Chile's National Prize for Literature (Premio Nacional de Literatura) was created by Law No. 7,368 during the presidency of Juan Antonio Ríos on 8 November 1942. It consists of a lump-sum monetary prize (16 million Chilean pesos, about US$30K) and a life-time monthly stipend (20 UTM, about US$17K/year). It was originally awarded every year until the amendments introduced by Law No. 17,595 of 1972, when it became biennial. It is one of the National Prizes of Chile.
Winners are selected on the overall quality of their works, irrespective of genre.