Minister of Economy and Mining Daniel Mas announced that the government will submit a new tax regime for SMEs to Congress in early November. Mas confirmed that the tax rate for this segment will remain at 12.5%.
The announcement came at the opening of SME Week, alongside President José Antonio Kast, according to La Tercera. Diario Financiero also reported the announcement. Mas spoke of "a significant set of reforms" spread across two bills to be submitted in fewer than 30 days.
The first bill focuses on taxes. Its central element is the first-category tax, which companies pay on their profits. For SMEs, the government proposes making the reduced 12.5% rate permanent, with a system it described as simpler and more accessible so that micro and small businesses can formalize their operations.
The initiative also includes a gradual transition. Mas explained that it aims to allow SMEs to grow "without an increase in their size bringing a penalty or an abrupt jump in their tax burden". Think of it as a staircase instead of a wall: if your business grows, the tax would rise in steps instead of all at once. The sources do not detail what those brackets would look like.
Kast summed it up in simple terms: "The fear is that if I grow, they will charge me more in taxes". The President said he wants SMEs to grow and, ideally, become large companies.
The second bill brings together measures addressing everyday obstacles, starting with liquidity, meaning having cash available to pay bills. The government promises to ensure payments arrive on time and prevent unjustified practices that delay the issuing or collection of invoices. If you have ever waited months for a large client to pay, this is the part that affects you.
On paperwork, the bill will simplify and harmonize the requirements for obtaining provisional business licenses and reduce barriers to starting operations. It will also allow thousands of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises to resolve old municipal business license debts for which the collection period has expired, through an administrative procedure instead of lengthy and costly court proceedings.
According to Mas, micro, small and medium-sized enterprises account for 98.5% of the country's formal production units and generate more than 3 million formal jobs. The texts of both bills will become available when they are submitted to Congress in early November.
