Formal registration of companies has many immediate benefits for the companies and for business owners and employees. Legal entities can outlive their founders. Resources are pooled as several shareholders join forces to start a company. Formally registered companies have access to services and institutions from courts to banks as well as to new markets. And their employees can benefit from protections provided by the law. An additional benefit comes with limited liability companies. These limit the financial liability of company owners to their investments, so personal assets of the owners are not put at risk. Where governments make registration easy, more entrepreneurs start businesses in the formal sector, creating more good jobs and generating more revenue for the government.
Below is a detailed summary of the bureaucratic and legal hurdles faced by entrepreneurs wishing to incorporate and register a new firm in Chile. It examines the procedures, time and cost involved in launching a commercial or industrial firm with up to 50 employees and start-up capital of 10 times the economy's per-capita gross national income.
| No. | Procedure | Time to Complete | Associated Costs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Notarize articles of incorporation, record them in a public deed and send an excerpt of the public deed to the Offical Gazette and to the Commercial Registry | 1 day | USD 250 (notary fees) |
| 2 | Request online the registration of the company and obtain a registration certificate | 2 days | USD15+0.2% of capital |
| 3 | Obtain tax registration number (Rol Unico Tributario) and give notice of initiation to Internal Revenue Service | 1 day | no charge |
| 4 | Print receipts/invoices in the authorized printing company | 1 day | USD 43 per 50-page book |
| 5 | Seal accounting books, invoices and other documents at the IRS | 1 day | no charge |
| * 6 | Obtain a "patente municipal" working license from the competent municipality | 1 day, simultaneous with previous procedure | no charge |
| * 7 | Register with the labor-related accident insurance (Seguro Social contra Riesgos de Accidentes del Trabajo y Enfermedades Profesionales) at the Mutuales de Seguridad | 1 day, simultaneous with previous procedure | no charge |