Banking

Many banks in the US allow you to pay bills on-line, and you can have your SS check deposited to them also.

Many expatriates In Colombia don't get a Colombian bank account but instead use a US bank card/debit card to make withdrawals as needed of Colombian pesos at ATMs (also called ATH, A Toda Hora, or cajero automático).  There is usually a daily limit but for most machines it is $200 USD/day and up.  Some banks in the US will reimburse the ATM fee and the foreign transaction fee.

Here's a list of some Colombian banks and their ATM limits and fees charged:
http://atmfees.net/south-america/colombia/

You'll need a cédula de extranjería if you want to open a bank account in a Colombian bank.  For some information see this link:
http://colombiabankaccount.com/bank-acc … k-account/

Once you have a Colombian cédula and bank account, have the U.S. Embassy in Bogotá or a consulate process the paperwork to have your monthly SS income deposited into the bank.

That way, you'll have easy access every month to cash (typically for a tiny fee), avoiding an excess of fees that most ATM-connected US banks charge for withdrawals if an Expat visits ATMs frequently.

cccmedia in Medellín