Characteristics of Electronic Invoicing in Chile

Chile pioneered the development of an e-Invoice system (e-Factura) in 2003, becoming a benchmark for other consolidated Latin American systems like Brazil and Mexico. Despite being the precusor, widespread implementation by the Internal Revenue Service/Servicio de Impuestos Internos (SII) only began in 2014, concluding in February 2018 with the incorporation of rural microenterprises. During this time, physical and paper documents were replaced by various Electronic Tax Documents/Documentos Tributarios Electrónicos (DTE) as mandated by the legislation.

Tax Authority

Tax Authority

Servicio de Impuestos Internos (SII). Electronic invoicing is regulated by the Internal Revenue Service (SII),which is the entity responsible for accrediting taxpayers as issuers and receivers of DTE.

Obligation

Obligation

Electronic invoicing is mandatory for 100% of companies, both as issuers and receivers.

Administrative Procedures

Administrative Procedures

A prior application process is required to be accredited as an electronic issuer and obtain a digital certificate. Following the application, the taxpayer must undergo a certification process, where a test environment will be enabled for simulations and information exchanges. The SII will verify the correct generation and reception of documents. Once all requirements are met, the SII will register the taxpayer as a DTE issuer.

 

 

Format

Format

Electronic Tax Document/Documento Tributario Electrónico (DTE), in XML structured format. In Chile, the most relevant mandatory DTEs include: Invoices, Non-Affected or Exempt Invoices, Purchase Invoices, Invoice Settlements, Debit Notes, Credit Notes, Dispatch Guides, Export Invoices, Export Credit Notes, and Export Debit Notes.

Electronic Signature

Electronic Signature

The electronic signature is mandatory, it must be applied with a proprietary digital certificate and in XMLDsig format.

Fiscal Control

Fiscal Control

The taxpayer manages some Folio Authorization Codes/Códigos de Autorización de Folios (CAF) that must be incorporated when issuing electronic invoices. CAF includes a private key to encrypt the electronic stamp generated from a predefined data string containing invoice information. This stamp facilitates the validation of the document.

Print format

Print format

Standardized print format, must include a PDF417 barcode.

Archiving

Archiving

Mandatory archive of invoices for 6 years for both issuers and receivers.

Purchase/Sales Summary

Purchase/Sales Summary

The SII has replaced the declaration of Purchase and Sales Books with the monthly declaration of the F29 document that the SII itself sends to companies for ratification.

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How does electronic invoicing work in Chile?

The following is the process for issuing and sending Electronic Tax Documents/Documentos Tributarios Electrónicos (DTE) according to the requirements set by the Internal Revenue Service/Servicio de Impuestos Internos (SII).
1

Issuance and Validation

Obtain the necessary data from the client's ERP to generate the DTE in the XML standard established by the SII. Apply data validation mechanisms to ensure they contain the required information.

2

CAF and Electronic Signature

Invoices are assigned a CAF (Código de Autorización de Folios/Folio Authorization Code) based on the corresponding folio range used and the electronic signature is applied to the structured XML document.

3

Sending to the destination

After validating the declared DTE with the SII, EDICOM automatically sends the DTEs to each recipient through secure and reliable communication channels (private VAN, EDI gateway, https, sftp, x400, OFTP, AS2, AS4).

4

Electronic Archive

Electronically archive invoices with full security and accessibility guarantees for a legal period of 6 years, generating a printed format according to the technical rules required by the SII.

Frequently Asked Questions about Electronic Invoicing in Chile

Here, we help address some common questions regarding electronic invoicing in Chile.

An Electronic Tax Document (DTE) is an electronic document that supports commercial and tax operations, such as invoices, credit and debit notes, dispatch guides, among others, and is legally valid.

  • A prior application process is required to be accredited as an electronic issuer.
  • Have a digital certificate.
  • A copy of each electronic tax document that the taxpayer issues must be sent to the SII.
  • In addition to the tax documents issued, Electronic Purchase and Sales Information are required to be submitted monthly to the SII.
  • Both the invoice itself and its printed representation must bear a name that certifies that it is electronic.
  • It must have an electronic signature (composed of encrypted characters that allow the recipient to verify the authenticity of the origin or the issuer of the invoice, and the integrity of the document).
  • It must include the date and time of the electronic signature.
  • It must have an SII electronic stamp, which allows the validation of the document.
  • The issuer will obtain authorized folio ranges (CAF) to be used when issuing DTEs.

The authenticity of an electronic invoice is verified through the issuer's electronic signature and SII's validation.

In Chile, the most relevant mandatory Documentos Tributarios Electrónicos/Electronic Tax Documents are: Invoices, Non-Affected or Exempt Invoices, Purchase Invoices, Invoice Settlements, Debit Notes, Credit Notes, Dispatch Guides, Export Invoices, Export Credit Notes, and Export Debit Notes.

The electronic invoices in Chile can be claimed by the recipient within a maximum period of 8 days from receipt to the SII. Once the 7 days have elapsed without any action having been taken on the electronic document, it will be understood that the invoice has been irrevocably accepted. In order to consult the information on the invoices claimed, the issuer needs a solution that connects to the SII to keep track of what is happening with its electronic invoices.

If invoices haven't been received from suppliers, the companies cannot review and corroborate the data. If the 8-day period has expired, the SII automatically considers the invoice as valid and incorporates it into the proposed F29 VAT return. Clearly, data inconsistencies with the SII will lead to discrepancies in the F29. 

EDICOM's solution is capable of detecting inconsistencies between the Form F29 and the DTEs received through daily and automated cross-checking of the invoices issued by suppliers to the SII. The solution itself compares information of the invoice in the client's ERP with the invoice data received by the SII to check that it matches. In the case that an invoice is detected in the SII but not the ERP, an alert is issued.

The electronic receipt is the proof of purchase of a good or service received by the final consumer. Each electronic receipt generated must be sent to the SII within a maximum of one hour. In addition to electronic receipts, taxpayers must generate a monthly declaration of purchases and sales, sent by the SII itself to companies for ratification.

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How Electronic Invoicing Works in Chile

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EDICOM Group will use the personal data collected to answer questions/or manage the services requested. You may exercise your rights of access, rectification, opposition, restriction and portability of your data in accordance with the provisions in the Privacy Policy.

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