crimes (Article 161 N° 10 CT).
    • Audits under General Anti-Avoidance Rules - GAAR (Articles 4° bis to 4° quinquies CT).
    • Application of Articles 41 G or 41 H of Income Tax Law (LIR).
    • Awaiting responses from foreign authorities.
    • Application of Article 63 of the Inheritance and Donations Tax Law.
  • Unappealability: Administrative Reposición (Article 123 bis) and Tax Claim (Article 124) are inadmissible against resolutions extending audit deadlines.
  • Non-Initiation Cases: Audit procedures are NOT initiated by reviews started via non-citation methods (unless concluding with demand, assessment, resolution, or certification) or voluntary self-rectifications not originating from SII proposals.
  • Exceptions to Non-Reiteration Rule: SII may re-audit reviewed facts when:     a) A new request addresses distinct facts or taxes not covered in the original audit, provided they were not previously known to the Service.     b) False or fraudulent documents/background submitted by the taxpayer are proven.
  • Radication of Jurisdiction (Article 65 bis CT): The Service unit making the request is competent for all subsequent actions, including Reposición (Article 123 bis) and RAF requests (Article 6° B N° 5).

• The Summons (La Citación - Article 63 CT):

  • Concept: Formal administrative audit act where SII informs the taxpayer of underlying facts and requires filing an omitted return, or rectifying, clarifying, expanding, or ratifying an existing return.
  • Required Formalities:
  1. Written communication to taxpayer.
  2. Numbered and organized by tax years or periods.
  3. Signed by authorized Chief of Office or Group under delegation resolution.
  4. Explicitly indicating the impact of findings on income or tax base determination.
  • Nature of Procedure:
  1. General Rule (Discretionary): Service issues summons voluntarily when deemed appropriate based on gathered background.
  2. Exception (Mandatory): Summons is an indispensable prerequisite in 12 specific cases:
     1. Untrustworthy accounting.
     2. Non-filing of tax return.
     3. Income or expense apportionment.
     4. Transfer pricing challenges.
     5. Sale of shares, quotas, bonds, or securities by non-residents/non-domiciled entities.
     6. False background submitted for Additional Tax withholding calculation.
     7. Application of General Anti-Avoidance Rules.
     8. Ex-officio termination of business (término de giro).
     9. IVA exemption on imports.
     10. Special review power under Article 14 A N° 9 LIR.
     11. Valuation of cash flow assignments to securitization companies.
     12. Hidden withdrawals, remittances, or distributions.
  • Response Deadline and Extension:
  1. Ordinary Deadline: $1\,\text{month}$, counted from the day following notification.
  2. Extension: Extendable for up to $1\,\text{additional month}$ upon request filed before expiration.
  • Legal Effects of the Summons:
  1. Suspension of Prescription: Suspends prescription terms during the response period and extension.
  2. Increase in Prescription Period (Article 200 inc. 2° CT): Increases prescription by $3\,\text{months}$ for taxes derived from cited operations.
  3. Ex-Officio Tax Base Assessment Power (Article 64 CT): If taxpayer fails to respond or cure deficiencies, SII is authorized to assess the tax base with available background and issue tax assessments without further formalities.

• The Assessment (La Liquidación - Article 24 CT):

  • Timing: Must be performed and served within prescription limits (Articles 25, 59, and 200 CT).
  • Substantive Validity Requirements:
  1. Determination of tax owed, specifying adjustments, interest, and fines.
  2. Detailed justification of supporting facts and background.
  3. Precise indication of legal provisions applied.
  4. Indication of tax base or taxed items with applicable rate.
  5. Signature and stamp of acting officials.

• The Tax Demand / Payment Order (El Giro):

  • Concept: Administrative order issued by SII directing taxpayer to pay specified tax, adjustments, interest, and fines into public treasury.
  • General Origin:
  1. Unclaimed or finalized tax assessment.
  2. Rejection of tax claim by TTA.
  3. Voluntary acceptance and payment by taxpayer.
  • Direct Issuance Without Prior Assessment (Article 24 CT):
  1. Withheld, surcharged, or transferred taxes (e.g., IVA or Second Category Single Tax).
  2. Amounts accounted for by taxpayer reflecting accrued taxes.
  3. Incomplete or inconsistent returns allowing direct demands on declared values.
  4. Insolvency/bankruptcy proceedings where taxpayer acts as debtor.
  • Legal Effects of the Demand:
  1. Constitutes executive title for judicial collection.
  2. Interrupts tax collection prescription.
  3. Enables attachment and precautionary measures by General Treasury (TGR) in case of default.
  4. Subject to TTA claims if prior assessment acceptance did not occur.

