by Juan Manuel González | May 26, 2023 | Noticias-en
In the context of the discussion of the bill that systematizes economic crimes, the so-called Tax Compliance has gained relevance, aimed at compliance with the regulations on the matter, by taxpaying entities and the responsibilities derived from eventual irregularities. In this sense, the proposal contemplates the incorporation into the catalog of crimes of Law No. 20,393, which establishes the criminal liability of legal persons, the crimes prescribed and sanctioned by article 97 of the Tax Code.
Although in the local reality it is not possible to speak of a tax Compliance, companies, in general, have mechanisms to comply with the obligations imposed by the law and the Internal Revenue Service, in order to avoid sanctions derived from non-compliance with regulations. .
One of the obligations that is seen to be of great importance is the presentation of the Affidavit No. 1929 on Foreign Operations (DJ No. 1929), whose submission deadline expires on June 30 of this year. The following are required to comply with this declaration: (i) taxpayers domiciled or resident in Chile who make an investment or operations abroad, or who obtain income from abroad; and (ii) permanent establishments in Chile of foreign entities or non-resident persons who make an investment or operations abroad, or who are attributable to foreign income.
The consequences for non-compliance with this obligation derive from non-presentation, delay or errors in DJ No. 1929, due to the provisions established in Title II of the Tax Code, of infractions and sanctions.
In the case of delay or omission, the fines for non-compliance can reach 10% of the taxes resulting from the liquidation, if the delay is less than 5 months. If this term is exceeded, the fine increases by 2% for each month or fraction of a month of delay with a maximum limit of 30% of the taxes owed.
However, if the offense is based on a maliciously incomplete or false declaration, the fines can vary from 50% to 300% of the value of the evaded tax, in addition to custodial sentences ranging from 541 days to 5 years in prison. It is important to take into account that, in the latter case, both the taxpayer and his representatives and managers may be active subjects of the offense.
Compliance with these obligations, added to the forthcoming incorporation of these offenses into the law on criminal liability of legal entities, poses new challenges in terms of regulatory compliance. This forces companies to adopt new behaviors in their business behavior, raising compliance standards, based on the risks they face.
The fact that Law No. 20,393 includes new crimes in its catalog implies an opportunity to strengthen the fight against corruption. In this sense, it is important to be aware of the criteria adopted in terms of crime prevention models, since this will contribute to preventing and reducing the commission of crimes and fostering a culture of ethics and compliance in the business environment.
Due to this, it is crucial that companies implement adequate compliance mechanisms, which allow them to comply with their tax obligations, in order to prevent possible irregularities or non-compliance that could lead to sanctions and legal and reputational responsibilities.
Regulatory compliance and a proactive approach to tax compliance are essential to ensure the proper functioning of companies in the context of tax obligations and current legal regulations.
For more information on these issues, you can contact the albagli zaliasnik Compliance and Tax team:
Francesca Franzani | Compliance Group Director | ffranzani@az.cl
David Ancelovici | Tax Group Director | dancelovici@az.cl
Jaime Viveros | Associate | jviveros@az.cl
by Juan Manuel González | Apr 27, 2022 | Noticias-en
On March 22, Congress sent to the Executive the bill on computer crimes, which defines eight new criminal offenses, repealing the old law that governed this matter and adapting the regulations to the provisions of the Budapest Convention.
The new norm -which will come into effect once the law is enacted and published- penalizes various conducts, updating our regulations to the current reality and at the same time establishing the criminal liability of the legal person when these crimes are committed within an organization. that it has not implemented adequate models for the prevention of these crimes.
Indeed, the old Law No. 19,223, which has been in force since 1993, typifies criminal figures related to computing. it sanctioned only four types of conduct (computer sabotage, computer espionage, the disclosure and alteration of data) and was manifestly outdated. Thus, this new regulation covers these facts from a more adequate perspective, considering the advancement of technology and the possibilities of criminal behavior related to information technology.
In this sense, the penalty for computer fraud stands out in the first place, one of the most anticipated figures by legal operators to sanction scams committed through computerized means, such as fraud at bank tellers. In turn, improper access to computer systems and the receipt of computer data is sanctioned, this being one of the newest crimes, which punishes those who market, transfer or store computer data obtained through the commission of access crimes. illicit, interception or computer forgery.Additionally, computer forgery is typified, which includes the malicious introduction, alteration, deletion or suppression that generates inauthentic data with the purpose of making them pass as “authentic or reliable” by a third party. Another of the new crimes is illegal interception, which penalizes anyone who improperly intercepts, interrupts or interferes with non-public transmission between computer systems.
For its part, the abuse of devices punishes the facilitator of technological means and computer tools that are suitable for committing the crimes of attacks on systems and data, illegal access and computer interception, as well as for the perpetration of conduct. Finally, the attack on the integrity of a computer system and the attack on the integrity of computer data are penalized.
