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Anti money laundering in Chile: who reports to the UAF, suspicious transaction and cash reports, record keeping and fines

Argentina. For full detail on Argentina, go to The Argentine Thread.

Last verified: 2026-10-26 · Status: Stable

Banks, fund managers, exchange houses, payment card issuers, brokers, insurers, free zone users, casinos, customs agents, real estate brokers and developers, notaries, vehicle dealers, jewellers, registered fintech platforms and other listed businesses must report suspicious transactions to the Unidad de Análisis Financiero (UAF). They must register with the UAF, appoint a compliance officer, keep records of cash operations above US$10,000 for at least five years, and never tip off clients. UAF fines go up to UF 5,000 and triple for repeat breaches; tipping off is a crime, and money laundering itself carries presidio mayor and corporate criminal liability.

USD figures use the Central Bank exchange rate of CLP 986.58 per US dollar published in the Diario Oficial for 23 October 2026 (CVE 2891564). UF figures use the SII value of CLP 41,221.08 for 26 October 2026, and UTM and UTA figures the SII values of CLP 72,151 and CLP 865,812 for October 2026. Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Financial intelligence unit	Unidad de Análisis Financiero (UAF) textLey Nº 19.913 art. 1, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Cash operation record and reporting threshold	10,000 USDLey Nº 19.913 art. 5, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Cross border cash or bearer instruments declaration threshold	10,000 USDLey Nº 19.913 art. 4, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Minimum record retention	5 yearsLey Nº 19.913 art. 5, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Maximum UAF fine, serious breach	5,000 UFLey Nº 19.913 art. 20, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Multiple for repeat breaches within 12 months	3 timesLey Nº 19.913 art. 20, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Maximum fine for tipping off	400 UTMLey Nº 19.913 art. 7, as of 2026-10-26 · in force

The rule

1. The reporting entities are banks and financial institutions; factoring, leasing and securitisation firms; general fund managers and managers of private investment funds; exchange houses and others authorised to receive foreign currency; issuers and operators of credit cards, prepaid cards and similar payment systems; money transfer and cash transport firms; stock and commodity exchanges; stockbrokers and securities agents; insurers; mutual fund managers; futures and options operators; free zone operators and users; casinos, gaming halls and racetracks; licensed cruise ship gaming; customs agents; auction houses; real estate brokers and property management firms; notaries; registrars; pension fund managers; professional sports organisations; savings and credit cooperatives; representative offices of foreign banks; new and used vehicle dealers; vehicle rental firms; arms makers and sellers; shooting, hunting and fishing clubs; thoroughbred horse traders; precious metal, jewellery and gemstone dealers; securities depositories; and fintech firms registered with the CMF providing crowdfunding, alternative trading systems, custody, intermediation or payment initiation. Public bodies and supervisors must also report.
Cost to do it: Registration with the UAF is required (art. 40); the law sets no fee.
Example: A foreign group opening a used car dealership in Santiago becomes a reporting entity and must register with the UAF. / Same in USD terms.Ley Nº 19.913 (DO 18 December 2003), as amended, Art. 3, 2003-12-18 official text · verified 2026-10-26

2. Reporting entities must report suspicious operations: any act, operation or transaction that, according to the practices of the activity, is unusual or lacks apparent economic or legal justification, could be terrorist financing, or involves a person listed in a UN Security Council resolution, whether isolated or repeated. They must appoint an officer responsible for dealing with the UAF, and register in the UAF register and report relevant changes. Secrecy rules do not prevent reporting, and good faith reports exempt the reporter from liability. They must keep special records for at least five years and give the UAF on request details of every cash operation above US$10,000 or its peso equivalent at the dólar observado of the day.
Cost to do it: Compliance officer, monitoring systems and record keeping are private costs.
Example: A real estate broker receiving CLP 12 million in cash as a deposit must record it, since it exceeds US$10,000 at CLP 986.58 (about CLP 9.87 million). / The cash record threshold is US$10,000 or its equivalent at the dólar observado of the day of the operation.Ley Nº 19.913, Art. 3, art. 5 and art. 40, 2003-12-18 official text · verified 2026-10-26

3. It is prohibited for reporting entities and their staff, and for those who provide services to them, to tell the client or third parties that information was requested by or sent to the UAF. Tipping off is punished with presidio menor en sus grados medio a máximo and a fine of 100 to 400 UTM, and the same penalty applies to those who maliciously destroy, alter or hide documents they must deliver, or deliver false ones.
Cost to do it: Fine 100 to 400 UTM, about CLP 7.2 million to CLP 28.9 million (US$7,313 to US$29,253), plus imprisonment.
Example: A bank employee who warns a client that their transfers were reported commits a crime. / Same in USD terms.Ley Nº 19.913, Art. 6 and art. 7, 2003-12-18 official text · verified 2026-10-26

