CREATE A SYSTEM OF OFFICIAL CERTIFICATION OF CONFORMITY OF EXPORTS Having present that the National Congress has given its approval to the following Bill: " TITLE I General Provisions Article 1.-The exporters and producers Chileans may certify freely or in the manner they agree with the foreign importer or buyer, the conformity of their exports. However, only the certification to be carried out in accordance with the rules of this law shall be official. Article 2.-It is understood by official certification that it emanates from a certifier accredited by the State of Chile, in the cases referred to in Article 6. Article 3.-In no case shall the responsibility that may emanate from a certification It will commit the financial responsibility of the State. Article 4.-The official certification may be related to: a) Products, and b) Quality assurance systems. Article 5.-The references of this law to the Ministry, the Undersecretary, the Minister and the Assistant Secretary will be read, respectively, to the Ministry of Economy, Development and Reconstruction, to the Undersecretary for Economic Affairs, Development and Reconstruction, the Minister of Economy, Development and Reconstruction and the Undersecretary for Economic Affairs, Development and Reconstruction. Article 6.-The certification of official conformity shall only proceed when one of the following circumstances is present: (a) that it is required by law, regulation or a competent authority of the country of destination, or (b) that the State of Chile has concluded with the government of the country of destination an international convention which would bring about official certification. Article 7.-The time limits laid down in this law are business days. TITLE II Accreditation Article 8.-To issue official certificates of conformity it will be necessary to be accredited to the Ministry. Accreditation is the process under which it is demonstrated to the authority which has the facilities, the material and human resources and the technical requirements necessary to carry out the procedures leading to certain export compliance certifications. The accreditation shall be valid for as long as the qualities and requirements given to it are maintained. Natural or legal persons who are accredited shall be registered in a register to be carried by the Ministry. Article 9.-Only accreditation will be granted to certify certain quality assurance products or systems. Article 10.-Registration in the register shall be made available by resolution of the Deputy Secretary. Within thirty days of the filing of the application, the Deputy Secretary shall issue the decision ordering the registration or may refuse to grant the requested registration. The application shall be deemed to have been approved and must be entered in the register if no objection has been expressed. The applicant shall be entitled to award official certificates of conformity from the time of registration of the respective decision. The applicant may, at its expense, publish such a decision in the Official Journal. Article 11. In order to apply for registration, an application shall be submitted with the following background: (a) Authorised copy of the natural or legal person's sole tax role; (b) Treating legal persons, documents certifying their constitution and validity as well as the person's representative, in addition to an authorised copy of their (c) the reports of two experts, which shall be subject to the provisions of Article 13, and of a third expert if the event referred to in Article 14 is presented; and (d) the proof of payment of the accreditation. In the case of applications submitted by previously registered certifying entities, only the records set out in points (c) and (d) shall be required. In the event of a change of one or more of the antecedents referred to in point (b), the certifying entity shall update these. Article 12.-The provisions of Article 11 (c) shall not be required in respect of natural or legal persons from countries with whom there is a mutual recognition agreement in the field of certification and standardisation of products and which display duly legalized documentation which authorizes them to grant certificates of conformity for exports in respect of certain products. In such a case, once the authenticity of the documents has been established, registration shall be carried out on the register provided that the other requirements of Article 11 are complied with. Article 13.-For the purposes of point (c) of Article 11, the Secretariat shall open a register of experts in which it shall register those who so request and prove that they possess the knowledge required to exercise that function in the process of accreditation, according to the minima and forms laid down in the regulation. The regulation will also determine the formalities to be carried out by the reports issued by the experts and the time limits for them to be evacuated. For the purposes of the accreditation process, experts shall be recruited, one by the managing body referred to in point (f) of Article 17 and the other by the requesting entity. The cost of the survey shall be borne by the applicant and charged to the applicant in the payment to be made in accordance with Article 11 (d). Experts shall be entitled to carry out the following tasks: (a) to evacuate the necessary reports for the accreditation of a certifying body, in accordance with Article 11 (c); and (b) to carry out, at the request of the Under-secretary, the inspection visits to the certification bodies, to check the maintenance of the conditions and requirements that gave origin to the registration in the register. Persons who have been convicted of a criminal offence or who have been sentenced to life in prison or for public office may not be registered in the register. Those who have not been registered in the register may not be registered, unless five years have elapsed since the cancellation. Article 14.-If the reports of the two experts are contradictory or incompatible, the Deputy Secretary shall designate, by hearing the applicant, a third expert to issue a report. In this case, the period of 30 days referred to in Article 10 shall be counted from the delivery of the report of the third expert. Article 15.