Concept, Elements, and Sanctions of Tax Infractions

• Generalities and Concept of Tax Infractions:

  • Concept: Violation, disobedience, or non-compliance with statutory tax duties or obligations.
  • Regulatory Framework: Regulated in Articles 97 et seq. of the Tax Code, addressed jointly without explicit prior distinction between simple administrative infractions and tax crimes.
  • Criteria of Distinction (Infraction vs. Tax Crime):
  1. Dolo (Intent): Presence of deliberate criminal intent.
  2. Severity of Penalty: Type and gravity of applicable sanction.

• Constitutive Elements of Tax Infractions:

  1. Material Element (Conduct and Tipicity):
  • Definition: Existence of an action or omission violating a prohibitive or mandatory tax provision.
  • Tipicity Requirement: Requires prior legal description of prohibited or mandated conduct.
  • Residual Clause: Operates under residual tipicity rule in Article 109 CT.
  1. Subjective Element (Culpability):
  • Objective Liability Principle: Strict/objective liability applies by default; mere contrary conduct configures the infraction without proving negligence or bad faith.
  • Exception in Crimes: Tax crimes strictly require proving dolo (intent).
  • Remission of Fines (Article 106 CT): Condonation requires proving excusable factual grounds.
  1. Coercive Element (Sanction):
  • Definition: Legal penalty provided for infraction occurrence.
  • Classification:
    1. Criminal: Custodial/restrictive sentences and convertible fines.
    2. Civil: Damages, moratory interest, and fines.
    3. Administrative: Non-convertible fines and business closures.

Specific Tax Infractions and Penalties (Artículo 97)

• Article 97 N° 1: Informative Returns and Third-Party Reports:

  • Conducts: Delay or omission in filing returns, reports, or registration forms not forming immediate bases for tax calculation (e.g., notice of initiation of activities or corporate modifications).
  • Third-Party Reports: Sanctions non-filing or late filing of third-party transaction reports.
  • General Penalty: Fine of $1\,\text{UTM}$ to $1\,\text{UTA}$.
  • Default Warning Rule: If warned by SII and 30-day notice expires, fine increases by $0.2\,\text{UTM}$ per month/fraction of delay and per omitted person (capped at $30\,\text{UTA}$).

• Article 97 N° 2: Determinative Tax Returns:

  • Conduct: Delay or omission in filing returns forming immediate bases for tax calculation.
  • Penalty: Fine of $10\%$ of resulting taxes.
  • Prolonged Delay Surcharge: If delay exceeds $5\,\text{months}$, fine increases by $2\%$ per additional month/fraction (capped at $30\%$ max).
  • Non-Payment Returns: Returns without immediate payment carry fines of $1\,\text{UTM}$ to $1\,\text{UTA}$.
  • Complementary Rules: Applied to adjusted taxes. Concourse with N° 11 favors N° 11 application.

• Article 97 N° 3: Incomplete or Erroneous Returns:

  • Conducts: Filing incomplete/erroneous returns or omitting balance sheets/annexes inducing lower tax assessment. Exempt if due diligence is proven.
  • Penalty: Fine of $5\%$ to $20\%$ of resulting tax differences.

• Article 97 N° 6: Obstruction of Audits and Technological Systems:

  • First Paragraph (General Obstruction):
  • Conducts: Non-exhibition of accounting books/auxiliaries; opposing book examination or premises inspection; obstructing audit actions.
  • Penalty: Fine of $1\,\text{UTM}$ to $1\,\text{UTA}$.
  • Second Paragraph (Technological Information Systems):
  • Conduct: Non-compliance or obstruction regarding mandatory tech systems under Article 17 or Article 60 ter CT.
  • Penalty: Fine of $10$ to $60\,\text{UTA}$, capped at $15\%$ of effective capital (or $1$ to $5\,\text{UTA}$ if capital is undetermined).
  • Third Paragraph (Tech Interference):
  • Conduct: Interfering with or obstructing electronic/software audit controls.
  • Penalty: Fine up to $30\,\text{UTA}$, capped at $10\%$ of effective capital (or $1\,\text{UTA}$ if capital is undetermined).

