News brief · Nomad visas

Colombia: nomad visa threshold raised by 23%

The threshold for Colombia's remote worker visa is indexed to the statutory minimum wage, which is rising fast. This mechanism explains the successive increases, and it matters more than today's amount.

By Editorial team · on April 22, 2026

View of Colombia — Photo: Felipe Restrepo Acosta — Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA)

An indexation, not a decision

Colombia issues a visa for digital nomads and remote workers, reserved for people working for an employer or clients located outside the country.

The required reference monthly income is about $1,400¹. The maximum duration of the permit is up to 2 years².

This threshold is not set in absolute terms: it is expressed as a multiple of the Colombian statutory monthly minimum wage, revised every year by decree.

The successive increases therefore do not reflect a tightening of immigration policy but the mechanical application of indexation, in a country where the minimum wage has risen significantly.

We publish neither the exact multiple applied, nor the current statutory minimum wage, nor the date of the latest revision: we have not been able to verify them in an up-to-date official Colombian source.

What indexation implies

For an applicant, the practical consequence is that an amount read in documentation more than a year old is necessarily out of date. The threshold must be checked on the date of application, with the consulate handling it.

For a holder, the consequence concerns renewal: the required income will increase at each revision, while their foreign-currency income will not necessarily keep pace.

On top of this comes the exchange rate effect. The threshold is expressed in local currency; an applicant paid in euros therefore sees their eligibility depend both on the Colombian minimum wage and on the exchange rate.

This double dependence is specific to indexed schemes, and it makes them less predictable than thresholds set in absolute terms, such as those of Estonia or Croatia.

This mechanism also explains why the Colombian threshold, long cited as the most accessible in Latin America, is gradually approaching those of its neighbours. The initial gap was not due to a more open policy but to the level of the reference minimum wage.

An applicant should therefore reason in terms of trend rather than level. A scheme indexed to a fast-rising quantity does not offer the same predictability as a fixed threshold, even a higher one, and the difference shows at renewal time.

The tax threshold, which does not move

Colombian tax residency is acquired through presence, continuous or not, of more than from 183 days³ during any period of three hundred and sixty-five days.

The rolling period does not coincide with the calendar year, which makes the count less intuitive than elsewhere and the threshold easier to cross.

A Colombian tax resident is taxed on worldwide income. The scale reaches 39%⁴ at its top marginal rate, occasional gains of resident individuals are taxed at 15%⁵, and dividends are subject to a special rate of 20%⁶ in the case provided for by law.

Corporate income tax is 35%⁷. Colombia is therefore not a low-tax jurisdiction, and its top personal marginal rate is close to European levels.

What to do

Check the required amount on the date of application, since it is indexed every year.
Anticipate the higher threshold when renewing the permit.
Keep a count of days over a rolling period of three hundred and sixty-five days.
Do not work for a Colombian client without another permit.
Handle the departure from France according to French criteria and the France–Colombia tax treaty.

Finally, safety remains a parameter that national averages mask: it varies considerably from one city to another and, within the same city, from one neighbourhood to another. It is a location criterion at least as decisive as rent, and it cannot be assessed from abroad.

A final word on the application itself: proof of income is provided through bank statements and contracts covering a prior period, which requires planning ahead. A self-employed person with irregular income must be able to show an average, not a peak.

Please note

General information, as of the date shown. A draft reform is not a rule in force: check the conditions with the authorities or a professional before deciding. Terms of use and disclaimers

