Chile delays data protection law

Chile’s Senate approved, in first constitutional review, a bill that amends Law No. 21.719 on the protection and processing of personal data and creates the Personal Data Protection Agency. The measure would delay the law’s effective date to Oct. 15, 2027, and adjust the composition of the future agency’s governing council. It now moves to the Chamber of Deputies and Deputies for its second constitutional review.

What changed in the Chilean Senate vote?

The bill approved by the upper chamber moves the effective date from Dec. 1, 2026 to Oct. 15, 2027, according to Garrigues and coverage by El América and La Tercera. It also expands the governing council of the future Personal Data Protection Agency from three members to five.

The vote passed with 33 in favor and 6 against, according to El América. La Tercera reported that the current law includes significant obligations for public agencies and companies that handle personal information, along with rights for data subjects.

What happens next in the legislative process?

The text still needs to be reviewed by the Chamber of Deputies and Deputies in its second constitutional review. Until that process is complete and the bill is published as law, the original effective date of Dec. 1, 2026 remains in force.

How is the digital agenda progressing in Brazil and Guatemala?

In Brazil, the artificial intelligence bill PL 2338/2023, already approved by the Senate, was still in the Chamber of Deputies, sitting in a special committee and awaiting the rapporteur’s report, according to Safeguard. The bill was still moving under an expedited procedure, and other AI bills had been added to the file.

In Guatemala, the plenary agenda scheduled for Nov. 3 included first debate on a cybersecurity bill. The report presented in late September proposed creating an institutional structure to coordinate state prevention and response to cyber incidents, placing the National Cybersecurity Directorate under the Ministry of Interior, keeping cyber defense powers with the Ministry of National Defense, and creating a National Cybersecurity Council chaired by the president of the Republic.