Treasury appoints Marcelo Valdovinos as judge of the Second Metropolitan Tax Court

The Ministry of Finance appointed Marcelo Alejandro Valdovinos Ríos to the position of judge of the Second Tax and Customs Court of the Metropolitan Region, based in the Metropolitan Region of Santiago. The appointment was formalized by Decree No. 757, dated August 12, 2026, and was published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile No. 44,560, on Monday, September 28, 2026, in Section I, General Norms, under official reference CVE 2873691.

The appointment was issued in exercise of the powers of the President of the Republic and in accordance with Article 5 of the first article of Law No. 20,322, of 2009, of the Ministry of Finance, which strengthens and improves tax and customs jurisdiction. This regulation establishes that the judge of a tax and customs court is appointed by the President of the Republic from a shortlist proposed by the respective Court of Appeals.

The vacancy that led to the appointment

The position had been vacant since March 5, 2025. According to the recitals of the decree, the vacancy occurred following the departure of Óscar Renato Meriño Maturana, national identity card No. 15,553,943-7, who was rated on the deficient list.

The vacancy was declared by Decree No. 40, dated March 25, 2025, of the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, the direct precedent for the selection process that culminated in the appointment published today.

Shortlist, hearing, and selection process

The proposal of candidates was prepared by the Hon. Court of Appeals of Santiago, whose hearing on April 29, 2026, contains the shortlist and the background information to fill the position of titular judge, within the framework of Full Court Case Rol No. 1652-2026.

The administrative file also incorporates the following background information:

• Act No. 147-2009, dated July 3, 2009, of the Most Excellent Supreme Court, an agreed order on the formation of shortlists to appoint judges and secretaries of tax and customs courts.
• Agreement No. 10,007, contained in numeral 6 of the Minutes of Ordinary Session No. 2,047, dated March 3, 2026, of the Senior Public Management Council.
• Confidential letters No. 10, dated April 7, 2026, and 15, dated June 15, 2026, both from the President of the Senior Public Management Council.
• Resolution No. 36, of 2024, of the Comptroller General of the Republic.

Remuneration level, oath, and financing

Valdovinos Ríos, national identity card No. 11,437,090-8, assumes Level I of the Remuneration System for Personnel of the Tax and Customs Courts, in accordance with DFL No. 2, of 2018, of the Ministry of Finance.

The decree provides that, for reasons of efficient service, the new judge shall assume their duties on the date of the decree itself, without awaiting its full processing. Prior to this, they must take an oath or promise to uphold the Constitution and the laws of the Republic before the President of the Most Illustrious Court of Appeals of Santiago.

The expenditure resulting from this measure is charged to the budget of the Administrative Unit of Tax and Customs Courts, and the Public Procurement Court, under item 08 01 06 24 03 001, within the framework of Law No. 21.796, on the Public Sector Budgets for 2026.

The decree bears the signatures of the President of the Republic, José Antonio Kast Rist; the Minister of Finance, Jorge Antonio Quiroz Castro; and the Minister of Justice and Human Rights, Fernando Rabat Celis. The transcription was signed by the Undersecretary of Finance, Sebastián Vallebona Espinosa.

The appointment completes the composition of the Second Tax and Customs Court of the Metropolitan Region, the body that resolves taxpayer claims against acts of the Internal Revenue Service and the National Customs Service. With the position filled after more than a year of vacancy, taxpayers in the Metropolitan Region have an additional presiding court to process and rule on their tax disputes.

Source: Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile, No. 44,560, Monday, September 28, 2026, Section I, General Norms, p. 1 (official reference: CVE 2873691).