When exporting to Colombia, make arrangements with a Customs Agency to receive the merchandise and clear it through customs. The following are the main steps to be followed:

• Customs inspects the merchandise, when they consider it necessary, and then authorizes withdrawal of goods.
• Fill out the “Andean Custom Value Declaration” (Declaración Andina de Valor en Aduana) when the import value is equal to or more than USD 5,000.00 FOB.
• Fill out the Import Declaration (‘Declaración de Importación’). When the import value is equal to, or more than USD 1,000.00 Customs Brokers should do all the paperwork and clear the shipment through Customs.
• Go to an authorized financial entity and pay the import duties, VAT, surcharges, and other fees.
• Present all documents to customs.
• The importer must keep import documents for a period of no less than five years.

Customs officials are responsible for inspecting merchandise to verify that the description and classification are consistent with the importer’s declaration. A customs inspection group often performs after-clearance random investigations to detect fraud, foreign exchange irregularities, and tax evasion.  Major customhouse brokers have a customs office in their own bonded warehouses where most clearance procedures are completed before the merchandise is delivered to the customer.  

Contact Information

Colombian National Tax and Customs Directorate (DIAN).

Tax Service Contact Center Line: (+57) 601 307 8064

Customs Contact Center Line: (+57) 601 307 8065