Why the ley Sabag family subdivision gets rejected: the two requirements nobody checks

Quick answer: the family route under letter j) of Decree Law 3,516, the one everybody calls the ley Sabag (the family subdivision exception), almost always falls over on two requirements that nobody mentions at the counter. The first is that the fiscal appraisal value of the parent property cannot exceed 1,000 unidades de fomento (UF). The second, and the one that rules out the most people, is that the exception applies only to properties that did not originate in subdivisions carried out under that same decree law. If your parcel came out of a parcelling, this route is not available, however well the family relationship and the surface area may fit. And since no agency reviews the file before signing, nobody is going to warn you.

There is a preliminary confusion worth clearing up, because it sends a lot of people to the wrong window. This exception is not approved by the Agriculture and Livestock Service (SAG). Exempt Resolution No. 4788 of 2024, in its section V, expressly excluded letter j) of article 1 of Decree Law 3,516 from the certification under article 46 of Law 18,755, in compliance with ruling No. E258993 of 2022 from the Comptroller General. Certification by the Service and review by authorised third parties apply to subdivisions of half a hectare or more.

That has an uncomfortable consequence. Since there is no prior administrative filter, the defect appears later: at the notary, at the Real Estate Registrar (Conservador de Bienes Raíces) or directly once the lot is already registered and somebody looks at the title. If you are looking for the full picture of the exception, it is in the complete guide to the ley Sabag.

The two filters that leave most people out

The requirements that are well known are the family relationship, the surface area of between 500 and 1,000 metres, the residential purpose and the five year ban on transferring. The ones that are almost never mentioned are these two, and they are the ones that decide.

The right order in which to check. Before talking about plans, about the notary or about which child gets what, two questions have to be answered: how much is the fiscal appraisal value of the whole property, and where does the title come from. If the appraisal value goes over 1,000 unidades de fomento or the property was born of a subdivision under the decree law, there is no transaction to put together and it is worth knowing that before spending.

The other requirements, and where people go wrong

The new requirement that almost nobody builds in: access

Law 21,458, of July 2022, amended Decree Law 3,516 to require the properties resulting from a subdivision to have access to a public space or to a road from the agrarian reform parcelling process, the so called CORA roads (roads from the agrarian reform parcelling). The same rule provided that common roads, whether set up as an easement or as a road lot, are to be maintained proportionally among the owners who use them.

In a family transaction this is frequently overlooked, because the lot handed to the child usually sits inside the farm and it is assumed that he will come in the same way everybody else does. If that passage is not created and registered, what is being handed over is land with no legal access, and the problem appears the day the parent property is sold or inherited. The right of way easement guide explains why a passage tolerated for years does not turn into a right: article 882 of the Civil Code says that not even immemorial enjoyment is enough.

What happens if the transaction went ahead anyway

Since there is no prior administrative filter, it frequently happens that the deed is signed and even registered without one of the requirements being met. The problem does not disappear because of that: it stays latent in the title.

Article 3 of Decree Law 3,516 punishes with absolute nullity the acts and contracts entered into in breach of its rules, and article 2 also provides for a fine. A lot transferred outside the scenarios of letter j) drags that defect along with it, and it appears when somebody looks at the title carefully.

And there is a worse scenario. When the family route is used as a front to sell to third parties, what is being put together is an irregular land division, with article 138 of the General Urban Planning and Construction Act in play, which punishes such conduct with imprisonment. The full picture is in the guide on shares and rights and irregular land divisions.

The prior check, which costs almost nothing

Everything above can be anticipated with four documents, and none of them requires hiring a survey or ordering plans.

What to do when the family route does not apply

The fact that this exception is closed does not mean there is nothing to be done. It means the other ones have to be looked at.

