Chile HR Information

Updated on: 2025/08/04 14:03 (UTC)

Overview

The employment relationship in Chile is governed principally by the Labor Code, although other statutes such as the Political Constitution of 1980, Decree Law No. 3,500 regarding pensions and Law No. 16,744 regarding labor accidents also apply.

Hiring

Employment Contracts

The Labor Code requires that employees and employers enter into a written employment contract.

Employers are required to give the employee a copy of the employment contract and to keep another copy on file. If the employee does not sign the employment contract, it must be sent to the labor inspector. Fixed-term contracts may be made for a maximum duration of one year for rank-and-file employees, two years for managers. The continued performance of services after this period transforms the contract into one of indeterminate duration.

At minimum, an employment contract must contain the following provisions:

• place and date of the contract;
• name and nationality of the employee and the employer;
• amount of remuneration;
• date employment begins;
• nature of the services to be provided by the employee;
• city where the work will be carried out;
• form and payment period of remuneration;
• duration of the work schedule and
• term of the contract.

Under the Distance Working and Teleworking Law, teleworking arrangements with employees must be in writing and registered with the Labor Directorate within 15 days of signing. Remote workers are entitled to the same rights as other employees, including the “right to disconnect” (at least 12 continuous hours per 24-hour period).

Restrictions on Hiring

The minimum age for employment is 15 with certain exceptions.

Children between the ages of 15 and 18 may work with the express permission of their parents or guardians, but they must attend school. Fifteen-year-old children may perform only work that does not require hard physical labor or constitute a threat to health and childhood development. Workers under 18 may not work between the hours of 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. and are subject to restrictions on the types of work they can perform (for example, they may not work in nightclubs) and on other conditions of employment.

The Labor Code requires at least 85 percent of the workers employed by an employer to be Chilean nationals. Enterprises that employ 24 or fewer workers are exempt from this requirement.

Companies with 100 or more employees must have at least 1 percent of their workforce comprised of disabled employees.

Recordkeeping

An employer must keep a record for each employee, including work-related documents, contracts and collective agreements, receipts of contributions to the social insurance system and vacation and attendance records.

Labor authorities may instruct companies to keep these records in digital form or to maintain them off premises.

Background Checks

Employers may ask potential employees to provide proof of a clean criminal record or require a medical examination if the job has particular physical requirements.

Noncompetition Agreements

While Chilean law does not recognize an explicit “duty of loyalty” to the employer that would govern confidentiality and noncompetition, confidentiality is implicit in employment contracts and breaches can be grounds for termination.

Reference Citations

Employment Contracts: Labor Code, 2002, arts. 9-10 (Spanish)

Restrictions on Hiring: Labor Code, 2002, arts. 13, 19 (Spanish)

Recordkeeping: Labor Code, 2002, art. 9 (Spanish)

Background Checks: Labor Code, 2002, art. 186 (Spanish)

Immigration and Work Permits

In General

Editor’s Note: Chile’s immigration law has been extensively changed by law and government decree from 2021 to 2022. For information on the new law, see Chile’s “Immigration Regulations in Chile.”

A work visa is valid for two years and may be extended for another two. Foreign workers are required to register their visas with the international police and must obtain a foreigner’s identification card and a taxpayer identity number.

The Labor Code requires that at least 85 percent of the workers employed by any business with 25 or more employees be Chilean nationals and that any company wishing to employ foreign workers in Chile have a legal address in the country.

The work contract between an employer and a foreign employee must be signed and notarized in Chile by the employer and the worker or the worker’s representative. Foreign workers may not be employed for hazardous activities or for work that threatens Chilean national security. A foreign worker’s employment must comply with the Labor Code and any additional requirements set by the immigration authorities.

