Chile enacts framework law on sectoral authorizations

On September 29, 2025, Law No. 21.770 was published in the Official Gazette, establishing a framework law on sectoral authorizations and amending various legal statutes. This new law creates a general framework for the processing, standardization, and coordination of authorization procedures applicable to regulated projects and activities. Its aim is to enhance legal certainty, transparency, and administrative efficiency, with the goal of supporting investment and sustainable productive development.

Below, we summarize the main changes introduced by the law.

Sectoral authorizations and alternative enabling techniques

The law defines sectoral authorizations as final administrative decisions issued by a sectoral body within a pre-established procedure, required prior to the execution of any project or activity subject to regulatory constraints. These authorizations are categorized by type – such as administration or disposal, location, project, operation, and professional order or service – and each authorization may belong to only one category. Sectoral bodies must submit a reasoned classification proposal to the newly created Office of Sectoral Authorizations and Investment (OASI), which will determine the appropriate category for each authorization. This classification will be formalized through a supreme decree issued by the Ministry of Economy, Development, and Tourism.

The law also introduces alternative enabling techniques (THA), which are instruments that allow a project or activity to proceed without requiring a prior favorable administrative act. These include notices and sworn declarations for low-risk activities, which take immediate effect, and are subject to subsequent oversight. The content of THAs, the required supporting documentation, and any other provisions necessary for their proper implementation will be established by regulations issued by the ministry overseeing the respective sectoral body.

Additionally, the law prohibits requirements beyond those explicitly stated in the regulations and encourages the parallel processing of permits to improve efficiency.

Applicable procedure for sectoral authorizations

The law incorporates several guiding principles – most notably administrative facilitation and simplification – which apply to procedural rules across all sectoral bodies. These rules include digital submission of applications, maximum resolution deadlines based on the type of authorization (with the possibility of automatic certificate issuance), admissibility criteria, suspension of deadlines, and the effects of administrative silence, whether positive or negative, depending on the authorization type.

All requests to initiate a sectoral procedure must be submitted through the Unified Information System for Sectoral Permits (SUPER), using standardized forms defined by the competent authority. For procedures with resolution periods exceeding 20 days, a formal admissibility review will be conducted to ensure compliance with content and documentation requirements. If these requirements are not met, the request will be deemed inadmissible, although a one-time correction period may be granted. Once admitted, the procedure begins, and the sectoral body may request additional or clarifying information.

Resolution deadlines range from 25 to 120 days, depending on the type of authorization. Unjustified delays may result in administrative liability, allowing applicants to invoke the relevant administrative silence provisions.

Unified Information System for Sectoral Permits (SUPER)

SUPER is the new digital one-stop platform for processing, tracking, and notifying sectoral authorizations and THAs. It ensures traceability, integrity, and transparency in accordance with public information access and personal data protection laws, and it enables project owners to manage all required permits in one place.

Investment promotion mechanisms

Investment initiatives may be classified as strategic if they significantly contribute to one or more objective evaluation factors defined in the relevant regulation. The regulation will specify the application requirements, submission timing, evaluation procedures, deadlines, and evaluation criteria, including investment amount, employment impact, contribution to national economic development, and regional impacts, among other factors.

The law also introduces expedited processing for strategic projects, aiming to shorten authorization timelines. In addition, a regulatory stability regime is established for certain projects, guaranteeing the application of the regulations in force at the time of their evaluation for a determined period.

New institutional framework for sectoral regulation and evaluation

The law creates the Office of Sectoral Authorizations and Investment (OASI), which is responsible for coordinating, monitoring, and proposing improvements to the authorization system and managing SUPER. A Sectoral Authorizations and Investment Committee is also established to enhance intersectoral coordination and modernization strategy development.

Opportunities for regulatory updates

Sectoral bodies and OASI are required to conduct periodic diagnostics of sectoral regulations to identify opportunities for simplification, elimination of unnecessary authorizations, and replacement with THAs. The results of these diagnostics and the modernization strategies will be public and binding for sectoral bodies.

Implementation timeline

The law entered into force on September 29, 2025. However, the implementation of OASI, SUPER, THAs, and amendments to sectoral legal statutes will be phased in according to regulations issued within 1 to 12 months of the law’s publication. Procedures initiated before the law’s effective date will remain subject to the regulations in force at the time of initiation.

For more information, please contact the authors.

Leer este artículo en español.