Sources and verification dates

1.
Colombia: reference monthly means required of a digital nomad visa applicant : $1,400
« 4. En el caso de los solicitantes de Visa V para Nómadas Digitales, Emprendedores y Trabajadores remotos, […] el solicitante deberá demostrar mediante extractos bancarios que cuenta con ingresos mínimos equivalentes a tres (3) Salarios Mínimos Legales Mensuales Vigentes (smlmv). — Resolución 5477 de 2022 del Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores. Salaire minimum 2026 : 1 750 905 COP → 3 smlmv = 5 252 715 COP par mois. »
cancilleria.gov.coVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
2.
Colombia: maximum duration of the visa for digital nomads and remote workers : 2 years
« ARTÍCULO 46. Visa V Nómadas digitales — Alcance: Para prestar servicios de trabajo remoto o teletrabajo, desde Colombia, a través de medios digitales e internet, exclusivamente para empresas extranjeras […] Vigencia: Hasta por dos (2) años. — Resolución 5477 de 2022 (22 de julio) del Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, art. 46. »
cancilleria.gov.coVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
3.
Colombia: presence within a three-hundred-and-sixty-five-day period giving rise to tax residency : 183 days
« ARTICULO 10. RESIDENCIA PARA EFECTOS TRIBUTARIOS. Se consideran residentes en Colombia para efectos tributarios las personas naturales que cumplan con cualquiera de las siguientes condiciones: 1. Permanecer continúa o discontinúamente en el país por más de ciento ochenta y tres (183) días calendario incluyendo días de entrada y salida del país, durante un periodo cualquiera de trescientos sesenta y cinco (365) días calendario consecutivos — Estatuto Tributario, art. 10 (modifié par la Ley 1607 de 2012), compilation juridique de la DIAN. »
normograma.dian.gov.coVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
4.
Colombia: top marginal income tax rate for resident individuals : 39%
« ARTICULO 241. TARIFA PARA LAS PERSONAS NATURALES RESIDENTES Y ASIGNACIONES Y DONACIONES MODALES. El impuesto sobre la renta de las personas naturales residentes en el país […] se determinará de acuerdo con la siguiente tabla: — Estatuto Tributario, art. 241 (modifié par la Ley 2010 de 2019, art. 34) : barème progressif en UVT de 0 % (jusqu'à 1 090 UVT) à 39 % (au-delà de 31 000 UVT). »
normograma.dian.gov.coVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
5.
Colombia: single rate on occasional gains for resident individuals : 15%
« ARTICULO 314. PARA PERSONAS NATURALES RESIDENTES. La tarifa única del impuesto correspondiente a las ganancias ocasionales de las personas naturales residentes en el país […] es quince por ciento (15%). ARTICULO 313. […] Fijase en quince por ciento (15%) la tarifa única sobre las ganancias ocasionales de las sociedades — Estatuto Tributario, art. 313 et 314 (modifiés par la Ley 2277 de 2022), compilation juridique de la DIAN. »
normograma.dian.gov.coVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
6.
Colombia: special rate applicable to dividends and profit shares under article 245 : 20%
« ARTICULO 245. TARIFA ESPECIAL PARA DIVIDENDOS O PARTICIPACIONES RECIBIDOS POR SOCIEDADES Y ENTIDADES EXTRANJERAS Y POR PERSONAS NATURALES NO RESIDENTES. […] La tarifa del impuesto sobre la renta correspondiente a dividendos o participaciones percibidos por sociedades u otras entidades extranjeras sin domicilio principal en el país, por personas naturales sin residencia en Colombia y por sucesiones ilíquidas de causantes que no eran residentes en Colombia será del veinte por ciento (20%). — Estatuto Tributario, art. 245 (modifié par la Ley 2277 de 2022), compilation juridique de la DIAN. »
normograma.dian.gov.coVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
7.
Colombia: standard corporate income tax rate : 35%
« ARTÍCULO 240. TARIFA GENERAL PARA PERSONAS JURÍDICAS. La tarifa general del impuesto sobre la renta aplicable a las sociedades nacionales y sus asimiladas, los establecimientos permanentes de entidades del exterior y las personas jurídicas extranjeras con o sin residencia en el país, obligadas a presentar la declaración anual del impuesto sobre la renta y complementarios, será del treinta y cinco por ciento (35%). — Estatuto Tributario, art. 240 (modifié par la Ley 2277 de 2022), compilation juridique de la DIAN. »
normograma.dian.gov.coVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source