The foreign worker’s contract must include:

• signing place and date of the notarized contract;
• name, nationality and address of the employer and the worker;
• work to be performed in Chile;
• address of the workplace;
• salary of at least minimum wage to be paid in Chilean or foreign currency;
• start and (if specified) end dates of the contract;
• a travel clause establishing that the employer commits to paying the worker until the end of the contract and a return ticket for the worker to his or her country of origin or to an agreed-upon third country (until the foreign worker obtains a new visa or permanent resident status);
• a clause in which the employer commits to deducting social security taxes, unless the parties have an exemption and
• a clause in which the employer commits to deducting income tax.

Foreign employees may be exempt from enrolling in the Chilean social insurance system if they are technical or professional staff enrolled in a similar system abroad.

In some cases, foreign artists, scientists, teachers, writers and others who have special relevance in a cultural field or are highly prestigious figures may obtain a free visa to work in Chile, particularly if they are sponsored by public or private institutions and are performing their work for charitable or educational purposes.

A work visa is valid for two years and may be extended for the same period. The visa expires when the labor relationship ends, but the foreign worker may apply to the Foreign Legalization Service for another work visa with a different employer in Chile.

The worker must apply in person at the Chilean consulate and must present:

• visa application form,
• passport valid for the term of the visa,
• one 2-by-2-inch passport color photograph,
• proof of an FBI background check stating that the applicant has no criminal record in the U.S.,
• a recently issued statement from a physician certifying that the applicant is in good health and has no communicable diseases and
• a work contract.

A foreign worker’s spouse, parents and children may obtain worker dependant visas as long as they are not performing any paid activity.

Post-Entry Requirements

Foreign workers are required to register their visas with the international police. They must obtain a foreigner’s identification card and a taxpayer identity number.

Foreign technical or professional staff whose health insurance and other benefits are provided by their employer or their home country’s social insurance system may be exempt from enrolling in the national social insurance system, but all other foreign employees are required to enroll. All employees must be enrolled in the national system that provides coverage for industrial accidents and occupational diseases, and payment into that system is mandatory for the employer.

Penalties

Anyone who stays in Chile beyond the term indicated on the visa is not allowed to leave the country without paying a fine. Those who work without the required documentation may face fines as well, and they may not be allowed to continue to work in Chile. Deportation and future travel restrictions may follow.

Reference Citations

Visas and Work Permits: Labor Code, 2002, arts. 19-20 (Spanish); Foreign Workers Law, 1975, art. 23 (Spanish)

Penalties: Foreign Workers Law, 1975, art. 69 (Spanish)

Nondiscrimination

In General

The Chilean Constitution prohibits discrimination not based on individual ability, although certain preferences for age or Chilean nationality are allowed in limited cases. The Labor Code explicitly prohibits discrimination based on race, color, gender, age, national origin, religion or social status. In 2012, Chile adopted a hate crime law that outlaws discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender, appearance, or handicap.

Disability Discrimination

Law 20,422 (2010) sets new rules on equal opportunities for and social inclusion of people with disabilities. An earlier law (1994) prohibited discrimination against people with physical or mental disabilities. Decree 23 (2012) creates a national commission to protect the rights of people with intellectual or mental disabilities.

Companies with 100 or more employees must have at least 1 percent of their workforce comprised of disabled employees. If, for legitimate reasons, employers are unable to comply with the 1 percent rate, they alternatively may:

• execute contracts for the provision of services with companies that have hired people with disabilities, or
• make donations to projects or foundations that support people with disabilities.

Gender Discrimination

Pregnant women can be dismissed only by prior authorization of a judge during the period from conception up to one year after the conclusion of postnatal leave. Employers may not ask women to take pregnancy tests before they are hired.

A 2005 law against sexual harassment provides protection and financial compensation to victims and penalizes harassment by employers or co-workers.

Pay Discrimination

A 2009 law requires men and women to receive equal pay for equal work.

