Unpaid Child Support in Chile: Enforcement

What unpaid child support is and who can collect it

There is a debt when support has been set or approved by a court order and one or more monthly payments remain unpaid. Article 11 of Law 14.908 provides that every court order setting a support payment has enforcement force (mérito ejecutivo). Article 321 of the Civil Code lists those who are owed support (alimentos): the spouse, descendants, ascendants, siblings and a person who made a substantial gift that has not been rescinded or revoked. The arrest in article 14 applies to support ordered in favor of the spouse, the parents, the children or the adopted child.

Unpaid support accrues the current interest rate for adjustable operations (art. 17). Enforcement actions to collect support expire after three years, a period that becomes ordinary for two more years and starts to run from when the person entitled to support turns 21 (art. 19 bis). For the amount of support itself, I refer you to how child support is calculated (in Spanish) and to Law 21.484 on Parental Responsibility.

The calculation (liquidación): the first step

The liquidación is the calculation of what is owed. Article 12 orders the family courts to prepare it on their own initiative, every month, and to notify the parties, who may object to it within three days. According to the Judiciary’s ChileAtiende entry, if the support was approved or set on or after November 18, 2021, no additional step is needed; if it was before, the person must express the will to collect, for example by asking for conversion to UTM or for the calculation (ChileAtiende entry; first transitory article of Law 21.389). In enforcement, article 12 provides that only the defense of payment is admissible, and only if it is based on a written document. The calculation can also be requested through the Judiciary’s Trámite Fácil online service, with ClaveÚnica (ChileAtiende entry).

Measures the court can order

infoCoercive measures and other measures under Law 14.908 (translated)

Arrest (art. 14): if the payer has stopped paying one or more ordered payments, the court must impose night arrest between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., for up to fifteen days, repeatable until full payment is obtained. If the payer breaches the arrest or persists after two periods, the judge may compel them with arrest of up to fifteen days and, with further coercive measures (apremios), up to 30 days.
Travel ban (arraigo) (art. 14): in those situations the judge also issues a travel ban, in force until what is owed is paid. Article 10 provides that the judge must order the payer to guarantee compliance with a mortgage, pledge or other security (caución) — especially where there is a well-founded reason to think the payer will leave the country — and that until the security is provided the judge orders a travel ban (arraigo).
Tax refund (art. 16 No. 1): at a party’s request, where payments are unpaid, the judge orders the Treasury (Tesorería) in March of each year to withhold the unpaid amounts from the annual income-tax refund.
Driver’s license (art. 16 No. 2): suspension of up to six months, extendable for the same period if non-compliance persists.
Bank funds (art. 16 No. 3): withholding of funds in bank accounts or other financial or investment instruments; the court rules within five business days.

Courtesy translation; the binding text is the Spanish original.

According to article 14, the coercive measure and the travel ban may be suspended if the payer shows that they lack the means to pay, or in cases of illness, disability, pregnancy and the postpartum period, or extraordinary circumstances. The general list of these measures also appears in the Ley Fácil guide and in the Judiciary’s ChileAtiende entry (entry 92390).

Payment from bank funds and the pension-fund (AFP) account

Once the debt has been calculated, the special procedure in article 19 quáter (added by Law 21.484) requires the court to investigate the debtor’s assets confidentially: within three business days it checks the interconnection systems with the Financial Market Commission (Comisión para el Mercado Financiero) and the Internal Taxes Service (Servicio de Impuestos Internos), among others, to locate accounts and financial instruments. If it finds them, it sends official letters to the institutions, orders the funds withheld up to the amount of the debt and, once it has the information, orders payment; the institution has fifteen business days to transfer (Official Gazette; Ley Fácil). These are periods that the law sets for courts and institutions; I cannot predict how long a specific case will take.

Pension-fund (AFP) balances (art. 19 quinquies). This is an extraordinary route: it requires at least three overdue payments, continuous or not, and that the payer has no funds in accounts or instruments, or that they are insufficient. The party receiving support requests it. Payment cannot exceed 50% of the accumulated funds if the debtor is 15 years or less from the legal old-age pension age, 80% if they are more than 15 and less than 30 years away, and 90% if they are more than 30 years away. It does not apply if the payer already receives an old-age or disability pension (art. 19 sexies). According to the second transitory article of Law 21.484, to start these procedures only payments accrued and unpaid since its entry into force count; earlier ones do count toward the total debt.