-The experts, when issuing the report referred to in point (c) of Article 11, shall refer to the following background: (a) the material and human resources to which the applicant entity counts; and (b) Technical procedures to be used to check the conformity of the products, manufacturing processes or quality assurance systems, with the reference standards, as the case may be. In order to prove the background of point (a), the applicant entity shall submit to the expert the certificates of study or professional suitability of the staff in question. The expert shall also inspect the facilities or laboratories as well as the instruments and their calibrations. In order to establish the background to point (b), the requesting entity shall present to the expert a memory containing its quality policy and which includes the characteristics of its organizational and operational system, as soon as quality depends on its quality. of the service you provide. All the records gathered by the expert shall be accompanied by the report submitted to the Ministry. Article 16.-By supreme decree that will carry the signature of the Minister will determine the tariff corresponding to the costs of accreditation and supervision of the system. Such duties shall be determined in the light of the costs of the specific actions to be taken, the costs of administration to which the managing body referred to in Article 17 (f) and a non-profit rate of return are to be incurred. 7% and not more than 10% per year, to be applied on the assets necessary for the efficient operation of the said managing entity. TITLE III Of the privileges of the Secretariat Article 17.-The Secretariat is authorized to act as an executive body in accordance with the provisions of Article 19, third indent, of Law No. 18,575, and as such will have the following Privileges: (a) to register, where appropriate, the certification bodies in the register referred to in Article 8 (4); (b) to carry out the registration of certification bodies and that of experts; (c) to monitor, in accordance with Article 23; and entrust the managing body, referred to in point (f) of this Article, with the conduct of inspection visits by experts registered in the register referred to in Article 13; certification bodies which lose or no longer fulfil any of the conditions referred to in Article 8 of this law; (e) To suspend certifying entities that do not pay the annual cost of supervision in a timely manner. After six months from the date of the suspension, the registration in the register will be cancelled; f) Encomendar to a legal person of private law the administration of the certification system that establishes this law. The Secretariat shall proceed in the manner established by Law No 18.803 and its Rules of Procedure. The agreements shall indicate their duration and shall lay down the grounds for an early term. The designated legal person must have at least five years ' existence backwards from the day of the conclusion of the convention; (g) inform the foreign authorities or counterparts that require it about the official certifiers; which refers to this law and to process, where appropriate, to governments or international bodies the recognition of official certificates; (h) to certify the status of an entity empowered to issue certificates of conformity of products or (i) Apply, where appropriate, the penalties referred to in Article 24; and (j) The other penalties provided for in this law. Article 18.-The powers that this law confers on the Secretariat shall be exercised by means of resolutions of the Deputy Secretary. Article 19.-If the Subsecretariat refuses to register the registration referred to in Article 8 of this Law, it may be claimed before the Minister within ten days of the notification of the decision rejecting the application. The Minister will have a deadline of thirty days to resolve. If the time limit does not exist, the Minister shall be deemed to be in possession of the complaint and the resolution which is registered in the register shall be immediately issued. Contrary to the Minister's resolution, a special appeal may be made to the Resolutive Commission referred to in Title III of Decree Law No. 211 of 1973. At the request of the Commission, the Deputy Secretary shall send him the background referred to in Article 15 and any other information he considers relevant. The appeal shall be well founded and shall be lodged within the fatal period of ten days following the Minister's decision. In order to resolve, the Commission may ask the Ministry for a record of other certifiers registered in the same speciality as the one to which the appellant is running. No recourse shall be taken against the Commission's decision. TITLE IV Of the obligations of the certification bodies Article 20.-The official certification of conformity shall correspond to the certification scheme for the third independent party. Article 21.-The certifying entities registered in the register may not issue official certificates of conformity, in respect of insurance products or systems, to undertakings which are related in a decisive manner to them, by his administration or by his capital. The infringement of this Article shall be sanctioned in accordance with the provisions of Article 24 (c) of this Law. Article 22. The certification bodies entered in the register must comply with the following obligations: (a) Maintain total independence, impartiality and integrity with respect to the persons involved in their services; b) inform the Undersecretary, in writing, within 15 days, of any change in their facilities, material and human resources; and technical procedures identified as key factors in the reports of experts referred to in Article 15; (c) to allow for the conduct of inspection visits by experts; (d) to comply with the quality policy and the the organisational and operational system referred to in Article 15 (3); (e) Save the the confidentiality of the information they administer and that they have taken cognizance of through their certification tasks; (f) to carry out, free of charge, the analysis and testing of the samples provided by the Secretariat, according to the instructions given by the latter and for the fulfilment of the privileges granted to it by this law, up to a maximum value equivalent to 15% of the annual cost of supervision determined in accordance with Article 16 of this Law; Where appropriate, in accordance with the Regulation, samples shall be maintained for products whose conformity has (h) To inform the Deputy Secretary of any change of domicile, and (i) to pay in January each year the annual cost of the supervision. Certification bodies may subcontract all or part of the work of their function only where the subcontractor is registered in the register for the purpose of subcontracting. TITLE V Of supervision and sanctions Article 23.