Reference Citations

Nondiscrimination: Labor Code, 2002, art. 2 (Spanish); Law on Arbitrary Discrimination, 2012, No. 26,609 (Spanish)

Disability Discrimination: Law Establishing Rules on Equal Opportunities and Social Inclusion of People with Disabilities, 2010, No. 20,422, (Spanish); Law No. 21,015 on Incentives for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities to the Workplace, 2017, (Spanish)

Gender Discrimination: Labor Code, 2002, art. 201 (Spanish)

Pay Discrimination: Law on Equal Wages, 2009, No. 20,348 (Spanish)

Employee Privacy

Employee Data

Under Law No. 19,628, employers may process personal data only when required by law or when employees have given their consent. The Labor Code prohibits employers from revealing private employee data that they have access to because of the employment relationship.

Employee Monitoring and Surveillance

Employers may monitor employees in the workplace under certain circumstances, but they must ensure that the surveillance is previously communicated to employees and nondiscriminatory.

Reference Citations

Employee Data: Law No. 19,629, 2012, art. 4 (Spanish)

Employee Monitoring and Surveillance: Labor Code, 2002, art. 5 (Spanish)

Compensation

Hours of Work

An amendment to the labor code reduces working week hours from 45 to 40 hours under a gradual reduction scheme. Effective Apr. 26, 2024, the workweek will be reduced to 44 hours. In 2026, the working schedule will be reduced to 42 hours. In 2028, the workweek will be reduced to 40 hours.

Work on Sundays and holidays is generally prohibited except for essential services and certain other exceptions, and if work is required on a Sunday, the worker receives a 30 percent wage premium. The law does not guarantee pay for meal and rest breaks, but a 30-minute break in the workday is required. Sunday is a required day of rest.

Minimum Wage

Effective Sept, 1, 2023, the minimum monthly wage is 460,000 Chilean pesos per month for workers 18 to 65 years old. Another minimum wage increase will take effect on July 1, 2024, raising the amount to 500,000 Chilean pesos.

While remuneration may be calculated on an hourly, daily, weekly or monthly basis, by the piece or by the project, the amount paid must be at least equal to the statutory minimum wage.

Chile’s minimum wages are subject to adjustment based on projected change in the country’s Gross Domestic Product. Each March 1, if the government projects that the GDP for the calendar year including that March 1 will increase by up to 4 percent, the minimum wages will be increased by 2.5 percent. If the government instead projects that the calendar-year GDP will increase by more than 4 percent, the minimum wages will be increased on March 1 of that calendar year by 2.5 percent, plus an additional percentage equal to the excess of 4 percent by which the GDP is projected to grow. The annual indexing cannot cause the monthly minimum wages to decrease, and if GDP is projected to decrease or remain the same, the minimum wages would remain the same.

Overtime

The overtime pay rate is 150 percent of the normal hourly wage and must be paid when work exceeds eight hours per day or 45 hours per week. Workers may work only two hours of overtime per day; the total number of hours worked per day, including overtime, may not exceed 10.

Wage Payment

The schedule of wage payments is usually stated in the employment contract, but the law requires payment at least once a month.

The employer must deduct union dues from member wages.

With the written consent of the employee, the employer may deduct wages for contributions to the purchase of a home or for the education of the employee, his or her spouse or their children.

Mandatory Bonuses

The Labor Code requires employers to distribute 30 percent of their net income to employees each fiscal year as a profit-sharing bonus.

While not legally required, many Chilean employers customarily pay employees an annual bonus equal to one month’s salary and paid either in two installments, September and December, or in one installment in December. This is in addition to the annual profit-sharing payment.

Reference Citations

Hours of Work: Labor Code, 2002, arts. 22-35 (Spanish)

Minimum Wage: Law 21,112 (Spanish)

Overtime: Labor Code, 2002, arts. 32, 40a (Spanish)

Wage Payment: Labor Code, 2002, arts. 55, 58 (Spanish)

Mandatory Bonuses: Labor Code, 2002, art. 47 (Spanish)

Benefits

Vacation

Paid annual leave of 15 days is granted to most workers who have completed at least one year of service, although employees who work in Chile’s 11th or 12th regions and in the province of Palena in the 10th region are entitled to 20 days of vacation. With these geographic exceptions, employees who have completed nine months of service but not yet a full year qualify for 11.3 days of paid leave. Employees who have worked 10 or more years for one or more employers are entitled to an extra day of annual leave for every three years of employment. Annual leave must include at least 10 consecutive days.

