Colombia digital nomad visa (V Nómada Digital)

The visa is for people who provide remote work or teleworking services from Colombia through digital means and the internet, exclusively for foreign companies, either as employees or as independent contractors, and for people who want to start a digital content or information technology venture of interest to Colombia. The applicant must hold a passport of a country or territory exempt from the short-stay visa under Resolution 5488 of 2022.

Remote workers from those countries may also stay without any visa on the entry permit for up to 90 days, extendable to 180 days a year, as long as no Colombian company pays them. The visa is the route for anyone who wants to stay longer than that.

Bank statements must show income of at least three Colombian legal minimum monthly wages (SMLMV) during each of the last three months. The minimum wage is set by decree every January, so check the current figure before applying. Employees and contractors add a letter in Spanish or English from one or more foreign companies stating the type of relationship and how they are paid, or the contract itself. Company partners or co-owners prove their share in the foreign company and add a letter confirming that they work for it remotely.

Digital entrepreneurs instead submit a motivation letter explaining the project and the financial and human resources they have or plan to have. Every applicant needs health insurance valid in Colombia covering accident, illness, maternity, disability, hospitalisation, death and repatriation for the whole stay.

Applications are filed on SITAC with a JPG photo and PDFs. Choose the consulate nearest to your residence, or the Bogotá office if you are already in Colombia on a valid entry permit; in that case attach the page with your latest entry stamp. Foreign documents need an apostille or legalisation and an official Spanish translation, although the employer letter may be in English. Bank statements in an official OAS language that the authority can read in full may be accepted without apostille or translation. Pay the study fee within ten calendar days, and the issuance fee within ten working days of approval.

The visa does not allow work or any paid activity for a natural or legal person domiciled in Colombia. Beneficiary visas can be requested for a spouse or permanent partner and for children under 25, or older children with a disability, who depend on the holder. As a V visa it does not count towards a resident visa. If it is valid for more than three months, register with Migración Colombia and obtain a cédula de extranjería within 15 days of arrival.