Getting a Colombian Passport

why do you want a Colombian passport? Means you are a citizen amd would fall definitely under the Colombian tax law, no its ands or buts, if you were here more than 183 days a year. It wouldnt matter what type of tax treaty your country had with Colombia.

If you are over age 65, you are not required to take the test.   If you are close in age, perhaps waiting until that time might be an easier option.

@twinwolf Thanks but I am a few decades away.

@nico peligro I thought you were liable if you were resident more than 183 days regardless of a Colombian passport/citizenship or not.

Does having a passport really change anything tax wise in Colombia?

I don't agree that, under present tax law, an Expat

who is in-country under 183 days out of 365

is liable for the payment of taxes on worldwide income,

regardless of passport status.

However, tax law does change, and at some point

Colombian passport holders could be on the hook.

At a minimum, they are exposing information to

La DIAN that could be used to collect taxes some day.

Which means Nico's question is a good one... Why is

the OP interested in applying for a Colombian passport

(as opposed to a residency visa)?

I challenge the OP to answer Nico's question.

cccmedia

Countries laws can always change, but I see having more than one citizenship as an advantage here.

For me more passports = more opportunities.   

Colombia is great and coupled with access to Mercosur and the ability to live and work in 8 other South American countries is amazing.

Dear Zooldrool,

Thanks for promptly answering our question about

why you want to apply for a Colombian passport.

Is it your understanding that one would need the

passport, and not just a residency visa or cedula,

to apply for employment in one of the eight

MERCOSUR countries you referenced?

Can you refer our members to an English-language

website about such?

cccmedia, member, Expat.com experts team

Sorry, i am no expert on the freedom of movement with Mercosur.

To my understanding Mercosur citizens (and associate members) have similar freedom of movement like EU citizens do in Europe.

I think it only applies to Citizens and I believe i read somewhere that if you naturalize you need to wait five years before you have the freedom of movement.

@Zooldrool it depends if you are a citizen of a country with a tax treaty with Colombia, have a " permanent" residence in that country where you occaisionally return to, pay taxes in that  country, get all, or most of your income from that country, and what the wording of the tax treaty says on these matters.

Does not apply to US citizens at this time

@Zooldrool Much better to get a Panamá  orPortugal passport as a second passport

@nico peligro Isn't it better to get them all? . I already have freedom of movement in EU so don't need a Portuguese passport.

Panamanian better than Colombian. I woudnt do it.

Or even Ecuadorean.

After reading this thread it seems that answers generally are beliefs rather than statements of fact with proof to back up those statements. It puzzles me why serious questions generate such unserious, incomplete answers.

@CaliRay Well that's because there is a dearth of accurate, consistent information in Colombia about a variety of things, from immigration, to taxes, to banking, to even apartment/housing search. I suspect that the government keeps is this way intentionally, to keep things unclear and keep generating big business for their lawyer and immigration-helper friends. For the rest of us, getting accurate information that actually works or is actual fact, is "hit and miss".

After all, if information and processes were clear, straightforward, and consistent like it is in the USA, why would anyone need to hire lawyers, guides, translators, etc?

It's a grand-scale scam that people don't really think about. But that's what it is. Welcome to Colombia! 😅

To get a Colombian passport first get a resident visa, wait five years, apply for citizenship, take the test (if you are younger than 65), then as a Colombian citizen apply for a passport. I am still working on getting a resident visa.

@ChineduOpara While dealing with official channels as well as entities like insurance companies here can be difficult, offering guesses as answers to questions is not a solution. A simple IDK or silence seems to be a better solution to me. Offering anecdotal answers is OK since we all can have different experiences. As general facts, they aren't helpful.

@futuroexpat I have a permanent resident cedula and am way over 65. Thanks for your reply.

@CaliRay Yes, I was agreeing with you 100%! I was just offering a "guess" as to why people just offer what they know (or THINK they know), because of 2 reasons:

1. Official accurate information ("sources of truth") are hard to come by in Colombia and in Latin America in general (it seems).
2. Such "information voids" are often filled with invalid information... just look what happens in US Mainstream Media when some news outlet, official agency, or even the White House, puts out a "sound byte" or incomplete press release. There's missing information and context, which prompt speculation, assumptions, and worse - opportunities for Bad Actors to come in and spread misinformation
3. People on social media often wanna feel useful or important. So instead of saying "I don't know" or keeping quiet, like you said, they post inaccurate information. It can be OK when they say, "This is what I personally experienced", or "Here's the reference/link/source I am using as my Source of Truth"... but it's not OK when they don't include any references and SOUND or INSIST that their information is correct.

Anyway... I heard that Mexico is more organized and has more consistent information/processes due to the sheer number of resident expats, proximity to the USA, and number of USA-based companies/factories in Mexico. There is higher demand for stability, structure, and consistent/repeatable processes... so the Powers That Be in Mexico kinda have no choice but to Do Better.

Just my 2 cents!

So what is your "reference/link/source"

for the assertion that you heard Mexico

is more organized and consistent?

cccmedia

@cccmedia Oh that was a complete anecdote. Hence I started with, "I heard..." 😁 If push comes to shove, I guess the "sources" would be:

1. My friend who currently lives in Chapala with her son
2. A cousin who lived in Mexico City for a few years, visited Colombia for a few weeks, before moving to China
3. My "takeaways" from a decade of communicating with Americans who work in Mexico (or visit there often)
4. My intuition from loosely monitoring US-Mexico relations in general for over 15 years now (fun side-fact: Mexican immigrant crossing the border to work in the USA, have far less impact, than US companies moving manufacturing TO Mexico. True story, look into it).

Anyway... so, all of that, and then comparing them to my experiences - personal AND 2nd-hand - right here in Colombia, since I live here now (Barranquilla).

But is there an authoritative data sheet that details the differences? Not that I know of.

The answers to these questions will vary from individual to individual depending on their circumstances. For example the age of 65 and the requirement for passing exams. Or if you have a Colombian spouse or child the five years is not accurate. Taxes? Who knows about taxes...lol. Consult multiple experts and pick the one that suits you.

As for me; I may go for a Colombian passport so that I can have some security that I won't have to deal with renewing a visa in the future. And Colombian because my wife is from Colombia and would like to be near her family.

Other people situations and desires may vary and thus a different path is the best one for them.

elp