How to bring capital into Chile

The process of bringing foreign capital into Chile must be done through specific legal statutes outlined in Title I, Chapter XIV of the Chilean Central Bank's Compendium of Foreign Exchange Regulations.

These regulations apply to any foreign exchange operations related to credits, deposits, investments, and capital contributions from abroad when the amount is greater than USD10,000 or its equivalent in other foreign currencies.

The foreign currency must be brought into the country through the Formal Exchange Market (FEM) which is composed of banks and authorized exchange houses, eventhough it may also be made in cash money with direct deposit into the bank.

The foreign investor must notify the Chilean Central Bank of the investment through a commercial bank or the intervening financial institution, according to the terms and conditions outlined in the Chapter XIV regulations and in the company bylaws.

The registration process starts when the funds have entered the country through the FEM. But if foreign currency is disbursed directly abroad, the Central Bank must be informed directly by the interested parties, within the first 10 days of the following month.

The Chilean Central Bank must be notified of payments or remittances of foreign currencies that correspond to capital, interest, profits, and other benefits through the FEM entity involved in the operation. There are no restrictions on the term or amount of repatriations of these items.