Background: Early life experiences significantly impact mental health, yet tools assessing both early maltreatment experiences (EME) and early caring experiences (ECE) remain scarce. Objective: This study aimed to develop and validate the self-reported Early Maltreatment & Caring Experiences (EMCE) questionnaire, a concise tool for dual assessment of these experiences. Participants and setting: A clinical sample of 272 adults diagnosed with major depressive disorder was recruited from an outpatient clinic in Santiago, Chile. Methods: Confirmatory factor analyses (CFA), internal consistency, and test-retest reliability of the EMCE were assessed. Logistic regression with 1000 bootstrap replications evaluated predictive validity for complex and severe depression. Construct validity was assessed against the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire-Short Form (CTQ-SF), and resilience was measured using the Brief Resilient Coping Scale (BRCS). Results: CFA refined the EMCE into a concise 6-item version (chi 2(7) = 9.54, p = .216, RMSEA = 0.037, CFI = 0.995, TLI = 0.989) with strong psychometric properties, including good internal consistency (alpha = 0.73 for EME, alpha = 0.80 for ECE), excellent test-retest reliability (ICC = 0.86 and 0.79, respectively). Each EME point increased odds of complex depression (OR = 1.33, 95 % BC CI 1.18-1.52), while higher ECE scores reduced them (OR = 0.83, 95 % BC CI 0.74-0.94). Agreement analyses with the CTQ-SF supported construct validity. Conclusions: The EMCE provides a reliable, concise tool for assessing early maltreatment and caregiving experiences, supporting clinicians and researchers in exploring vulnerabilities and protective factors. Its brevity ensures feasibility in clinical and research settings.