• Subdivide as the law requires, if the property is big enough for lots of 5,000 metres or more. It is the clean route and it is developed in the guide to subdivision of agricultural land. Since 2025 the Service has been operating with authorised third parties under a pilot plan that includes Ñuble and Biobío, which has brought considerable order to the prior review.
• Review the other exceptions under article 1, each of which has its own agency and its own requirements. They are in the exceptions for subdividing below 5,000 metres.
• Sort out the estate first, if the real objective was to divide the farm among the children. The posesión efectiva and the special inheritance registration are the step that comes before any division, and the law does not provide for a surface area exception on inheritance grounds. If the heirs cannot agree, the route is the partition proceeding.
• Resolve the use without dividing the title, when what is wanted is for a child to live on the farm. The exception under article 55 allows the homes of the owner and of his workers, and that is covered in how many houses can be built on a parcel.

Frequently asked questions

Why does the SAG tell me it is not their procedure?

Because it is not. Resolution 4788 of 2024 excluded letter j) from the Service's certification, following a ruling from the Comptroller General. The transaction is carried out by public deed and registration at the Real Estate Registrar, and what has to be proven is compliance with the legal requirements, not obtaining a certificate.

My parcel came out of a parcelling. Can I really not do it?

Not by this route. The text is explicit that it applies only to properties that did not originate in subdivisions carried out under the same decree law. It is the least known requirement and the one that closes the most enquiries. It is verified by reading the history of the title, which is part of a title study.

Is the appraisal value of 1,000 unidades de fomento for the lot or for the farm?

For the parent property, the whole piece of land, with its appraisal value in force on the date of the transfer. That is why it is worth requesting the fiscal appraisal certificate before anything else: it is free, it arrives on the spot and it defines whether there is a case or not.

Can I transfer to my grandchild?

No. The family relationship allowed goes up to and including the first degree, and a grandchild is a second degree relative. Nor does it apply between siblings. If the objective is for the grandchild to live there, another route has to be found, because forcing the family relationship exposes the transaction to the nullity under article 3.

Does it work if the lot is 1,200 metres?

No. The range is 500 to 1,000 square metres and the law does not allow a broad reading. A survey that produces 1,050 metres invalidates the transaction, so the surface area has to be fixed with the plan before drafting the deed.

I received a lot by this route three years ago. Can I sell it?

Not until the five years from the registration have passed. The ban is registered together with the lot and the Real Estate Registrar is going to see it. Selling before then exposes the contract and leaves the buyer without a registration.

The lot I gave my son has no way out of its own to the road. Does it matter?

It matters, and a great deal. Since Law 21,458 the properties resulting from a subdivision must have access to a public space or to a CORA road. A passage tolerated inside the farm is not legal access, and article 882 of the Civil Code prevents it from turning into an easement by the mere passing of time. It is advisable to create and register the easement in the same deed.

Can I use this route twice with the same child?

No. The limit is one lot per ascendant or descendant. If there has already been a transfer to that relative, the allowance is used up, and a second transaction is exposed to nullity even if the other requirements fit.

I am being offered a lot that came out of a Sabag transaction. What do I check?

Three things before signing: the date of registration, to know whether the five years of the ban have already passed; the appraisal value that the parent property had on the date of the transfer; and the history of that parent property, to rule out that it was itself born of an earlier subdivision. If any of the three fails, what you are buying is a title with a nullity defect.

How we check it

The feasibility check for this route is short and cheap, and that is precisely the reason for doing it first. With the property's rol (the tax roll number) we request the fiscal appraisal certificate and verify the cap of 1,000 unidades de fomento. With the current certificate of title registration we review the history of the title to see whether the property was born of a subdivision under the decree law or not. Those two answers define whether there is a transaction.

If there is, we put together the whole transaction: the survey and the plan with the exact surface area within the legal range, the access easement created and registered, the deed identifying the family relationship, and the registration with the ban. The survey is done by our own team, so the surface area that goes into the deed is the same one measured on the ground.

If there is not, we assess the formal subdivision, the estate proceeding when the objective was to divide among the children, or the regularisation of title when the title comes with problems from before.

Send us the rol and the current certificate of title registration for the farm and we will tell you, before you spend on plans, whether your case passes the two filters that nobody checks.