Unused vacation can be carried over for up to two years, and compensation may be substituted for some annual leave by mutual consent. An employer that closes its facilities for a minimum 15 days may require employees to take their vacations during the annual closing.

Holidays

The following 15 paid public holidays are observed in Chile:

• Jan. 1: New Year’s Day
• Good Friday
• Holy Saturday
• May 1: Labor Day
• May 21: Navy Day
• Date of the Southern Winter Solstice: National Indigenous Peoples’ Day
• Closest Monday to June 29: Holiday of Sts. Peter & Paul
• July 16: Holiday of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
• Aug. 15: Holiday of the Assumption of Mary
• Sept. 18-19: two-day national holiday and Army Day (moved to Monday and Tuesday or Thursday and Friday if one of the days falls on Wednesday)
• Closest Monday to Oct. 12: Columbus Day
• Closest Friday to Oct. 31 (unless the date falls on a Thursday): Reformation Day
• Nov. 1: All Saints’ Day
• Dec. 8: Holiday of the Immaculate Conception
• Dec. 25: Christmas
• Dec. 31: bank holiday (typically a shortened workday but not a full holiday in other sectors)

States and territories can add to the days on this list or substitute others in their places. Companies authorized to work on holidays must give employees a day off in compensation for every holiday worked. Work performed on public holidays is treated as overtime.

Maternity Leave

Female employees are entitled to maternity leave of six weeks before and 12 weeks after delivery, paid for from a government or private health care insurance fund. If the child weighs less than 3 pounds, 5 ounces (1,500 grams) at birth, the leave is extended to 18 weeks. Additional leave is provided for multiple births at the rate of seven days per each additional child. Leave can be extended up to one year for serious health conditions and can be split between the mother and the father.

The same leave policies apply for adoptive parents.

A worker who is the custodian or guardian of a child younger than 6 months may take up to 12 weeks’ leave.

Any worker entitled to the 12-week full-time benefit may extend it to 18 weeks by working part time. In that case, the worker may collect pay for the hours worked, as well as the insurance benefit.

All companies employing 20 or more women are required to provide and pay for day care for all employees’ children under the age of 2, either on premises or at a separate location. Working mothers must be given a minimum of one hour per workday to nurse children under the age of 2. If it does not offer on-site day care, the employer must pay for the working mother’s transportation to and from the place where the child is being cared for.

Chilean employees with periods of maternity leave ending from Oct. 1 to Dec. 30 may extend it to Dec. 31, 2022. Under the law, employees must notify their employers and the responsible labor inspectorate at least five days before the leave ends that the leave is to be extended to Dec. 31 or that they are to return to work.

Paternity Leave

Men are entitled to five days of paid leave for the birth or adoption of a child. If the mother dies in childbirth or during her maternity leave, the father is entitled to her unused leave. Maternity leave can be extended up to one year for serious health conditions and can be split between the mother and the father. The same leave policies apply for adoptive parents.

A worker who is the custodian or guardian of a child younger than 6 months may take up to 12 weeks’ leave. The 12-week period can be extended to 18 weeks by working part-time.

Sick Leave

Employees who have participated in the government health insurance program for at least six months and made contributions for at least three months are entitled to government-paid sick leave after the fourth day of missed work; if the sick leave lasts for more than 10 days, pay is retroactive to the first day of missed work. The benefit for private-sector employees is the average monthly earnings in the last six months

Employers may provide additional coverage if the national health insurance payments are less than the worker’s salary or wages.

