Return to mapElectronic Invoicing and Transport Documents in Chile
Electronic invoicing in Chile is a fully consolidated system that replaced paper-based vouchers in compliance with Law No. 20.727. The Internal Revenue Service (SII) requires companies to issue Electronic Tax Documents (DTE), including the Electronic Dispatch Guide, a mandatory document that supports the transfer of goods and ensures the traceability of commercial operations.
Characteristics of electronic invoicing in Chile
Chile was one of the pioneers in Latin America in adopting electronic invoicing, starting its development in 2003 and later becoming a reference model for the region. What began as a voluntary system eventually became mandatory for all companies in 2018, marking the definitive elimination of paper-based vouchers.
Law No. 20.727 established the legal framework for the system and defined the transition to Electronic Tax Documents (DTE), which include invoices, credit and debit notes, dispatch guides, export invoices, among other fiscally valid documents. The Internal Revenue Service (SII) is the authority in charge of enabling taxpayers as electronic issuers, validating the documents, and offering billing systems adapted to each company’s transaction volume.
Mandatory Use
Electronic invoicing is mandatory for 100% of companies, both issuers and receivers. Being an electronic invoicer enables the taxpayer as both issuer and receiver of DTEs, with real-time exchange and validation before the SII.
Invoice Format
DTEs are generated in XML format. Among the most relevant mandatory documents are: Invoices, Tax-Exempt or Non-Taxable Invoices, Purchase Invoices, Invoice Settlements, Debit Notes, Credit Notes, Dispatch Guides, Export Invoices, Export Credit Notes, and Export Debit Notes.
Electronic Signature
The electronic signature is mandatory and must be applied with a digital certificate compliant with XMLDsig, ensuring authenticity, integrity, and non-repudiation of the DTE.
Invoice Archiving
Both issuer and receiver must preserve DTEs for 6 years in their original XML format, ensuring availability for audits and use as accounting backup.
Administrative Requirements
The taxpayer must undergo an application and certification process before the SII to be accredited as an issuer: generation/reception tests of DTEs, acquisition of a digital certificate, and registration as an authorized issuer.
Fiscal Control
The issuer manages the Folio Authorization Codes (CAF), which include the SII’s electronic stamp (encrypted from a predefined data string). This stamp allows each DTE to be validated by the SII and ensures traceability.
Print format
The printed representation of the DTE follows a standardized format and includes a PDF417 barcode, facilitating verification by recipients.
Purchases/sales summary
The SII replaced the Books of Purchases and Sales with the monthly declaration (Form F29), which the SII itself proposes for ratification based on the DTEs issued/received.
How electronic invoicing works in Chile
The electronic invoicing process in Chile covers the phases of issuance, validation, control, delivery, and archiving of DTEs, ensuring their legal validity and tax compliance.
Issuance and validation
The required data is obtained from the ERP and generated as a DTE in XML in accordance with the SII schema. Validation mechanisms are applied to ensure all necessary information is included before sending.
CAF and electronic signature
The DTE is assigned the Folio Authorization Code (CAF) corresponding to the range of folios used, and the issuer’s electronic signature is applied. The SII stamp and the signature ensure technical and legal validity.
Delivery to recipient
Once validated by the SII, the DTE is sent to the recipient using secure communication protocols.
Electronic archiving
DTEs must be electronically archived for 6 years, ensuring integrity, access, and traceability. When necessary, a printed representation is generated in accordance with the SII’s technical requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions about Electronic Invoicing in Chile
Below are some of the most common questions about the electronic invoicing system in Chile.
What is an Electronic Tax Document (DTE)?
It is a legally valid electronic document that supports commercial/tax operations (invoices, notes, dispatch guides, etc.) and replaces paper.
What types of DTEs are mandatory in Chile?
The main DTEs required by the SII are: Invoices, Tax-Exempt or Non-Taxable Invoices, Purchase Invoices, Invoice Settlements, Debit and Credit Notes, Dispatch Guides, as well as Export Invoices and Export Notes.
How is the authenticity of an electronic invoice verified?
Through the issuer’s electronic signature, the electronic stamp (CAF), and validation by the SII, which returns the document status.
What is the deadline to accept or dispute an electronic invoice?
The recipient has up to 8 days from receipt to accept or dispute it. If no action is taken within this period, the invoice is considered accepted and the SII incorporates it into the F29 proposal.
What happens if the supplier reported the invoice to the SII but the customer did not receive it?
Discrepancies may arise in the F29. It is recommended to use an e-invoicing solution that reconciles daily the DTEs reported to the SII with those received in the ERP, generates alerts, and allows disputes for documents not received.
