Colombia’s digital nomad visa, officially Visa V, Nómadas Digitales, lets remote workers live in the country for up to two years. This guide covers eligibility, the income threshold, required documents, the application steps, cost, and how the visa affects your tax status. Figures below reflect Cancillería rules as of August 2026.
Eligibility: Who Can Apply
Three requirements decide eligibility: nationality, work type, and income. All three must be met.
- Nationality: your passport must be from a country that doesn’t need a short-stay visa to enter Colombia. This covers the US, Canada, the UK, EU member states, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and South Korea, under Resolución 5488 de 2022.
- Work type: you must work remotely for a company or clients based outside Colombia, or run a digital business registered abroad. Local Colombian employment or clients disqualify you.
- Income: at least three times Colombia’s minimum wage, which comes to roughly COP 5,252,715 (about $1,400 USD) per month in 2026. The figure moves each year with the minimum wage, and the USD equivalent shifts with the exchange rate.
There’s no averaging on the income side. The Cancillería checks your bank statements month by month, and one weak month can sink an otherwise strong application.
- No averaging: each of the last three months on your bank statements needs to clear the threshold on its own.
- Exchange rate risk: Colombia converts your income using the rate on the day your file opens, not the day you submit. Applying with a buffer above the minimum protects against a currency swing.
Freelancers with uneven income face more risk here than salaried remote employees. A single slow month can trigger a rejection, regardless of your yearly average.
Documents You Need
The Cancillería expects a specific, consistent paper trail, not just proof that you’re qualified.
- Valid passport with at least six months remaining and a blank page.
- Recent passport photo, color, white background, taken within the last six months.
- Bank statements for the last three months, showing consistent foreign-source deposits.
- Proof of remote work: an employer letter for employees, contracts for freelancers, or business registration for entrepreneurs.
- A motivational letter explaining your remote work and your plan while in Colombia.
- Health insurance covering accident, illness, maternity, disability, hospitalization, death, and repatriation, valid in Colombia for the full length of the visa.
- Criminal background check, apostilled if requested. US applicants are commonly asked for an FBI check, valid for only three months from the issue date.
Health insurance rejects more applications than almost anything except income. A short travel policy missing maternity or repatriation coverage will not pass, so check the wording before you buy.
How to Apply
The whole process runs through the Cancillería’s online visa portal.
- Create an account on the Cancillería visa platform and select Visa Tipo V, Nómadas Digitales.
- Fill out the form with your personal details, passport information, and income documentation.
- Upload your documents as PDFs, keeping each file under the portal’s size limit.
- Pay the study fee to submit your application for review.
- Wait for a decision. The official window is 30 calendar days, though it often runs longer if the Cancillería requests corrections.
- Pay the issuance fee once approved, and the visa arrives by email as a PDF.
- Register in Colombia. Within 15 days of arrival, report to Migración Colombia and apply for your Cédula de Extranjería.
Gather every document before you open the portal. A single missing file is the most common reason applications stall for weeks.
What It Costs
Government fees for the visa itself sit in a narrow, predictable range.
- Study fee: around $52 to $55 USD, paid on submission and non-refundable.
- Issuance fee: around $170 to $180 USD, paid only once approved.
- Cédula de Extranjería: roughly $60 to $65 USD after you arrive.
- Extra costs: apostilles, certified translations, and your health insurance policy, which vary by provider and home country.
Budget close to $300 USD once the cédula and core paperwork are counted, and that’s before insurance and any legal help.
Validity and Renewal
The visa can run for up to two years, though one detail here genuinely needs a caveat.
- Length: up to two years, set at the Cancillería’s discretion and often shortened to match your passport or insurance expiry.
- Entry: multiple entry, so you can leave and return freely while the visa is valid.
- Renewal: doesn’t renew automatically. You reapply from scratch or switch to another visa category.
- Residency: time spent on this visa does not count toward Colombian permanent residency or citizenship.
Sources disagree on whether the two-year validity comes with a 180-day-per-year stay cap, a limit that applies to other visitor-category visas in Colombia’s system. This is worth confirming directly with the Cancillería before you plan a stay longer than six months in a single year.
Tax Note
The visa itself carries no special tax status. What matters is how many days you actually spend in Colombia.
- The trigger: more than 183 days in Colombia within any rolling 365-day period makes you a Colombian tax resident.
- What changes: tax residents owe Colombian tax on worldwide income, not just money earned locally.
- Registration: residents typically register with DIAN, Colombia’s tax authority, obtain a RUT, and file annual returns.
This is general information, not tax advice. Talk to a professional about your specific situation before you approach the 183-day line, ideally before you apply.
Who It’s For
This visa fits remote employees and freelancers with stable income comfortably above the threshold. It suits people from visa-exempt countries who want a legal, long-term base in Medellín, Bogotá, or elsewhere. That beats constant border runs on a tourist stamp.
- Good fit: salaried remote workers, consultants with steady contracts, and entrepreneurs with a registered foreign business.
- Skip it if: your income swings month to month, your passport requires a visa just to enter Colombia, or you plan to take on Colombian clients.
Search Flights to Colombia
Colombia’s digital nomad visa turns a legal gray zone into a straightforward, if paperwork-heavy, process. Clear the income threshold every month and get your health insurance right, and the two-year timeline gives you real room to settle in. Medellín’s coworking scene and Bogotá’s pace are both worth the trip. Ready to see it for yourself? Search flights to Colombia on FlyBibe and start planning your move.
Immigration and tax rules change often. Confirm current requirements with the Colombian Cancillería or a qualified immigration professional before making plans. This article reflects information as researched on August 25, 2026.