Other Leave

Bereavement leave. Workers are entitled to seven calendar days of paid bereavement leave from the date of death of a child or spouse. This is in addition to annual leave and may be taken regardless of time worked. In the case of the death of a parent, the employee is entitled to three business days’ leave from the date of death. If an unborn child dies, any worker (male or female) is entitled to three business days’ leave from the date when death is confirmed with the appropriate fetal death certificate. There is a one-month tenure protection for workers who suffer the death of a child or spouse beginning from the date of death.

Parental Leave. Parents of children up to two years of age who cannot attend day care centers because of social-distancing rules may suspend their employment contracts, even if they have taken at least one period of preventive medical parental leave. Employees that suspend their contracts are to receive the equivalent of their parental leave benefits for three months if they earn up to CLP$1 million per month, or either 70% of their parental leave benefits or CLP$1 million, whichever is greater, for three months if they earn more than CLP$1 million per month.

Vaccine Leave. Employees are entitled to to a half day of paid leave to receive vaccines, but the employer must be notified at least two days in advance.

Marriage Leave. Employees are entitled to five day’s paid leave immediately preceding or following the wedding day.

Medical exams. Female employees over 40 years and male employees over 50 years are entitled to a half working day once a year of paid leave to have a mammography or prostate examination.

Family leave. Employees may take family leave to care for seriously ill or disabled children younger than 18 years. There is a special subsidized leave for mothers to care for an unwell child less than 1 year old, which can be transferred to the child’s father at the mother’s option.

Military service or training. Employees’ jobs are guaranteed without loss of seniority if they are called to military service or training. Employers are required to pay regular wages to reserve personnel called to service for less than 30 days.

Pensions and Social Security

Chile’s social insurance system provides old-age, disability and survivors’ pensions. Mandatory individual accounts are required for employees who entered the labor force after Dec. 31, 1982; coverage is voluntary for those who entered the workforce earlier.

Workers are eligible to request a basic state pension at age 65 (men) or 60 (women). Early retirement is possible for those who attain a sufficient account balance before they reach the usual retirement age and for those who have worked under arduous conditions.

Workers’ Compensation

Employers are required to insure workers against accidents or injuries occurring in the workplace and during travel to and from work, including labor union activities. The employer contribution rate is 0.95 percent of covered payroll plus up to an additional 3.4 percent of covered payroll according to the industry and the assessed degree of risk.

Reference Citations

Vacation: Labor Code, 2002, arts. 67-70 (Spanish)

Maternity Leave: Labor Code, 2002, arts. 195-208 (Spanish)

Paternity Leave: Labor Code, 2002, art. 195 (Spanish)

Sick Leave: Supreme Decree No. 44 of 1978, arts. 4, 8 (Spanish)

Other Leave: Labor Code, 2002, arts. 66, 207 (Spanish)

Pensions and Social Security: Law Decree No. 3,500, 1980, art. 17 (Spanish)

Workers’ Compensation: Law No. 15,744, 2015, art. 15 (Spanish)

Labor Relations

In General

Chilean workers are guaranteed the freedom to unionize without prior approval. The right to strike is limited to unionized workers.

Right to Organize

Chilean workers are guaranteed the freedom to unionize without prior approval. Trade union affiliation is voluntary, and workers cannot be required to join a trade union or to withdraw from a union as a condition of employment, thus prohibiting “closed shops” and “union shops.” Workers may form one of four types of unions: a company-level union, an intercompany union representing workers at multiple enterprises, a union of independent workers or a temporary or seasonal workers’ union.

Trade unions have the right to form federations of three or more unions, confederations of three or more federations and labor centrals. Unions may also affiliate with international workers’ organizations.

Chile has several labor federations and confederations, but the Unitary Labor Central (CUT) is the only labor central, representing an estimated 79 percent of unionized employees. The CUT is affiliated with the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions and serves as the Chilean worker delegate to the International Labor Organization.

Works Councils

Chilean labor law does not address works councils.