• Article 97 N° 7: Accounting Book Irregularities:

  • Conducts: Failure to keep accounting books/auxiliaries, keeping delayed books, or unapproved methods. Requires failure to comply within SII notice period (minimum $10\,\text{days}$).
  • Penalty: Fine of $1\,\text{UTM}$ to $1\,\text{UTA}$.

• Article 97 N° 10: Tax Documentation Infractions:

  • Conducts: Non-issuance/non-transmission of electronic guías de despacho, facturas, notas de débito/crédito, boletas; untimbred/unapproved docs; fractioning sale amounts.
  • Joint Penalty:
  • Fine: $50\%$ to $500\%$ of operation amount (minimum $2\,\text{UTM}$, maximum $40\,\text{UTA}$).
  • Closure (Clausura): Closure of up to $20\,\text{days}$ of business establishment, vehicle, or web platform.
  • Documentation Rules: Exclusive electronic issuance by law. Facturas issued upon goods delivery, real estate signing, or payment collection for services/construction (deferrable to 10th of following month if guía de despacho issued).

• Article 97 N° 11: Late Payment of Withheld or Chargeable Taxes:

  • Conduct: Delay in paying withheld or collected taxes into Treasury.
  • Penalty: Fine of $10\%$ of taxes owed, plus $2\%$ per additional month/fraction (capped at $30\%$ max).

• Article 97 N° 15: Failure to Testify or Declare:

  • Conducts: Failure to comply with duties under Articles 34 (taxpayer/intervener testimony) and 60 (third-party declaration).
  • Penalty: Fine of $20\%$ to $100\%$ of $1\,\text{UTA}$.

• Article 97 N° 16: Loss or Destruction of Books and Documents:

  • Conducts: Non-fortuitous loss/destruction of accounting books/documents, failure to report within $10\,\text{days}$, or failure to reconstitute within SII timeframe (minimum $30\,\text{days}$).
  • Penalty: Fine of $1\,\text{UTM}$ to $30\,\text{UTA}$ capped at $25\%$ of own capital (or $1\,\text{UTM}$ to $20\,\text{UTA}$ if own capital is negative or undetermined).
  • Evaluation Factors: Presumed fortuitous unless SII proves otherwise based on facts, location, responsible party, diligence, and document type.
  • Non-Fortuitous Presumption: Presumed non-fortuitous if reported or detected after receiving an SII notification or request relative to such documents.

• Article 97 N° 17: Irregularities in Goods Transport:

  • Conducts: Moving goods in freight vehicles without proper guía de despacho or factura.
  • Ordinary Penalty: Fine of $10\%$ to $200\%$ of $1\,\text{UTA}$ plus vehicle immobilization.
  • Aggravated Penalty (Ley N° 21.713): If transport is conducted knowingly without tax declaration/payment compliance or carrying prohibited/illegal goods: Fine of $20\%$ to $300\%$ of $1\,\text{UTA}$.
  • Concourse Rule: Failure to issue required guías de despacho is sanctioned exclusively under N° 10 (with joint liability for carrier if seller is unidentified).

• Article 97 N° 19: Failure to Request or Collect Tax Documents:

  • Conduct: Failure by purchaser/user to request or collect boletas or facturas.
  • Penalty: Fine up to $1\,\text{UTA}$ for boletas; fine up to $20\,\text{UTA}$ for facturas.

• Article 97 N° 20: Improper Deduction of Expenses or Tax Credit:

  • Conducts: Repeated improper deduction of rejected expenses or tax credits by First Category taxpayers (excluding open corporations); ceding expenses for personal/free benefit of owners, partners, relatives, or non-employees; improper auto/supermarket expense deductions under Article 31 LIR.
  • Penalty: Fine up to $200\%$ of all omitted taxes.

• Article 97 N° 21: Non-appearance at Second Summons:

  • Conduct: Unjustified failure to appear after a second notification.
  • Penalty: Fine of $1\,\text{UTM}$ to $1\,\text{UTA}$, applicable after $20\,\text{days}$ based on fiscal detriment.