The aim of the Pension System is to provide replacement income for workers who are concluding their active or working life and to cover the risks of the worker' s disability (whether total or partial) and death (survivorship), in order to protect the member and his/her dependents.

It is based on saving and Individual Capitalization. Dependent workers are obliged to contribute in the AFPs, while the self-employed do so voluntarily. The workers are the owners of their social security savings and it is their responsibility to look after their pensions, even though the State guarantees minimum pensions.

It offers members freedom of choice, so that workers may choose the Administrator to manage their social security savings and change it when desired, may decide on the age to retire (old-age or early retirement) and the mode of receiving the pension payment (programmed withdrawal, life annuity or programmed withdrawal with deferred life annuity).

He/she she may also choose the Type of Fund in which to invest his/her savings.

The rules are applied uniformly to all members and there is a direct relationship between workers' contributions and the benefits obtained.

Management is private and is in the hands of specialized limited companies known as Pension Fund Administrators (AFPs), designed to create conditions that encourage competition and responsibility to improve the quality of the service.

The AFPs manage five Funds made up of workers' contributions. The contributions for old-age are deposited in the individual account of each worker, thus constituting the Pension Fund.

There is total separation between the management company and the funds that it manages. The Funds' accounts are kept separately from those of the AFP, so that the money accumulated in the Individual Capitalization account remains the property of each member worker and performs as net worth which is independent of the Administrator.

The State has a subsidiary role as guarantor and auditor of the system, making use of bodies such as the Superintendencies of AFPs and Securities and Insurance.