Juan Pablo Araya
Legal Council
Banco Central de Chile
PO Box 967
Santiago 8340454
Chile
Tel.: +56 2 670 2398
Fax: +56 2 670 2232
The Central Bank of Chile is the only entity legally authorized to issue banknotes and coins.
Pursuant to Section 64 of the Constitutional Organic Act of the Central Bank of Chile, anyone who manufactures or puts into circulation objects that resemble genuine banknotes to such an extent that they are readily accepted as legal tender shall be penalized with between 541 days and 5 years of imprisonment. Furthermore, the Criminal Code contains a number of other crimes linked to the counterfeiting of banknotes and coins, and the production of equipment aimed at manufacturing counterfeits.
Other criminal provisions also regulate the reproduction of banknotes and coins, particularly regarding the prohibition against reproducing images of legal tender banknotes for advertising, publicity or commercial distribution purposes, under Decree Law No. 726, dated 1925, and Law No. 17.336 on Intellectual Property regarding the unauthorized use of alien domain works protected by copyright for the purposes of publication, adaptation or distribution to the public.
Nonetheless, if the use for advertising or propaganda purposes of the reproductions of the legal tender currency is carried out in the context of its use as a means of payment, the respective authorization may be requested from the Central Bank of Chile in this case.
Within this latter policy context, the Central Bank of Chile, as owner of the intellectual property rights in respect of the banknotes and coins which are legal tender, under Board Resolution No. 1583-01, dated December 13th, 2010, authorized the partial reproduction of the banknotes and coins in the following cases:
a) Educational purposes.
b) Numismatic purposes.
c) Activities related to the achievement of objectives of cultural diffusion or information of the Chilean legal tender currency.
d) Institutional purposes of State organisms or public charities.
e) Use of reproductions of banknotes and coins in news or reports in printed or audiovisual media.
For the use or public dissemination of illustrations or images of the designs of the legal tender currency, which has any purpose other than those indicated above, the express authorization of the Central Bank of Chile must be requested in advance and in writing, using the form available on the Bank’s website.
For uses authorized by the Central Bank, the following conditions must be met for the reproduction of legal tender in printed media:
· Reproductions of banknotes must be larger than or equal to 150% of the size of the original banknote, or alternatively smaller than or equal to 75% of the size of the original. Coins can be reproduced in their original dimensions.
· The material used to reproduce the images must be visibly different from the original, and a noticeable difference must be noted regarding the texture, thickness, consistency and other characteristics of the paper or polymer used.
· Reproductions of the design of coins may not be made, under any circumstances, using metal or other substances of any kind whose characteristics may be confused with the appearance, weight and other features of the coin. Likewise, the said reproductions may not have relief.
· In the case of publications prepared for educational or numismatic purposes that include a scale model of legal tender banknotes, said publications must include in a legible manner the following reference: “The use of images of the designs of legal tender is permitted, subject to the terms and conditions established by the Central Bank of Chile”. The logo of the Central Bank of Chile must be excluded from reproductions.
· The front and back of a banknote or coin can only be simultaneously reproduced if the colours of the original design are visibly altered, or the reproduction is printed in black and white.
· Simultaneous reproduction of the front and back of a banknote or coin can only be authorized by the Central Bank of Chile for the purposes specified above, depending on the characteristics of the work in which they will be used. In such cases, the word “SPECIMEN” must be included, and the other size requirements must be met.
· The Central Bank of Chile may authorize that the reproductions of the design of the legal tender banknotes or coins be made using the design of the front and back of the aforementioned banknotes and the original colors, taking into account, for this purpose, the characteristics of the piece of which said use is a part of. In this case, the express authorization of the Central Bank of Chile must be previously requested in writing using the form available on the Bank's website. For its resolution, the Central Bank of Chile may require a sample copy of the piece in which the indicated reproductions would be included.
· Reproductions must be based on images provided by the Central Bank of Chile on its website.
· Reproductions must be made in low resolution that does not exceed 72 dpi.
For uses authorized by the Central Bank, the following conditions must be met for the reproduction of legal tender in electronic, digital or audiovisual media:
· Reproductions must be based on low resolution images which do not exceed 72 dpi.
· Reproductions must be based on images which are provided by the Central Bank of Chile on its website. In any case, if the reproductions made through these means can be printed, the conditions provided for the reproduction in printed media, indicated above, must also be followed.
· For uses authorized by the Central Bank, the negatives, plates, digital files or storage devices that contain images or illustrations of the design of the legal tender must be destroyed, deleted or disabled once they have been used for the purposes authorized by Board Resolution No. 1583-01 and its modifications.