Dispute Resolution

During collective bargaining, labor and management may agree to mediation or arbitration to settle contract disputes. If the parties do not reach an agreement to resolve the dispute, the worker has the right to sue the employer before a labor court.

Strikes and Lockouts

The right to strike is limited to unionized workers and is legally limited to company-level unions, intercompany unions, confederations and federations. Strikes by public sector and essential services employees are prohibited.

To stage a strike, an absolute majority of workers in regulated collective bargaining units must vote by secret ballot in favor of the strike. If there is no majority, the employer’s last negotiating offer prevails. The strike must commence within three days following the strike vote, although it can be postponed for up to 10 days by mutual consent. If the strike does not begin on the scheduled date or if more than half of the workers involved in the negotiations continue to work, the strike is considered void and the employer’s last offer goes into effect. After 48 hours of striking, any party may request the Labor Inspectorate to intercede, but if no agreement is reached within five days, the strike may continue.

At any time during the strike, the workers’ negotiating committee may call a vote to send the case to mediation or arbitration.

An employer may declare a partial or total lockout or a temporary closing of the company if the strike affects more than 50 percent of the company’s employees or if it paralyzes the essential activities of the enterprise.

An employer may not replace workers involved in the strike, either with internal or external personnel. Instead, the union is obliged to provide emergency teams comprised of bargaining employees tasked with performing the company’s ‘minimum services’.

Successorship Clauses

In cases where a business is sold or transferred, the successor employer becomes responsible for its predecessor’s rights, privileges and duties towards the employees under the collective agreement.

Reference Citations

Right to Organize: Labor Code, 2002, arts. 212-220, 227 (Spanish)

Dispute Resolution: Labor Code, 2002, arts. 352-368, 499 (Spanish)

Strikes and Lockouts: Labor Code, 2002, arts. 369-380 (Spanish)

Successorship Clauses: Labor Code, 2002, art. 4 (Spanish)

Safety, Health and Security

In General

Chile’s Labor Code requires employers to provide safe and hygienic workplaces.

Workplace Safety and Health

An advisory group, the National Commission for Safety in the Workplace, was created in 2010, a consultative Council on Safety and Health in 2011, and Chile ratified the International Labor Organization’s Convention 187 concerning the Promotional Framework for Occupational Safety and Health.

Chile’s Labor Code requires employers to provide safe and hygienic workplaces. Workers who remove themselves from dangerous situations cannot be terminated if inspectors from the Labor Directorate and the Chilean Safety Association determine that conditions endanger their health or safety.

Drug and Alcohol Use

Authorities may conduct drug testing only while an employee is working on company premises. Employers who want to carry out drug testing on a regular basis are advised to establish the procedure in the employee handbook. Drug test results must be treated confidentially.

Chile has no legal ban on smoking in the workplace, although a national voluntary smoking ban was enacted in 2007. Smoking is prohibited in certain places such as schools, public buildings, hospitals, universities, cinemas and supermarkets unless they have special smoking areas.

Reference Citations

Workplace Safety and Health: Labor Code, 2002, art. 153 (Spanish)

Termination

Termination by Employer

Chile abolished the concept of dismissal without cause in 1990. An employer may dismiss a worker only for misconduct or for failure to meet the requirements of the undertaking.

The employer may terminate the contract of employment without compensation if the employee commits any of the following acts:

• dishonesty, violence, insult or serious immoral behavior and/or sexual harassment;
• negotiation at work that has been expressly forbidden in the employment contract;
• unjustified absence from work for two consecutive working days, for two Mondays or a total of three days in a single month or that causes disruption in service or production;
• abandonment of work, defined as either leaving the workplace during working hours without employer authorization and without proper notice or valid reason or the unjustified refusal to perform the assigned task under the agreed terms of the contract of employment;
• acts, forgetfulness or carelessness seriously affecting the safety or operation of the establishment or the safety, health or activity of the workers;
• deliberate material damage to plant, machinery, tools, work implements, goods or merchandise or
• serious breach of the obligations under the contract of employment.

