President Kast Appoints Sebastián Vallebona as New Undersecretary of Finance

President José Antonio Kast has appointed Sebastián Vallebona Espinosa as Chile's new Undersecretary of Finance, filling a vacancy left by Juan Pablo Rodríguez, who was dismissed three weeks prior. The appointment was announced by the Presidency's Press Directorate.

Vallebona's predecessor, Juan Pablo Rodríguez, was removed from his post on July 23 after failing a drug test. While Rodríguez had initially tested negative in April, a second test administered in June yielded a positive result for the first sample. The former undersecretary denied drug use and subsequently underwent a private test that came back negative. This situation had caused significant tension within the ruling party, with some officials calling for apologies regarding the handling of the case.

Sebastián Vallebona brings a strong background in tax law to the position. He is a graduate of the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, where he also earned a Master of Laws (LLM) with a specialization in tax law. He further pursued an advanced LLM in international tax law at Leiden University in the Netherlands.

Academically, Vallebona is a professor of Tax Law at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile and teaches International Taxation Essentials at Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez. Professionally, he has experience from PwC Chile and was a partner at the law firm Pereira Covarrubias Montes Abogados. His previous role within the Ministry of Finance was as Coordinator of Tax Policies.