-The Secretariat shall monitor compliance with this law, and shall ensure in particular: (a) that the certification bodies comply with the obligations referred to in Article 22, and (b) that the certificates of conformity are issued correctly by the bodies concerned. For these purposes, the Secretariat may provide that an expert referred to in Article 13 shall take samples of the products the conformity of which has been certified, with the object that they are analysed by one or more certification bodies, as provided for in Article 22 (f). Article 24.-Violations of the rules of this law and their regulations shall be sanctioned by the Under-Secretary in accordance with the provisions of this law, with any of the following penalties: (a) Assembly in writing; (b) Fine to tax benefit, for an equivalent amount in legal tender, at the time of the effective payment, of up to one hundred monthly tax units. In the event of recidivism, the fine or the cancellation of the registration in accordance with the number 3 of point (c); (c) Cancellation of the registration in the register may be doubled. This sanction will only proceed in the following cases: 1.-Manifest error that allows to assume that the certifier has acted with gross negligence in the provision of the respective service; 2.-Serious infringement of this law; 3. application of a fine on two occasions within the same calendar year, and 4.-For having been the certifier convicted of the offence of falsehood referred to in Article 28. Persons who have been convicted of the crime of falsehood shall not be allowed to register in the records established in this law. Article 25. Prior to the application of a penalty, you will be notified of the charges that are filed against you, so that you present your discharge to the Deputy Secretary within ten days, counted from the notification of the charges. A decision imposing a sanction, except as provided for in Article 27, may be brought before the Minister within a period of five days from the date of notification of that decision. The Minister will have a deadline of 30 days to resolve. No appeal shall be brought against that decision. A fine must be paid, in the Regional Treasury of the address of the sanctioned, within the term of ten days counted from the notification of the respective resolution. Article 26. The notifications to be made for the application of this law shall be made personally or by registered letter sent to the registered office of the Secretariat. Notifications by registered letter shall be construed as being made on the fifth day of the day on which they are issued, which shall be recorded in a book to be carried by the Secretariat. Resolutions imposing sanctions and those provided by the Undersecretary shall be notified in person. In this case and provided that the notification takes place in the Secretariat, it shall be carried out by the official of the Ministry designated for that purpose. If the notification is made at the address of the certifier, a notary shall be notified. If personal notification is not possible due to the fact that the person making the notification is not notified, the notification shall be made by registered letter, subject to certification of this fact by the person making the notification. Article 27.-In the case of the penalty of cancellation of the registration referred to in Article 8 of this legal body, the persons or entities who consider that the application of this sanction does not comply with the law or the regulation and this causes them to harm, They will be able to claim from their application to the Court of Appeals of Santiago, for which the claimant will point out in his writing, precisely, the disposition that it is in violation, the way in which the infringement has occurred and the reasons why is hurting him. The complaint shall be lodged within 10 working days from the date of notification of the application of the penalty claimed. The Court of Appeal will transfer the complaint for six working days to the Assistant Secretary, notifying him of this decision by trade. Where the quality or credibility of the certification system may be affected, the interposition of the appeal shall not suspend the cancellation of the registration or the Court may decree any measure with that object while the claim. After the transfer by the Deputy Secretary, or the rebellion is charged, the Court will give judgment within the last 15 days. No appeal shall be brought against that decision. Article 28.-The certificates of conformity of exports which are granted in accordance with this law and the reports issued in accordance with Article 11 (c) shall have the quality of public instruments, and their falsification or Malicious use shall be sanctioned in accordance with the provisions of Articles 194 and 196 of the Criminal Code. The provisions of Article 227 (3) of the Criminal Code shall apply to experts. TITLE VI Repeals Article 29.-Repealed Decree Law No 2,699 of 1979. Transitional Article.-The inscriptions in the records referred to in this Law shall be initiated thirty days after the publication in the Official Journal of the rules of the present legal body. " Having complied with the provisions of Article 82 of the Constitution of the Republic of the Republic of the Republic of the Republic of the Republic of the Republic of the Republic of the Republic of the Republic of the Republic of the Republic of the Republic of Mexico, and because I have had to approve and sanction it, I therefore promulgate and take effect as the Law of Santiago, December 31, 1997.-EDUARDO FREI RUIZ-TAGLE, President of the Republic.-Alvaro Garcia Hurtado, Minister of Economy, Development and Reconstruction. The that I transcribe to you for your knowledge.-Salutes intently to Ud., Oscar Landerretche Gacitua, Undersecretary of Economics.