In cases where employees are dismissed due to the needs of the company (i.e., changes in market conditions or economy), the employer must provide 30 days’ written notice to the worker unless it pays the employee compensation equivalent to 30 days’ work.

The employee must be notified of the termination in writing, in person or by registered letter sent to the address in the contract of employment within three working days of the separation.

Employees may not be terminated while on sick leave or maternity leave or while they are pregnant. Union officials, employees involved in collective bargaining and the president of the hygiene and safety committee are also protected from termination. In addition, employees who have recently experienced the death of certain relatives may not be terminated.

Termination by Employee

An employee who resigns must give the employer 30 days’ notice.

Plant Closings and Mass Layoffs

Chile has no laws expressly addressing notice to workers in advance of plant closings or mass layoffs, although employers must give 30 days’ notice to employees laid off for business necessity or 30 days’ wages in lieu of notice.

Payment on Termination

Compensation on termination is payable (unless an individual or collective agreement is made with more favorable terms) equivalent to 30 days of the last monthly compensation earned for each year of service worked and fraction greater than six months.

If a dismissal for misconduct is declared unjustified, unfair or unlawful, compensation may be further increased by up to 150 percent. Terminated employees must be paid for unused vacation days.

Unemployment Insurance

Chile has instituted a largely privatized system of unemployment insurance based on individual savings accounts (ISA) backed by the public Solidarity Severance Fund (SSF).

The monthly contribution to the system is equivalent to 3 percent of covered wages. For employees hired under fixed-term contracts, the contribution is levied on the employer alone. For employees with open-ended contracts, the contribution is shared between the employee (0.6 percent of monthly earnings, which is allocated completely to the ISA) and the employer (2.4 percent of the employee’s monthly earnings). The employer’s contribution is allocated principally to the employee’s ISA, with a small part paid to the SSF (0.8 and 0.2 percentage points in the case of employees with open-ended contracts and employees with fixed-term contracts, respectively). The SSF is also partly financed by a monthly fixed amount from general tax revenues.

In order to receive benefits, the worker’s unemployment must be involuntary, and the worker must have made at least 12 months or 52 weeks of contributions in the previous two years.

A training program to help people gain job skills targets those who have been unemployed for three months or longer, as well as young people seeking a first job.

Reference Citations

Termination by Employer: Labor Code, 2002, arts. 159, 161 (Spanish)

Payment on Termination: Labor Code, 2002, arts. 160-161, 294 (Spanish)

Unemployment Insurance: Unemployment Insurance Law, 2001, No. 19,728, arts. 1-5 (Spanish)

Personal Taxes

Residency Requirements

Individuals are deemed resident in Chile if:

• they stay in Chile for more than six months in a calendar year or
• they stay in Chile for more than six months within two consecutive tax years.

Taxable Income

Residents who are Chilean nationals are subject to taxes on their worldwide income. Residents who are foreign nationals are taxed only on their Chile-sourced income for their first three years in the country, after which all their income wherever earned becomes taxable. The three-year limitation period can be extended.

Taxable income includes salaries, pensions and other remuneration.

Tax Rates

Personal income is subject to tax at progressive rates from 0 percent to 35.5 percent.

Employers and employees must make contributions for the country’s pension fund, health insurance scheme, workers’ compensation fund, unemployment insurance, and disability fund.

Reference Citations

Termination by Employer: Chile Income Tax Act, 1974 (Spanish)

Web References

Law and Regulation

Constitution of 1980 with 2009 reforms (Spanish)

Labor Code (Spanish)

Law on Equal Wages, 2009, No. 20,348 (Spanish)

Law Establishing Rules on Equal Opportunities and Social Inclusion of People with Disabilities (Spanish)

Law on Arbitrary Discrimination (Spanish)

Unemployment Insurance Law (Spanish)