Colombia Country Commercial Guide
Learn about the market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business conditions in colombia, prepared by at U.S. Embassies worldwide by Commerce Department, State Department and other U.S. agencies’ professionals
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Despite recent setbacks in “Total Peace” negotiations, Colombia’s security environment has greatly improved over the last two decades, and violent outbreaks are largely removed from the primary urban economic centers. The country has been enjoying a period of improved stability and economic prosperity relative to the height of the conflict with the FARC in the 1980s-2000s. This stimulates development in several key sectors, including infrastructure, tourism, job training, education, rural development, and significant investments in security. 

Colombia officially became a full member of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in April 2020. In its membership commitments, Colombia agreed to focus on reducing informality and misuse of subcontracting in the labor market, strengthening labor law enforcement, establishing stronger provisions for collective bargaining, addressing crimes against trade unionists. Since then, informality has decreased slightly, from 62% to 56%, which remains the majority of the employed population. Colombia is also a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO). The Colombian Government generally notifies all draft technical regulations to the WTO Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade. In August 2020, Colombia fully joined the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA). Regionally, Colombia is a member of organizations such as the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB), the Pacific Alliance, and the Andean Community of Nations (CAN). 

Colombia’s extensive ongoing infrastructure projects are generating demand for project financing, design, logistics, as well as equipment for construction of public roads and airports, water treatment, water supply, electric power generation, pollution control technologies, ports and port security, railway construction, transportation, security and defense items and services, and mass transit systems. New infrastructure initiatives will bolster demand for these services in addition to creating demand for services related to river dredging, airport master plans, urban planning, and other construction and design services. Although Colombia has ambitious infrastructure development plans, as of 2025, the government is facing budget shortfalls and delaying large tenders and development projects. 

On August 3, 2020, the Colombian Government published Decree 1090 of 2020, implementing the de minimis threshold for customs duties on shipments valued at $200 or less. Previously, Colombia applied the $200 de minimis only with respect to taxes, not customs duties. The decree resolved a longstanding open issue under the U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement and took effect on August 18, 2020. Shipments that reach Colombia through the official mail network and express delivery services, whose FOB value is equal to or less than $200 U.S. dollars, not including delivery costs, will not be subject to the payment of customs duties. In September 2021, a new law was passed limiting the application of de minimis to shipments that embark from the United States and that are not intended for commercial end-use, defined as over six items in the same class.

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