Treasury sets coupon rules for the artisanal fishing monthly bond

The Ministry of Finance approved the technical and operational characteristics of the electronic medium called “Cupón 2 Pesca Artesanal,” the sole channel through which the Social Security Institute (IPS) will pay the monthly one-hundred-thousand-peso fuel bonus created by Law No. 21,848. The decision is contained in Exempt Resolution No. 739, signed on November 5, 2026, and published in the Official Gazette No. 44,597 on Thursday, November 12, 2026, Section I, pages 1 to 6 (official reference: CVE 2898966).

The text bears the signature of the Minister of Finance, Jorge Antonio Quiroz Castro, and develops Article 2 of Law No. 21,848—published in the Official Gazette on October 17, 2026—which extended the validity of the bonuses from Law No. 21,811, granted a contribution to artisanal fishers, and modified the deadline for contributions to the Guarantee Fund for Small Entrepreneurs (Fogape).

The bonus is funded by the treasury, is equivalent to $100,000 per month, and is granted from October 2026 to December 2026. It shall not constitute remuneration or income for any legal purpose and, therefore, will not be taxable, tributable, transferable, or transmissible, and will not be subject to any discount.

Who accesses the benefit and when it is paid

The law requires four cumulative conditions to receive the contribution:

• Be the owner of an artisanal fishing vessel of up to twelve meters in length.
• Maintain an active registration in the Artisanal Fishing Registry (RPA).
• Register accredited fishing activity during 2025, via landing.
• Accredit extractive operation or activity in the month immediately preceding the delivery of the benefit.

The National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service (Sernapesca) determines the beneficiaries and must send the list to the IPS on the 8th of each month or the following business day. Payment is executed once the resolution with that list is issued, no later than the last business day of the following month. Since the law was published on October 17, the list for that month will be sent via a resolution issued in November.

The official payment calendar is as follows:

• October 2026 bonus: no later than Wednesday, December 2, 2026.
• November 2026 bonus: no later than Tuesday, December 29, 2026.
• December 2026 bonus: no later than Friday, January 29, 2027.

A coupon that only serves for fuel

The benefit is received and executed exclusively through the “Cupón 2 Pesca Artesanal,” associated with an operational bank account, without blocks, that the beneficiary maintains with the operator. To receive the credit, it is a requirement to be the holder of an active account.

Use is restricted to the purchase of fuel for the operation of the respective vessel. It is only permitted for in-person purchases, using the operator’s card, under the four-party model, for domestic operations and in legal tender. Transactions are limited to two categories of the Merchant Category Code (MCC): 5541, service stations, and 5542, automated fuel dispensers.

The beneficiary may activate or deactivate the voucher through the operator’s digital channels. When activated, the balance is applied first to the fuel; when deactivated, the purchase is charged entirely to the bank account. The operator must enable a web platform, mobile application, and in-person assistance at its branch network, with notifications for each credit and each purchase.

Claims, validity, and closure

Sernapesca will resolve the appeals for reversal in accordance with Law No. 19,880, especially those referring to the inclusion or exclusion from the lists. The deadline to claim for the failure to grant each monthly payment is ten business days counted from the date set for the respective payment. Those remaining from the final process will be incorporated through a final resolution, no later than January 15, 2027.

The voucher may be used until March 31, 2027; thereafter, the operator will close its use and return the balances. Cancellations or refunds are reintegrated only to the voucher, never in cash or to the associated account, and do not constitute a new credit of the benefit.

The resolution is important because it makes operational a benefit already in effect by law: it establishes the payment instrument, the specific dates, and the usage restrictions that will affect thousands of artisanal fishers with vessels up to twelve meters registered in the RPA, who from December must have an enabled bank account to collect the monthly contribution of one hundred thousand pesos.

Source: Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile, No. 44,597, Thursday, November 12, 2026, Section I, pp. 1-6 (official reference: CVE 2898966).