Request and obtain indication on water and sewage availability with Sanitation Company
Agency: Sanitation Company
BuildCo. requests the availability from the utility company in order to install their services.
Time and cost: 30 days, no charge
Obtain results of geotechnical study / soil test
Agency: Private licensed company
BuildCo will request a soil test for the structural calculations for the foundation. Contractors ask for a soil test to ensure that the foundation of the building is solid. The engineer must understand the suitability of the soil for the proposed construction work. It allows to build a solid foundation and avoid structures to be damaged or collapsed or leaned.
Time and cost: 21 days, CLP 3,500,000
Request and obtain preliminary information from the Municipality
Agency: Municipality
BuildCo. requests and obtains a “Certificado de Informaciones Previas” (background information), which entails zoning and planning information.
Time and cost: 10 days, CLP 18,000
Request and obtain risk assessment from the Regional Sanitary Authority (Secretaría Regional Ministerial de Salud (Seremi))
Agency: Regional Sanitary Authority (Secretaría Regional Ministerial de Salud (Seremi))
Once BuildCo obtained the clearance from the Sanitary Company (utilities) , BuildCo may now request a risk classification from the sanitary authority. The General Urbanism and Construction Ordinance of Chile (“Ordenanza General de Urbanismo y Construcciones) under Article 4.14.2 sets parameters for qualifying industrial or warehousing facilities into 4 categories: Dangerous, Unhealthy / Pollutant, Irritating or Harmless. Based on this Ordinance, warehousing or industrial establishments shall be assessed on a case by case basis by the respective Regional Sanitary Authority (“Secretaría Regional Ministerial (Seremi) de Salud”), taking into account the risks that the building may cause to their workers, neighborhood and community.
A warehouse such as the one in the Doing Business case study would likely be rated “Harmless” because it is used for storage of non-hazardous items such as books.
Time and cost: 5 days, CLP 16,000
Request and obtain water and sewerage supply certificate from Sanitation Company
Agency: Sanitation Company
Upon receiving the permit from the Regional Sanitary Authority (Secretaría Regional Ministerial de Salud (Seremi)), BuildCo submit this permit to the Municipality as a proof that water and sewerage connection can be obtained.
Time and cost: 15 days, no charge
Request and obtain provisional installation permit from the Municipality
Agency: Municipality
In parallel with the interaction with the utility company, BuildCo, can request the possibility to have some services while the construction takes place. To obtain a provisional permit for installation of temporary facilities, BuildCo’s architects must meet the Municipality’s architects to review the drawings and designs. This permit enables BuildCo to have bathrooms, electricity, and so forth on the construction site.
Time and cost: 5 days, no charge
Request and obtain building permit
Agency: Municipality
BuildCo must obtain a municipal building permit before construction starts. An external reviewer is also involved in this process.
In 2005, a number of municipalities introduced a pilot program for a one-stop shop (la Ventanilla Transaccional de Trámites Municipales, VTM), an Internet platform where nine proceedings can be completed. The project was expected to be in full operation in 26 municipalities by 2006. The system is expected to cut processing time to 8 days. On January 12, 2006, the Municipality of Santiago introduced major changes to its regulatory plan (plano regulador) to regulate some omissions from the construction ordinance (ordenanza de construcción), without changing the current rules of construction.
The cost of the building permit is 1.5% of the construction cost. The construction cost is calculated according to a fee schedule. The fee schedule is not based on a simple classification of buildings. There are two elements to consider: 1) classification based on material and structure used and 2) classification based on the amount of positive attributes that the building has.
Regarding classification based on material, one can classify the building based on 9 different categories (A-I) depending on the materials (steel, concrete, wood, etc.) and structures used. Regarding the classification based on positive attributes, one can classify the building into 5 different categories based on the number points the building would obtain following the provided technical guide (design, structure, installations, and finishing of the building).
The 5 different categories are: Category 1 – Superior (20 or more points); Category 2 – Medium superior (13-19 points); Category 3 – Medium (6-12 points); Category 4 – Medium inferior (0-5 points); Category 5 – Inferior (based on definition 2.3). The Doing Business warehouse would fall into classification A and obtains 3 points. Thus, the warehouse falls into classification “A4” (A because it is steel and 4 because it receives 3 points). Therefore, the cost per square meter is CLP 114642
Time and cost: 68 days, CLP 2,236,551
Request and receive inspection in the middle of construction
Agency: Municipality
BuildCo. receives an inspection anytime during the construction period. This revision is done with the in-house engineer or architect hired by BuildCo.
Time and cost: 1 day, no charge
Receive connection to water services
Agency: Sanitation Company
The connection takes place at any time upon BuildCo’s request
Time and cost: 45 days, CLP 315,671
Request and obtain certificate of compliance for roads and sidewalks from SERVIU
Agency: SERVIU
BuildCo. can request and obtain certificate of compliance for roads and sidewalks fregulations compliance from SERVIU, which is independent from the certificate of urbanization.
Time and cost: 10 days, CLP 8,468
Request and receive final inspection
Agency: Municipality
According to Decree N° 47 (1992) from Minvu (OGUC), this final inspection is a requirement in order to obtain the final project approval.
Time and cost: 1 day, no charge
Request and obtain project approval
Agency: Municipality
The Municipality is notified of the project’s completion (recepción final) after the independent inspector submits a positive project evaluation
Time and cost: 30 days, no charge