One of the controversial aspects of the bill was the restriction imposed on ethical hacking, since the crime of improper access was typified in a general way, allowing the violation of computer systems only with the authorization of its owner. Thus, unauthorized access, even when performed for the ethical purpose of identifying failures in computer systems and reporting them to the owner for repair, constitutes conduct sanctioned by the legislator.
In consideration of this new regulation, it is recommended that companies carry out a risk assessment and adapt their crime prevention model in order to implement the appropriate mitigation measures to reduce the risk of committing these acts within them.
For more information and advice on the adaptation of crime prevention models for the incorporation of these new legal risks, you can contact:
Jaime Winter | Director Criminal Litigation Group | jwinter@az.cl
Eduardo Anguita | Corporate Group Director | eanguita@az.cl
Sofia Reizin | Associate | sreizin@az.cl
Florence Fuentealba | Associate | ffuentealba@az.cl
by Juan Manuel González | Apr 19, 2022 | Noticias-en
During September 2021, Law No. 21,369 was published in the Official Gazette of Chile, which regulates sexual harassment, violence and gender discrimination in the field of Higher Education. This responds to the different demonstrations that have been carried out, in recent years, in the different study houses throughout the country, in which protocols and sanctions were required in these cases.
Article 1 of the law clearly establishes what the objective of the law is: to promote policies aimed at preventing, investigating, punishing and eradicating sexual harassment, violence and gender discrimination; protect and repair the victims; establish safe environments free of sexual harassment, violence and gender discrimination, for all people who attend higher education academic communities.
The law requires higher education institutions to have a comprehensive policy against sexual harassment, violence and gender discrimination, which must contain a prevention model and a sanction model. In addition, it is required that all the levels that make up the higher education institution participate in the drafting of said policy.
Although many universities and professional institutes have been adopting policies in case of sexual harassment, violence and discrimination, Law No. 21,369 establishes a series of requirements that the policies must contain, which will be subject to control by the authority, therefore in more than one case, it will involve modifying existing policies.
For example, in article 5 of the law, the measures that the prevention model must contain are established: diagnosis of activities that are carried out within the respective institution and may imply a risk; set of measures aimed at preventing risks; awareness and information campaigns on human rights, sexual harassment, violence and gender discrimination; training for officials and academics; incorporate content on human rights, sexual harassment, gender violence and discrimination in the curricular plans; and, include the policies in the induction processes.
Higher education institutions will have until September 15, 2022 to implement the prevention models and sanction models and, once implemented, they are given a period of 90 days -extendable for 30 days- to perfect the models. and staff orientation or training.
From the Superintendence of Higher Education they have been emphatic that they will sanction the houses of studies that do not comply with a comprehensive policy against sexual harassment, violence and discrimination, as established by law, to the point that they will not be able to obtain their accreditation. institutional.
All of the aforementioned translates into an exhaustive process that higher education institutions must carry out. The implementation of a prevention and sanction model in accordance with the requirements established in Law No. 21,369 aims to prevent, sanction and eradicate sexual harassment, violence and gender discrimination, and ensure safe environments.
This is possible to the extent that all the stages involved in this process are met, and understanding that the work does not end once the prevention and sanction models are drawn up, but that implementation, training and constant review and updating are key to to ensure the objectives established by law.
For more information you can contact:
Rodrigo Albagli | Partner Albagli-Zaliasnik | ralbagli@az.cl
Daniela Hirsch | Compliance Group Director | dhirsch@az.cl
by Juan Manuel González | Apr 13, 2022 | Noticias-en
Law No. 20,393, which establishes the Criminal Responsibility of Legal Entities (RPPJ) , was published in our country in December 2009. In 2016, through Law No. 20,391, the crime of reception was introduced to the catalog of crimes susceptible to be committed by legal persons. However, it was not until its second reform, in November 2018, by Law No. 21,121, which incorporated economic crimes such as incompatible negotiation, unfair administration and bribery between individuals, among others, into the sphere of criminal responsibility of the legal entity . Criminal Compliance was really promoted in our country.
Since that reform, this law has been modified several times, and there is a clear tendency of the legislator to establish the criminal liability of legal persons with increasing frequency. Perhaps the most relevant bills in this regard are the Bill on Economic Crimes, which expands the list of crimes in Law 20,393 to more than 100, and the bill for the New Penal Code directly eliminates the list of crimes, establishing the potential liability of the legal person before any crime, to the extent that certain requirements are met.
It is relevant to attend to the most recent modifications to the law, which incorporated the responsibility linked to crimes from the Immigration and Immigration Law and those of the Law on Arms Control , in order to review the relevance of evaluating the risks of our organization. and update the risk matrices and applicable controls, as necessary.