National Registry of Child Support Debtors

Law 21.389 created this electronic registry (Registro Nacional de Deudores de Pensiones de Alimentos), with remote, free and immediate access for anyone with a legitimate interest, administered by the Civil Registry (Registro Civil) (arts. 20 and 21). Those with a legitimate interest are the debtor, the person entitled to support or their legal representative, the family courts and the persons or entities required to consult it.

Who is entered. A person who owes support set or approved by a court order that has become enforceable (causa ejecutoria) and who owes at least three consecutive or five non-consecutive monthly payments (art. 22). Each month, the court, on its own initiative or at a party’s request, orders the entry, with notice to the payer and to the person entitled to support (art. 24). The order and the calculation are notified together and are deemed approved if not objected to within three days; the payer can avoid the order by paying the debt in full within that period.

Effects of being listed, while the entry is in force:

Passport and license: the Civil Registry rejects the passport application (art. 32) and the municipality does not process a driver’s license application or duplicate (art. 33), except for limited-validity documents that the court may order if they are indispensable for employment and full payment is guaranteed (art. 34).
Tax refund: the Treasury must withhold a sum equal to what is owed, capped at the amount of the refund (art. 30).
Credit: for money loans of 50 UF or more payable in periodic installments (except revolving products), the financial provider must withhold 50% of the credit, or a smaller amount if that is enough to pay the debt (art. 28).
Other: restrictions on registering sales of vehicles and real estate (art. 31); consultation of the Registry for certain State benefits (art. 35); and a claim for reduction or termination of support must be declared inadmissible, unless there are qualified grounds (art. 1).

The entry is cancelled by court order once full payment is verified or once a serious and sufficient payment agreement is approved by a final or enforceable ruling (arts. 25 and 26). These effects match the Ley Fácil guide of the Library of the National Congress (BCN) and the Judiciary’s ChileAtiende entry.

Debt certificate: where to request it

Article 23 entrusts the Civil Registry with certifying online, free of charge for anyone with a legitimate interest, whether a person has current entries as a support debtor. According to the Civil Registry ChileAtiende entry, there are two documents: the “general certificate of support debt” (Certificado general de deuda de alimentos) and the one “with persons entitled to support”. They are requested on the Civil Registry website, under “Antecedentes”, with ClaveÚnica and the RUN of the debtor; they are free of charge and the query is available only to the debtor, the persons who benefit or their legal representative. If the person is not listed in the Registry, the system reports that the data entered do not meet the requirements. The entry adds that there is no non-debtor certificate and that, because the information is sent by the Judiciary, clarifications must be requested from the court.

How it is requested in practice

According to the Judiciary’s ChileAtiende entry, the coercive measure can be requested online through Trámite Fácil, with ClaveÚnica or a Judiciary password; it requires an existing case and is free of charge. For free legal assistance, the Registry entry refers to the Judicial Assistance Corporation (Corporación de Asistencia Judicial) of the municipality. If the debtor lives outside Chile, see child support in Chile when a parent lives abroad. My service is in child support and other family law matters and I assist clients abroad.

If you live outside Chile

publicIf you live outside Chile

Living abroad does not release a parent from the duty to pay support for children who live in Chile; the claim is filed before the Family Court (Law 14.908, art. 1).
Collecting outside Chile depends on treaties or reciprocity between countries. If the debtor has assets or income in Chile, or returns to the country, the Chilean court can apply the measures of Law 14.908 described above.
A payer who moves abroad is still bound by the obligation; a reduction or termination must be requested from the court, and the claim is declared inadmissible if the claimant is listed in the Registry, unless there are qualified grounds (art. 1).

For the New York Convention and the other details, read Child Support in Chile When One Parent Lives Abroad. More on working with clients abroad.

What I do not claim

warningLimits of this guide

I do not claim how long collection takes or that payment will be obtained: the court decides the measures in each case and they depend on what the debtor has or can pay.
I do not claim that there is any debt certificate other than the two issued by the Civil Registry; none appears in the sources consulted.
I do not describe collection when the debtor and their assets are outside Chile; it depends on treaties or reciprocity between countries.
I do not present case figures or collection statistics.

