Regulations and certifications for the import and export of the Chilean automotive market

Chile is an important automobile market in South America. Although the domestic production of auto parts is relatively small, the demand in its automobile market is very large, and 90% of auto parts rely on imports. Since Chile and China signed the Free Trade Agreement, Chinese automobile enterprises have obtained a large number of business opportunities in the Chilean market. At present, Chile is one of the largest automobile export markets for China in South America.

The Chilean government has implemented a series of management laws, regulations and mandatory certification and approval systems for imported automobile products to ensure the quality and safety of imported vehicles. This article will introduce in detail the relevant policies, regulatory authorities and technical regulations of Chilean automobiles.import and exportThe relevant policies, regulatory authorities and technical regulations.

Chile has established and implemented a complete management system for the market access of automobile products, including strict laws and regulations and mandatory certification and approval systems. These policies are mainly reflected in the following aspects:

Tariff Policy
Chile adopts a low - tariff policy for imported automobile products to encourage imports and market competition. According to the Free Trade Agreement, Chile applies preferential tariffs to automobiles and parts from China, which greatly reduces the cost for Chinese automobile enterprises to enter the Chilean market.

Certification System
Chile implements a strict certification system for imported automobile products. New car products must pass the certification of the Chilean Vehicle Control and Certification Center (3CV) before they can enter the market for sale. The 3CV certification process includes safety certification and emission certification to ensure that vehicles meet Chilean technical standards and environmental protection requirements.3CThe regulatory authorities of the Chilean automobile industry mainly include the Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications of Chile (MTT), the National Environment Commission of Chile (MAA) and the Chilean Vehicle Control and Certification Center (3CV). These institutions each assume different functions and jointly maintain the order of the Chilean automobile market.

MTT (Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications)

Function: MTT is responsible for formulating and issuing Chilean automobile technical regulations to ensure that imported and locally produced automobiles meet national technical and safety standards.
MAA (Ministry of Environment)

Function: MAA, together with MTT, formulates technical regulations on automobile pollutant emissions to ensure that vehicle emissions meet environmental protection requirements and reduce environmental pollution.
Function: 3CV is a vehicle certification execution agency authorized by MTT. It is responsible for certifying new car products to ensure that they meet Chilean technical standards. Only vehicles that pass the 3CV certification can enter the Chilean market for sale.

3、3CV
Chilean automobile technical regulations cover many aspects, including motor vehicle type approval regulations, automobile safety technical regulations, automobile emission technical regulations, automobile noise emission technical regulations, automobile energy - saving technical regulations and laws and technical regulations related to electric vehicles.

Motor Vehicle Type Approval Regulations

Chile has a series of detailed regulations on motor vehicle type approval and registration to ensure that vehicles undergo strict technical reviews before entering the market. The main regulations include:

Vehicle type approval regulations, the latest revision is Decreto 12 (February 7, 2003).

(1) Decreto 54-1997：Motor vehicle license plate standard regulations, the latest revision is Decreto 112 (May 17, 2021).
(2) Decreto 53-1984：Regulations Related to Electric Vehicles

With the popularization of electric vehicles, Chile has also formulated relevant laws and technical regulations to standardize the market access and technical requirements of electric vehicles. The main regulations include:

Formulating technical, structural and safety requirements for electric vehicles, the latest revision is the version of June 12, 2021.

(1) Decreto 145-2018：Regulations on electric vehicle charging infrastructure to standardize the construction and operation of charging stations.
(2) Decreto 58-2019：The market access system for the Chilean automobile market is mainly the automobile product type approval system, that is, 3CV certification. 3CV certification includes safety certification and emission certification to ensure that vehicles meet Chilean technical standards.

Safety Certification

Chiles vehicle safety certification mainly relies on the submission of third - party test reports and manufacturer self - declarations, without conducting real - vehicle tests. Safety - related regulations mainly apply to light - duty passenger vehicles. The components and systems of electric vehicles in Chile must meet one of the following standards:

(1) Federal Regulations of the United States of America

(2) Safety Directives of the European Economic Community
(3) Safety regulations formulated by the Peoples Republic of China, Japan or South Korea
Emission Certification

Vehicle emission certification in the Chilean market is carried out by the 3CVs special emission laboratory. Chile recognizes two sets of emission systems, the European standard (such as NEDC CYCLE) and the American standard (such as FTP 75 CYCLE). Imported vehicles must pass these emission tests to ensure that they meet Chiles environmental protection requirements.

Conformity Provisions

In order to ensure that the automobiles sold on the market meet the safety technical requirements and emission standards stipulated by MTT/MAA, 3CV will conduct conformity inspections on imported vehicles. The specific process is as follows:

(1) Provide imported sample vehicles:

Used for emission tests.(2) Submit technical documents:
Including technical descriptive documents of imported vehicles.(3) Vehicle technical parameter document review:
Certify the main components and safety of the vehicle.(4) 3CV emission laboratory test:
Conduct emission tests on the vehicle.(5) Conclusion evaluation:
After passing the review, issue a type approval certificate.Successful Cases of Chinese Automobile Enterprises in the Chilean Market

In recent years, Chinese automobile brands such as Great Wall, Geely and BYD have performed well in the Chilean market. Take BYD as an example. Since the signing of the Free Trade Agreement with Chile, BYDs electric vehicles have obtained a significant market share in the Chilean market. This is not only due to Chiles policy support and preferential tariffs for electric vehicles, but also related to BYDs strict compliance with Chilean technical regulations and certification systems.

In recent years, Chinese automobile brands such as Great Wall, Geely, and BYD have performed well in the Chilean market. Take BYD as an example. Since the signing of the free trade agreement with Chile, BYDs electric vehicles have obtained a significant market share in the Chilean market. This is not only due to Chiles policy support and preferential tariffs for electric vehicles, but also related to BYDs strict compliance with Chiles technical regulations and certification systems.

Before entering the Chilean market, all BYD models have passed the safety and emission certifications of 3CV, ensuring that the vehicles meet Chilean technical standards. At the same time, BYD has actively participated in the construction of Chiles electric vehicle charging infrastructure, providing strong support for the Chilean electric vehicle market.

2、Future Outlook of the Chilean Automotive Market

With Chiles emphasis on electric vehicles and environmental protection technologies, the future Chilean automotive market will pay more attention toNew energyand energy - saving technologies. Chinese automotive enterprises can take advantage of Chiles policy benefits to increase R & D and promotion of electric vehicles and new energy technologies, further expanding their share in the Chilean market.

As an important automotive market in South America, Chiles strict technical regulations and certification systems ensure the quality and safety of imported vehicles. The success of Chinese automotive enterprises in the Chilean market benefits from Chiles preferential tariff policies and a sound certification system. In the future, with Chiles emphasis on new energy and environmental protection technologies, Chinese enterprises will迎来 more business opportunities in the Chilean market. Enterprises need to fully understand and comply with relevant policies and regulations in Chile to ensure product compliance and enhance market competitiveness.