How to check an IMEI in Chile and register a phone bought abroad

To check an IMEI, dial *#06# on the phone and it appears on screen. In Chile the official check is done by IMEI on any carrier's website, and it tells you the status of the device in SUBTEL's system. If the phone was bought abroad and you will use it with a Chilean SIM, it has to be registered, and if you do not register it, it is blocked 30 days after first use. There is no public list of homologated models, so the per-IMEI check is the only verification.

The quotes from SUBTEL's Multibanda site are in Spanish, as published, with an English reading after each one.

How do you check an IMEI?

There are several places to find it. It may appear on the device, on the box and sometimes on the receipt.

Dial *#06# on the keypad. The IMEI appears right away, without placing a call.
In the settings. On iPhone, Settings > General > About. On Android, Settings > About phone, or a similar path depending on the brand.
On the physical label, under the battery on devices with a removable battery, or on the SIM tray.
On the box and, if it is printed there, on the receipt or invoice.

If you are buying remotely, ask for the IMEI in writing before you pay. A seller who will not give it does not deserve your money. A dual-SIM device has two IMEIs, and it is worth checking both.

What to compare

Compare the device IMEIs (the one from *#06# and the one in the settings) with any printed on the box and receipt. On a dual SIM device, compare both. If you find a mismatch, ask the seller to explain it in writing before deciding. If the answer does not satisfy you, on an online purchase you can withdraw within the withdrawal period, as explained in your rights when buying refurbished.

The IMEI check, step by step

SUBTEL explains on Multibanda, its homologation site, that you should check "en el sitio web de cualquier empresa móvil el estado de tu equipo con el IMEI" (on any mobile company's website, the status of your device by IMEI). Multibanda links the checks of Claro, Entel, Movistar, VTR and WOM. The check is a form where you type your IMEI.

According to Multibanda, that check shows whether your device is homologated and which type of seal it has. SUBTEL's rule also requires the lookup to report "otros motivos que pudieran determinar el bloqueo del terminal" (other reasons that could lead to the device being blocked). If a block shows up, do not buy the device, and if you already paid, ask for a refund.

Two limits of the check.

It does not replace the account lock test or the carrier lock test. You confirm those with the device in your hand.
It works by IMEI, not by model. SUBTEL does not publish a list of homologated models, so you cannot vet a phone before you have its number.

A phone bought abroad

Every phone sold in Chile has to go through homologation. A phone you bring in for personal use does not need to be homologated, but it must be registered if you will use it with a Chilean carrier's SIM. Multibanda says: "Todo teléfono adquirido en el extranjero para uso personal, debe ser inscrito para que pueda operar con una Sim Card de una empresa móvil chilena" (every phone acquired abroad for personal use must be registered to operate with a Chilean mobile company's SIM card).

When you activate it with a Chilean SIM you get an SMS telling you that you have 30 days to register it.
If you do not, "su equipo se bloqueará 30 días desde que lo usó por primera vez" (your device will be blocked 30 days after you first used it). If it gets blocked, you can still register it afterwards.
You do not need to register it if you only use it on roaming or WiFi.
You register at your carrier's commercial office or online, through one of the certifying companies Multibanda lists. One registration per person per year is free.

The deadline for filing the registration appears with different numbers on SUBTEL's own site. The FAQ and the page for foreigners say 60 calendar days from when the device enters the country. The registration page says 90 days for Chileans and residents, and 120 for foreigners. We could not resolve which one governs. The block at 30 days after first use appears the same everywhere, so do not count on the longest period and confirm with a certifying company.

This matters when you buy refurbished, because some listings on platforms such as Mercado Libre carry an "Internacional" tag. In a sample of 450 refurbished iPhone and Samsung listings we reviewed on 25 September 2026, 265 had it. Ask whether the device is sold with the registration done or still to do.

What the IMEI does not tell you

A clean IMEI is necessary, but not enough.

Activation Lock (iPhone). Third-party pages that claim to check it by IMEI have no confirmed accuracy. The reliable test is to erase the device and confirm that on restart it does not ask for someone else's Apple ID.
FRP (Android). Factory Reset Protection ties the device to the previous owner's Google account. Factory reset it and confirm it does not ask for someone else's Google account.
Carrier lock. Multibanda says that with homologation the phone "estará desbloqueado para su uso en cualquier compañía móvil del país" (will be unlocked for use on any mobile company in the country). One brought in from abroad did not go through that process, so test it with a SIM from another carrier.
Network compatibility. Multibanda warns that "un teléfono comprado en el extranjero no ha sido sometido a un proceso de homologación, por lo que no es posible asegurar que su teléfono resulte compatible con las tecnologías (2G, 3G, 4G) publicitadas a su respecto" (a phone bought abroad has not gone through homologation, so it cannot be guaranteed to be compatible with the technologies advertised for it).

How to run these tests with the device in your hand is in what to check when it arrives.

Carriers and 5G

The four carriers with their own networks are Entel, Movistar, Claro and WOM. For 5G, this is what we could confirm in primary sources.

Entel. SUBTEL says it already provides 5G service on 3.5 GHz (band n78).
WOM. Its own page describes 5G on the 3.5 GHz, AWS and 700 MHz bands.
Movistar. According to SUBTEL, it is rolling out 5G on 3.5 GHz.
Claro. It won 3.5 GHz spectrum in June 2024. We could not confirm from a primary source that its 5G is running.

5G phones carry the line "INFÓRMESE SOBRE COMPATIBILIDAD CON CADA COMPAÑÍA" (find out about compatibility with each company) on the seal. The rule also asks that the IMEI lookup report the bands on which each company provides 5G service.

Sources

The registration deadlines were taken from Multibanda's pages on 30 September 2026 and contradict each other. Confirm them with a certifying company before deciding.