4. The UAF Director sanctions breaches, considering economic capacity and the gravity and consequences of the conduct. Failing to follow UAF instructions is a minor breach (warning and fine up to UF 800, only if the infringer knew the instruction); breaching the record keeping and cash reporting duty is less serious (up to UF 3,000); and failing to report suspicious operations or provide information requested is serious (up to UF 5,000). Repeat breaches of the same kind within 12 months can be fined up to three times as much. Directors and legal representatives who took part can be sanctioned too. Undeclared cross border cash or bearer instruments above US$10,000 are handled by Customs under the Ordenanza de Aduanas.
Cost to do it: Fines up to UF 800, UF 3,000 or UF 5,000 (about CLP 33.0 million, CLP 123.7 million or CLP 206.1 million; US$33,425, US$125,345 or US$208,909), and up to UF 15,000 (about CLP 618.3 million or US$626,727) for repeat serious breaches.
Example: An exchange house that failed to file suspicious transaction reports twice within a year can be fined up to UF 15,000. / About US$626,727 in that example.Ley Nº 19.913, Art. 4, art. 19, art. 20, art. 21 and art. 39, 2003-12-18 official text · verified 2026-10-26

5. Money laundering is punished with presidio mayor en sus grados mínimo a medio and a fine of 200 to 1,000 UTM. It covers hiding or disguising the illicit origin of assets knowing they come from listed crimes, which include drug trafficking, terrorism, arms offences, securities and banking crimes, customs fraud, intellectual property crimes, Central Bank law offences, cybercrimes, certain tax crimes, bribery and other crimes by officials, and others; and acquiring, holding or using such assets for profit knowing their origin. Assets from crimes committed abroad also count. Inexcusable negligence about the origin is punished with a penalty two grades lower. Since Ley Nº 21.595, laundering linked to economic crimes is itself an economic crime and companies can be criminally liable for it.
Cost to do it: Fine 200 to 1,000 UTM, about CLP 14.4 million to CLP 72.2 million (US$14,626 to US$73,132), plus imprisonment; for companies, Ley Nº 20.393 day fines.
Example: A company that buys property with funds it knows come from a foreign bribery scheme commits laundering, even though the bribery happened abroad. / Same in USD terms.Ley Nº 19.913; Ley Nº 21.595, Ley Nº 19.913 art. 27; Ley Nº 21.595 art. 4, 2023-08-17 official text · verified 2026-10-26

Breach	Maximum fine	Approximate CLP	Approximate USD
Minor: not following UAF instructions	UF 800	33.0 million	33,425
Less serious: record keeping and cash reporting (art. 5)	UF 3,000	123.7 million	125,345
Serious: no suspicious transaction report or information (art. 3)	UF 5,000	206.1 million	208,909
Repeat within 12 months	Up to 3x	Up to 618.3 million	Up to 626,727

UAF administrative fines (Ley Nº 19.913 art. 19 and 20; CLP and USD at October 2026 values)

Worked example

An Argentine resident offers a Chilean real estate broker US$300,000 in cash split into several payments to buy an apartment. The broker records each cash payment above US$10,000, assesses whether the operation is unusual and, if so, reports it to the UAF without telling the client (Ley Nº 19.913 art. 3, 5 and 6). Bringing that cash into Chile also had to be declared to Customs (art. 4). See The Argentine Thread for Argentine FX and cash rules.

Step by step

1. Check whether any business line appears in art. 3; if so, register with the UAF and appoint the responsible officer.
2. Adopt customer due diligence, beneficial owner identification (see entities/beneficial-ownership) and monitoring procedures following UAF circulars.
3. Keep cash operation records above US$10,000 for at least five years.
4. Train staff on suspicious indicators and on the tipping off ban.
5. Integrate AML into the Ley Nº 20.393 prevention model, since laundering can make the company criminally liable.

Common traps

Assuming only banks report: vehicle dealers, jewellers, real estate firms, notaries and fintech platforms are covered (art. 3).
Converting at the wrong rate: the US$10,000 cash threshold uses the dólar observado of the day of the operation (art. 5).
Telling a client why an account was frozen or a deal delayed can be tipping off (art. 6 and 7).
Directors are not shielded: those who took part can be fined personally (art. 21).

Sources

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