What requirements must be met to issue DTEs?
Application and certification before the SII, digital certificate, submission of each DTE to the SII, monthly F29 filing, electronic signature, SII electronic stamp, and authorized CAF.
What invoicing systems does the SII provide?
- Free SII system: For low DTE issuance volume, one-by-one issuance (invoices, notes, dispatch guides, and purchase invoices). It does not integrate with the taxpayer’s software applications.
- Billing system: For high DTE issuance volume, integrated with the taxpayer’s software applications and supporting the full DTE catalog.
What is an electronic purchase invoice and when is it used?
It is the DTE that supports a purchase when the issuer acts as a withholding agent or when the supplier does not have tax documentation (according to applicable resolutions).
What requirements must an electronic receipt (boleta) meet in Chile?
It must be sent to the SII within one hour, be electronically signed, include the CAF, be preserved for six years, and have a printed representation for in-person sales and a virtual one for online sales.
Upcoming dates in Chile
Characteristics of the Electronic Dispatch Guide in Chile
The Electronic Dispatch Guide, regulated by the Internal Revenue Service (SII), is an Electronic Tax Document (DTE) that supports the transfer of goods within the country. Its issuance is mandatory and certifies the origin and destination of the goods, granting tax validity to operations and protecting issuers, recipients, and carriers in case of audits.
In addition to its tax function, this document facilitates cargo traceability and optimizes logistics management, contributing to inventory control and the proper delivery of products. It is generated electronically within the SII’s invoicing system, ensuring legal security and transparency in every transfer, whether for sales, returns, consignments, or other internal goods movements.
Mandatory use
The issuance of the Electronic Shipping Guide is mandatory for all taxpayers who transport goods within the national territory. The regulations also stipulate that a shipping guide must be issued for each shipment and for each vehicle used, with the aim of ensuring the traceability of logistics operations.
The only exceptions to this requirement are cases expressly defined by tax regulations, such as certain shipments supported by receipts or specific situations covered by the SII.
Mandatory Information
Each Electronic Waybill must include detailed information regarding the transport of the goods. Mandatory data includes:
- Date and time the transfer began.
- Exact origin and destination addresses of the goods.
- Details of the sender, recipient, and carrier (name, Tax ID, and address).
- Identification of the vehicle driver.
- License plate number of the vehicle and the truck or trailer used for transport.
- Detailed description of the goods being transported (name, quantity, weight or volume, and unit price when applicable).
- For shipments not related to a sale, the unit price may be omitted, provided that the reason for the shipment is clearly indicated (e.g., internal transfer, consignment, or return).
Types of Electronic Dispatch Guide in Chile
Regulations require clearly identifying the type of transfer being carried out with the goods being transported. Among the main classifications are:
- Transfer due to sale: used when the movement of goods is associated with a sales transaction.
- Pending sales: products are shipped whose sale has already been agreed upon, but whose final price has not yet been determined.
- Consignments: shipment of goods to be sold by a third party.
- Free delivery: transfer of goods without a sales transaction.
- Internal transfers: movement of goods between warehouses, storage facilities, or branches of the same company.
- Returns: transport of products back to the supplier or seller.
- Transfer for export: shipment of goods abroad without an associated sale.
- Export sales: the transfer of goods intended for commercial export operations.
Registration and Control of Shipping Documents
The Internal Revenue Service has established a Shipping Document Registry, which will centralize the control of these documents and improve the traceability of goods transfers.
Taxpayers who issue electronic shipping documents using their own systems or third-party systems must record issued and canceled documents in the Electronic Shipping Document Log. In the case of the SII’s free system, this information is automatically recorded in the document history.
Shipping guides must be retained for six years, just like all other Electronic Tax Documents.
Frequently Asked Questions about the Electronic Dispatch Guide in Chile
Below are some of the most frequently asked questions about the Electronic Dispatch Guide in Chile.
What is the Electronic Dispatch Guide?
It is an Electronic Tax Document (DTE) that supports the transfer of goods within the country and certifies their origin and destination under SII regulations.
Who must issue the Dispatch Guide?
The seller or service provider transporting the goods must issue it, send it to the customer, and ensure that it accompanies the goods during transportation.
When must a Dispatch Guide be issued?
Whenever goods are transported, whether or not there is a sale, especially when the invoice is not issued at the time of delivery.
What happens if the Dispatch Guide is not issued?
The transport may be considered irregular, exposing the taxpayer to penalties and the seizure of the goods.
How long must Dispatch Guides be kept?
The issuer must keep the duplicates of the guides for a minimum period of 6 years, while the recipient keeps the original and the second copy.
Upcoming dates in Chile
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