Liability for gun control law offenses
On January 25, 2022, Law 21,412 entered into force, amending various legal bodies to strengthen Arms Control. Among the modifications introduced by this law, the incorporation to the catalog of crimes that are likely to generate criminal liability of the legal person is included, all the crimes contemplated in Title II of Law No. 17,798, on Arms Control. Consequently, the Legal Entity may be responsible for crimes committed in its organization, such as the crimes foreseen for those who organize, belong to, finance, provide, help, instruct, incite the creation and operation of private militias, combat groups or organized military parties. ; the carrying, possession or possession of firearms or explosives without the corresponding authorizations or registrations; the commercialization, manufacture, importation and internment into the country of weapons, artifacts and ammunition that are prohibited or subject to control; and the sale of ammunition or cartridges to someone who is not the possessor, holder or carrier of a registered firearm, among others.
Considering that this modification is already in force, it is necessary for organizations to update their Crime Prevention Models to current regulations , raising the risks of non-compliance, developing protocols and carrying out the corresponding training in order to effectively mitigate the risks detected.
Responsibility for the crime of human trafficking
Although the new Law No. 21,325 on Migration or Aliens was published in April 2021, it has not yet entered into force because the publication of its regulations is pending. Said regulation must be prepared by the Ministry of the Interior and Public Security no later than April of this year.
As far as we are concerned, this law toughens the penalty for the crime of human trafficking, while incorporating said crime into the catalog of Law No. 20,393. It should be remembered that human trafficking is typified in article 411 quater of the Penal Code, which sanctions anyone who ” through violence, intimidation, coercion, deception, abuse of power, taking advantage of a situation of vulnerability or dependency of the victim, or the granting or receiving of payments or other benefits to obtain the consent of a person who has authority over another person who recruits, transfers, shelters or receives persons so that they may be the object of some form of sexual exploitation.”
However, there is a question about the effective applicability of the criminal liability of the legal person for this crime, since the legislator did not expressly indicate what penalties would be applicable to the legal person in case of commission of this crime. This means that, in practice, it is impossible to impose a sentence on a legal person for committing this crime, since this would violate the principle of legality at its best: nulla poena sine lege previa .
Notwithstanding this, we recommend that companies incorporate the crime of human trafficking in their crime prevention model, showing proactivity in prevention and, at the same time, anticipating the complementation that will probably be made of the law in a short time. , in order to remedy this defect and fully apply the liability of legal persons for these very serious events.
Daniela Hirsch | Compliance Group Director | dhirsch@az.cl
Sofia Reizin | Associate | sreizin@az.cl
by Juan Manuel González | Apr 13, 2022 | Noticias-en
During September 2021, Law No. 21,369 was published in the Official Gazette of Chile, which regulates sexual harassment, violence and gender discrimination in the field of Higher Education . This responds to the different demonstrations that have been carried out, in recent years, in the different study houses throughout the country, in which protocols and sanctions were required in these cases.
Article 1 of the law clearly establishes what the objective of the law is: to promote policies aimed at preventing, investigating, punishing and eradicating sexual harassment, violence and gender discrimination ; protect and repair the victims; establish safe environments free of sexual harassment, violence and gender discrimination, for all people who attend higher education academic communities.
The law requires higher education institutions to have a comprehensive policy against sexual harassment, violence and gender discrimination , which must contain a prevention model and a sanction model . In addition, it is required that all the levels that make up the higher education institution participate in the drafting of said policy.
Although many universities and professional institutes have been adopting policies in case of sexual harassment, violence and discrimination, Law No. 21,369 establishes a series of requirements that the policies must contain, which will be subject to control by the authority, therefore in more than one case, it will involve modifying existing policies.
For example, in article 5 of the law, the measures that the prevention model must contain are established : diagnosis of activities that are carried out within the respective institution and may imply a risk; set of measures aimed at preventing risks ; awareness and information campaigns on human rights, sexual harassment, violence and gender discrimination; training for officials and academics ; incorporate contents of human rights, sexual harassment, gender violence and discrimination in the curricular plans ; and, include the policies in the induction processes .
Higher education institutions will have until September 15, 2022 to implement the prevention models and sanction models and, once implemented, they are given a period of 90 days -extendable for 30 days- to perfect the models. and staff orientation or training.
From the Superintendence of Higher Education they have been emphatic that they will sanction the houses of studies that do not comply with a comprehensive policy against sexual harassment, violence and discrimination , as established by law, to the point that they will not be able to obtain their accreditation . institutional.
All of the aforementioned translates into an exhaustive process that higher education institutions must carry out. The implementation of a prevention and sanction model in accordance with the requirements established in Law No. 21,369 aims to prevent, sanction and eradicate sexual harassment, violence and gender discrimination, and ensure safe environments.
This is possible to the extent that all the stages involved in this process are met, and understanding that the work does not end once the prevention and sanction models are drawn up, but that implementation, training and constant review and updating are key to to ensure the objectives established by law.
For more information you can contact:
Daniela Hirsch | Compliance Group Director | dhirsch@az.cl