{"id":16,"date":"2026-02-19T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cyc-ca.com\/?p=16"},"modified":"2026-09-04T16:05:33","modified_gmt":"2026-09-04T20:05:33","slug":"vender-bien-raiz-impuesto-renta","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cyc-ca.com\/en\/2026\/02\/19\/vender-bien-raiz-impuesto-renta\/","title":{"rendered":"Selling a property in Chile? What to know about income tax"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 8,000 UF that are tax-free are not per transaction: they are a lifetime cap. And the old rule that selling within a year meant paying VAT ceased to exist in March 2020. Two wrong ideas that are still circulating and that completely change the final figure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In brief<\/p>\n\n\n

What is taxed is not the price: it is the capital gain<\/strong>, the difference between the sale price and the property\u2019s inflation-adjusted tax cost. If there is no gain, there is no tax, and it is in how that cost is built up that the final figure is decided. To qualify for non-taxable income treatment, more than one year must pass between purchase and sale, four years in two cases.<\/p>\n\n\n

Key figures<\/strong> · an 8,000 UF lifetime cap<\/strong> \u00b7 more than 1 year between purchase and sale, 4 years in two cases \u00b7 a 10% single tax as one of the three ways the excess is taxed<\/p>\n\n\n

Legislation<\/strong> \u00b7 Article 17 No. 8 letter b) of the Income Tax Act, with the instructions in force under Circular N° 43 de 2021<\/em> issued by the SII following Law 21,210.<\/p>\n\n\n

Verified as at September 2026.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

In this article<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. What is taxed: the capital gain, not the price<\/a><\/li>
  2. The holding period: more than one year, or four in two cases<\/a><\/li>
  3. The 8,000 UF: a lifetime cap, not a per-transaction one<\/a><\/li>
  4. How the excess is taxed: three routes<\/a><\/li>
  5. The tax cost basis: this is where the figure is decided<\/a><\/li>
  6. If you bought before 2014 or before 2004<\/a><\/li>
  7. Vender a un familiar o a una sociedad relacionada<\/a><\/li>
  8. Inherited properties<\/a><\/li>
  9. The VAT myth: the one-year presumption no longer exists<\/a><\/li>
  10. DFL 2 does not exempt you from the capital gain<\/a><\/li>
  11. If the seller is a company<\/a><\/li>
  12. Sources<\/a><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    For most people, selling a property is the largest financial transaction of their life. It is also one of the worst understood for tax purposes: out-of-date material circulates, leaflets reproduce repealed rules and calculations are made with rules that changed years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Esto es lo que rige a septiembre de 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    What is taxed: the capital gain, not the price<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    The sale is not taxed, the gain is. The base is the capital gain<\/strong>: the difference between the sale price and the property\u2019s indexed tax cost basis. If there is no gain, there is no tax.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The applicable regime is set out in article 17 No. 8 subparagraph b) of the Income Tax Law<\/strong>, and the SII instructions in force are those of Circular No. 43 of 2021<\/strong>, issued following Law 21,210.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    That regime covers the individual<\/strong>, provided the property has not been allocated to their sole proprietorship, and also taxpayers with no domicile or residence in Chile who are not required to file on the basis of accounting records. If the seller determines First Category Tax on actual income, the door closes: we will come back to that at the end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The holding period: more than one year, or four in two cases<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    For the capital gain to be treated as non-taxable income, the time between the acquisition date and the disposal date must exceed a period of one year<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Origen del inmueble<\/th>Plazo que debe transcurrir<\/th>Si se vende antes<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
    General rule<\/td>M\u00e1s de 1 a\u00f1o<\/strong><\/td>El mayor valor se grava \u00edntegro con Global Complementario o Adicional: no hay tope exento que rescatar<\/td><\/tr>
    Proviene de la subdivisi\u00f3n de terrenos, urbanos o rurales<\/td>M\u00e1s de 4 a\u00f1os<\/strong><\/td>Igual<\/td><\/tr>
    Proviene de la construcci\u00f3n de edificios por pisos o departamentos<\/td>M\u00e1s de 4 a\u00f1os<\/strong><\/td>Igual<\/td><\/tr>
    Adquirido por herencia<\/td>El plazo se cuenta desde la apertura de la sucesi\u00f3n<\/strong> \u2014la muerte del causante\u2014 y no desde la inscripci\u00f3n ni la posesi\u00f3n efectiva<\/td>Igual<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>
    Art\u00edculo 17 N\u00b0 8 letra b) de la LIR e instrucciones de la Circular SII N\u00b0 43 de 2021. La fecha de adquisici\u00f3n en el caso hereditario es la del art\u00edculo 955 del C\u00f3digo Civil.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    The period rises to four years<\/strong> in two situations: where the property comes from a subdivision of land<\/strong>, urban or rural, and where it derives from the construction of buildings by floors or apartments<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If the property is sold before the period is up, the whole capital gain is taxed with Global Complementary or Additional Tax. There is no exempt cap left to salvage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The 8,000 UF: a lifetime cap, not a per-transaction one<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    This is the point that is most often explained badly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Once the period is met, the capital gain is non-taxable income up to 8,000 UF<\/strong>, and that limit is cumulative per taxpayer<\/strong>, not per transaction or per property. Circular 43 is explicit: the capital gain obtained in each year is added up<\/strong> and qualifies as non-taxable income until the limit is used up, regardless of the number of disposals, and there is no time limit for exhausting it<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Two operational points that are usually left out:<\/p>\n\n\n\n