Does my product need SEC, ISP, SAG or SUBTEL certification to import it into Chile?

Your supplier has already sent you the proforma invoice and the price works. Before you transfer the money, one check remains that avoids the worst-case scenario: the cargo at the port and a permit nobody requested.

In short: it depends on the exact product, not on the industry. SEC certification for an import applies to the electrical and fuel products on the mandatory list of the Superintendency of Electricity and Fuels (Superintendencia de Electricidad y Combustibles, SEC). The Public Health Institute (Instituto de Salud Pública, ISP) controls cosmetics and medical devices, the regional health authority (Seremi de Salud) controls food, the Agriculture and Livestock Service (Servicio Agrícola y Ganadero, SAG) controls plant and animal products and the wood in packaging, and the Undersecretariat of Telecommunications (Subsecretaría de Telecomunicaciones, SUBTEL) controls short-range equipment, such as devices that use Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. You check it by tariff code in the approvals matrix (matriz de vistos buenos) of Chilean Customs (Servicio Nacional de Aduanas) and confirm it with the agency before paying.

The three stages that get confused

A permit can refer to three different moments, and having one does not mean you have the others.

1. Product authorization: registering a cosmetic with the ISP, certifying a model with the SEC or the technical file for a device for SUBTEL.
2. Cargo entry: the Customs Destination Certificate (Certificado de Destinación Aduanera, CDA) lets you take the shipment out of the port and move it to a specific warehouse. It is issued by the health authority or the SAG, depending on the product.
3. Permission to sell: the authorization for use and disposal (uso y disposición) of that shipment, the SEC Seal (Sello SEC) or the SUBTEL QR code.

Cargo can be removed from the port and still not be sellable, and that difference is expensive when you discover it late.

Which agency reviews each product family?

A food of animal or plant origin may need approval from both the Seremi and the SAG. Dangerous goods also have their own rules, which we explain in IMO cargo and lithium batteries.

SEC certification for an import: what to check

Being electrical does not decide anything on its own. What matters is whether the product appears in the SEC catalog of products with mandatory certification, and under which test protocol. The law prohibits selling without the required certificate and label, so the goods can be in your warehouse and still be unsellable.

Before shipping, it is best to have defined how and with whom the lot will be certified. A foreign certificate does not replace the Chilean one, because its recognition is a separate procedure, with a timeframe of 30 business days, and lot certification follows after that.

SUBTEL: what changed on February 22, 2026

For most short-range equipment, the prior certification letter (oficio de certificación) is no longer required. Since that date, the importer must have a test report and a declaration of conformity, publish them on a website in Spanish and put a QR code of at least 1 × 1 cm on the packaging that links to that information, as well as have a representative in Chile. CE or FCC certificates are not recognized automatically, and equipment for the medical applications defined in the standard still requires the certification letter.

Footwear and clothing: labeling can also stop an import

New footwear must arrive labeled in Spanish with size, country of origin, materials and importer identification, and the regulation requires that label to be attached before the import is processed. Between 2025 and 2026, Chile's consumer protection agency (Servicio Nacional del Consumidor, SERNAC) clarified that a hanging or removable label does not comply, so the practical approach is to label at origin. Clothing and textiles also have Spanish labeling requirements: confirm the current ones with your customs broker (agente de aduana) before printing labels.

What happens if the cargo arrives without the permit?

The cargo can stay in storage for up to 90 days from receipt, after which it is presumed abandoned, with a surcharge and possible auction. Those 90 days are not free storage either, because the terminal or warehouse charges every day, and Customs has only recognized suspending the charge for periods tied to its own inspections.

The ways out depend on the agency. When the product allows it, Law 18,164 (Ley 18.164) lets you move the cargo with a CDA to an authorized warehouse, without using or selling it, while the approval is obtained. If the agency rejects the shipment, as happens with the SAG, the only options are to reship or destroy it at the importer's expense. The step-by-step is in cargo held at customs.

Selling too early costs more:

These are legal ranges, and each agency sets the specific amount. Offering the product online also counts: the SEC reported a fine against a marketplace for offering products without certification.

How do you check it before paying the supplier?

1. Ask for the technical data sheet and define the Chilean tariff code with your customs broker. The code the supplier puts down is not enough.
2. Look up that code in the Customs approvals matrix by tariff code. It is a support tool, and each agency has the final say.
3. Confirm with the agency using the actual product: the SEC catalog, registration or notification with the ISP, and the SAG requirements lookup by product and country of origin.
4. Ask the supplier for photos of the ISPM 15 mark on pallets and crates before loading. It must appear on at least two sides of each packaging unit.

A product not showing up in a search tool does not mean it is exempt. This check is one of the steps of importing from China.

What SICE does in this case and where its responsibility ends

Before shipment, SICE contacts your supplier and reviews the invoice, packing list, certificate of origin and transport document. Through its network it coordinates the customs broker, who classifies the product and checks which approval applies to your tariff code, as well as the freight, domestic transport and warehousing for the import. The certificates and authorizations are issued by the SEC, the ISP, the Seremi de Salud, the SAG and the certification bodies, and the import declaration is filed by the customs broker. SICE is not a customs agency or a testing laboratory.

Frequently asked questions

Is a CE or FCC certificate valid in Chile?

Not automatically. SUBTEL does not recognize them on their own, and with the SEC a foreign certificate goes through a recognition procedure before lot certification.

Does the CDA allow me to sell?

No. It allows you to move the cargo to the authorized warehouse. To sell, you still need the authorization for use and disposal.

How long does the CDA take?

Law 18,164 gives the authority 3 business days to respond and another 3 for its report once the cargo reaches the warehouse. That report can set a safety period, so it does not guarantee release in three days.

Is the wooden packaging checked even if I import electronics?

Yes. The SAG controls pallets and crates of any cargo.

Official sources (in Spanish)

• Customs: approvals matrix by tariff code, version 26/2025. The agency involved for each code.
• SEC: catalog of products with mandatory certification. Required products and protocols.
• SUBTEL: short-range equipment. QR code regime in force since February 22, 2026.
• ChileAtiende: CDA for imported food. Procedure with the Seremi de Salud.
• SAG: imported wooden packaging. Treated, debarked wood with the ISPM 15 mark on any cargo.
• BCN: Law 18,164. Customs destination, CDA timeframes and fines.