Frequently asked questions

How many monthly payments must I owe to be entered in the Child Support Debtors Registry?

According to article 22 of Law 14.908, at least three consecutive or five non-consecutive monthly payments of provisional or final child support set or approved by a court order that has become enforceable (causa ejecutoria). The court orders the entry; it is not automatic.

Can someone be arrested for not paying child support?

Article 14 of Law 14.908 provides that the court must impose, at a party's request or on its own initiative and without the need for a hearing, night arrest from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. for up to fifteen days, repeatable until the debt is paid in full. It may be suspended if the payer shows that they lack the means to pay.

Can unpaid child support be collected from pension-fund (AFP) balances?

Exceptionally: article 19 quinquies requires at least three overdue payments and that there are not enough funds in accounts or financial instruments. The party receiving support requests it, subject to caps of 50%, 80% or 90% of the accumulated funds depending on how many years remain until the legal old-age pension age.

What happens to the tax refund of a child support debtor?

Article 16 No. 1 allows the judge, at a party's request and where payments are overdue, to order the Treasury (Tesorería) in March to withhold the unpaid amounts from the annual refund. If the taxpayer is listed in the Registry, article 30 requires the Treasury to withhold a sum equal to the debt, capped at the amount of the refund.

Where do I request the certificate from the Child Support Debtors Registry?

According to the ChileAtiende entry of the Civil Registry (Registro Civil), on the Civil Registry website, under “Antecedentes”, with ClaveÚnica and the RUN of the debtor. There is no charge, and only the debtor, the persons who benefit or their legal representative may consult. The entry states that there is no “non-debtor” certificate.

For how long can child support debt be collected?

Article 19 bis provides that enforcement actions to collect support expire after three years, a period that becomes ordinary for two more years and starts to run from when the person entitled to support turns 21. It is advisable to review the specific case with a lawyer.

If I cannot pay the whole debt, what alternatives does the law provide?

Article 26 allows a payer without sufficient assets to propose, through the court, a serious and sufficient payment agreement, which may divide the debt into installments. The court verifies the consent of the person entitled to support; once approved by a final or enforceable ruling, the entry in the Registry is cancelled.

Official sources consulted

Laws and entries cited

Verified on October 7, 2026. General information; it does not replace advice on a specific case. Chilean laws are cited in Spanish; translations are courtesy translations.

Law 14.908 on Family Abandonment and Payment of Child Support, arts. 1, 8, 10, 11, 12, 14, 16, 17, 19 bis, 19 quáter, 19 quinquies, 19 sexies, 20 to 26, 28, 30 to 35; Civil Code, art. 321. Consolidated text in DFL 1/2000, Library of the National Congress (LeyChile).
Law 21.389, Official Gazette of November 18, 2021: National Registry of Child Support Debtors and transitory provisions.
Law 21.484, Official Gazette of September 7, 2022: arts. 19 quáter to 19 octies and transitory provisions.
Library of the National Congress, Ley Fácil: National Registry of Child Support Debtors; Effective payment of child support debts; Child support. All in Spanish.
ChileAtiende, Civil Registry: Certificado general de deuda de alimentos (in Spanish).
ChileAtiende, Judiciary: Inscripción en el Registro Nacional de Deudores de Pensiones de Alimentos; Solicitar medida de apremio por no pago de pensión de alimentos; Solicitar liquidación de pensión alimenticia (all in Spanish).

Spanish terms you will see in Chilean court papers

Pensión de alimentos

Child support (alimentos also covers support for other relatives).

Alimentante / alimentario

The person who pays support / the person entitled to receive it.

Liquidación

The calculation of the amount of support owed.

Apremio

Coercive measure to compel payment, such as night arrest.

Arraigo

Court order forbidding someone to leave the country.

Registro Nacional de Deudores de Pensiones de Alimentos

National Registry of Child Support Debtors.

UTM / UF

Units of account (monthly tax unit / unidad de fomento) used in Chilean law.

Unpaid Child Support in Chile: How to Collect and What Measures Exist

listIn this guide