English-Speaking Lawyers in Chile

Who we act for

Four situations, one problem underneath

In all four, something of yours sits inside a Chilean registry or a Chilean contract, and you are not in Chile to deal with it.

You are buying property here

Chile puts almost no restriction on foreign ownership, but it records title history going back a decade — and whatever is wrong in that chain becomes yours the day you sign. If you have a property in view, we handle the whole purchase for you from abroad.

Buy property in Chile remotely →
Title search for buyers →

You inherited property here

Chilean property does not pass to heirs by the fact of death. Until the estate is granted and registered, nobody can sell it or mortgage it — and these files sit untouched for years because every heir is abroad.

Inherited property in Chile →
Guide: how inheritance works in Chile →

Your company trades with Chile

Importing, exporting or opening an operation raises the same three questions: what entity holds the business, what the contract says when a shipment goes wrong, and what Customs decides your goods actually are.

International trade & customs →

You rent out property here

A lease signed properly is enforceable in weeks; one signed informally by a relative is an argument. Unpaid rent and squatters now have fast-track remedies in Chile — if someone with authority can act the same day.

Renting out property in Chile →

How we work

Built for clients who are not in the country

You do not need to fly down

Almost everything we do can run on a power of attorney. Signed before a Chilean consulate, or before a notary in your country and apostilled — Chile has been party to the Apostille Convention since 2016, which removed the old consular legalisation chain.

Price agreed before we start

You get a fixed fee and a delivery date in writing before any work begins. Not an hourly estimate that moves.

We tell you when to walk away

If a title has a defect that makes the purchase a bad idea, we say so plainly — including when that means the deal does not happen. That is what you are paying us to find out.

Partner-level contact

We are a boutique firm. The lawyer who reads your file is the one who answers your email, across whatever time difference there is.

The partners

Two partners. No hand-offs.

The lawyer who takes your matter is the one who finishes it. Nothing is passed to a junior or an outside agent halfway through — which is also why we turn work away when it is not ours.

Tomás Alberto Iriarte Parra

Partner · Real estate litigation

Trial lawyer. Heads the firm's court practice in disputes over real property, acting for owners before the courts of first instance, the Courts of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Chile.

Handles: recovery of possession and eviction of occupants, annulment and rescission of contracts over real estate, rent claims and termination of leases, criminal complaints for fraud and forgery in property transactions, unlawful occupation, and the partition of inherited estates that include real property.

Appears before: Civil Courts, courts with criminal jurisdiction over offences against property, Courts of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

Direct contact: contacto@iriartesolar.cl

Felipe Andrés Solar Rojas

Partner · Real estate and private wealth

Specialises in real estate law and notarial practice. Heads the firm's transactional, wealth-structuring and company advisory work, including for family offices.

Handles: title due diligence, promises of sale and purchase deeds, sale and leaseback, regularisation of properties, easements, co-ownership rules, holding and investment companies, succession planning for real estate, capital gains and property VAT.

Appears before: notaries, the Conservadores de Bienes Raíces, the Internal Revenue Service, municipal works departments, SERVIU and the Ministry of National Assets.

Writes: the firm's guides, where he signs the analysis of Chilean property and tax law.

Direct contact: contacto@iriartesolar.cl

Common questions

Before you write to us

Do you work with clients outside Chile?

Yes. We work with clients all over the world — in the United States, Europe, Israel, Latin America and elsewhere — who own, are buying, rent out or have inherited property in Chile, or whose company trades here. Everything runs by email, video call and a power of attorney you sign where you live, so you do not need to travel. Write to contacto@iriartesolar.cl in English or Spanish.

Do you work with clients in the United States?

Yes. Santiago is at most two hours ahead of New York (and on the same clock for part of the year) and three to five hours ahead of California, so calls fit inside a normal working day. A power of attorney signed before a US notary and apostilled by the Secretary of State of that state is accepted in Chile; we draft it in Spanish so it works at the Chilean notary the first time.

Can a foreigner own property in Chile?

Yes, and residency is not required. Chilean law treats foreign and Chilean owners the same for most purposes. The main exception is land in border zones, which under Decree Law 1.939 cannot be acquired by nationals of the neighbouring country concerned. You will need a Chilean tax number (RUT) to complete the purchase — we obtain it for you.

Do I have to travel to Chile to buy or sell?

Usually not. A properly drafted power of attorney, signed before a Chilean consulate or apostilled abroad, lets us appear for you at the notary and the registry. What matters is that the power is drafted for the specific transaction: a generic one gets rejected, and finding that out on signing day is expensive.

How do I pay you from abroad?

Tell us where you are and we will confirm the workable route before you commit to anything. We would rather agree that at the start than discover a blocked card at the end.

Where can I read more before contacting anyone?

Our guides cover buying, inheriting and selling Chilean property as a non-resident, and the tax number you need before any of it. Each one is signed, dated and cites the statute so you can check it yourself.

Do you work in English?

Yes, in writing and in meetings. The documents themselves are in Spanish, because Chilean deeds and registry entries have to be — we explain what each one says and what you are signing.

This page is general information about Chilean law, not legal advice, and it does not create a lawyer–client relationship. Figures in UF vary daily. Every matter turns on its own documents.

English-speaking lawyers in Chile, for clients who are not here