Colombia visa requirements are simple and easy to understand. Colombia has a liberal visa policy offering visa exemption to most nationalities. Colombia offers eVisa to those who require a visa.
WHAT YOU WILL LEARN IN THIS ARTICLE
You will learn everything about Colombia visa requirements, application procedure, documentation required, visa fee, payment methods, application status and entry/exit formalities at the airport.
Colombia eVisa is available to many nationalities. The entire application process is online and a printable eVisa is issued. The only issue being the visa fee is quite steep and it needs to be paid in two payments.
On the other hand, nationals from Cambodia, China, India, Macao, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Thailand and Vietnam holding a valid US or Schengen visa do not require a separate visa for Colombia.
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COLOMBIA VISA REQUIREMENTS BY NATIONALITY
Minimum passport validity required to enter Colombia
Passport must be valid for at least 6 months at the time of entering Colombia
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Visa EXEMPT nationalities
- Maximum stay allowed 90 days each entry
- Can be extended for an additional 90 days online
- Maximum stay allowed 180 days in a calendar year
- Albania
- Andorra
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Argentina
- Australia
- Austria
- Azerbaijan
- Bahamas
- Barbados
- Belgium
- Belize
- Bhutan
- Bolivia
- Bonaire (Dutch territory)
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Brazil
- Brunei Darussalam
- Bulgaria
- Canada
- Chile
- Costa Rica
- Croatia
- Curacao
- Cyprus
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Dominica
- Dominican Republic
- Ecuador
- El Salvador
- Estonia
- Fiji
- Finland
- France
- Georgia
- Germany
- Greece
- Grenada
- Guatemala
- Guyana
- Honduras
- Hong Kong
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Indonesia
- Ireland
- Israel
- Italy
- Jamaica
- Japan
- Kazakhstan
- Latvia
- Liechtenstein
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malta
- Marshall Islands
- Mexico
- Micronesia
- Moldova
- Monaco
- Montenegro
- North Macedonia
- Netherlands
- New Zealand
- Norway
- Palau
- Panama
- Papua New Guinea
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Philippines
- Poland
- Portugal
- Qatar
- Romania
- Russia
- Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Saint Lucia
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- Samoa
- San Marino
- Serbia
- Singapore
- Sint Maarten
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Solomon Islands
- South Korea
- Spain
- Suriname
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Taiwan
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Turkey
- United Arab Emirates
- United Kingdom
- United States of America
- Uruguay
- Vatican City
- Venezuela
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Visa REQUIRED nationalities
- Maximum stay allowed 90 days each entry
- Maximum stay allowed 180 days in a calendar year
- Afghanistan
- Algeria
- Angola
- Anguilla (British territory)
- Armenia
- Bahrain
- Bangladesh
- Belarus
- Benin
- Bermuda (British territory)
- Botswana
- Burkina Faso
- Burundi
- Cambodia
- Cameroon
- Cape Verde
- Cayman Island (British territory)
- Central African Republic
- Chad
- China
- Comoros
- Congo (Democratic Republic of)
- Congo (Republic of)
- Cote d’Ivoire
- Cuba
- Djibouti
- Egypt
- Equatorial Guinea
- Eritrea
- Ethiopia
- Eswatini
- Faroe Islands (Danish territory)
- French Guiana (French territory)
- Gabon
- Gambia
- Ghana
- Greenland (Danish territory)
- Guadeloupe (French territory)
- Guinea
- Guinea-Bissau
- Haiti
- India
- Iran
- Iraq
- Jordan
- Kenya
- Kiribati
- Kosovo
- Kuwait
- Kyrgyzstan
- Laos
- Lebanon
- Lesotho
- Liberia
- Libya
- Macao
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Malaysia
- Maldives
- Mali
- Martinique (French territory)
- Mauritania
- Mauritius
- Mongolia
- Morocco
- Mozambique
- Myanmar
- Namibia
- Nauru
- Nepal
- Nicaragua
- Niger
- Nigeria
- Niue
- North Korea
- Oman
- Pakistan
- Palestine
- Rwanda
- Saint Martin (French territory)
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Saudi Arabia
- Senegal
- Seychelles
- Sierra Leone
- Somalia
- South Africa
- South Sudan
- Sri Lanka
- Sudan
- Syria
- Tajikistan
- Tanzania
- Thailand
- Timor-Leste
- Togo
- Tonga
- Tunisia
- Turkmenistan
- Turks and Caicos (British territory)
- Tuvalu
- Uganda
- Ukraine
- Uzbekistan
- Vanuatu
- Vietnam
- Yemen
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
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Visa EXEMPT with a valid visa from the US or Schengen
- Only following nationalities are eligible for visa exemption
- Maximum stay allowed 90 days each entry
- Only C-Type or D-Type Schengen visas are permitted
- All US visas are permitted, except C1 (transit)
- US or Schengen visa must be valid for at least 180 days from the day of arrival
- Cambodia
- China
- India
- Macao
- Myanmar
- Nicaragua
- Thailand
- Vietnam
RELATED: Besides Colombia, you can also travel to 48 countries VISA-FREE with a US visa
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COLOMBIA VISA APPLICATION PROCESS
The visa category for tourists and visitors is Type-V.
Check if you need a Type-V visa to travel to Colombia from the list of visa EXEMPT or REQUIRED nationalities above. Alternatively, check if you need a visa at the Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs website.
Colombia tourist visa must be applied online. An eVisa is issued and sent to your email. You must print and present this eVisa at the first port of entry in Colombia. If you prefer a sticker visa, you can obtain one from your nearest consulate after your online application is approved.
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Colombia eVisa
eVisa Application Procedure
Start your Colombia visa application on SITAC (Sistema Integral de Trámites al Ciudadano) website.
Colombia Ministry of Foreign Affairs has made a nice step-by-step guide on how to fill the online application. Refer to this guide if you need help filling the application. Unfortunately, this guide is only in Spanish.
At the end of your eVisa application submission, a registration code is displayed. This registration code is also emailed to you for records. You must retain this registration code. It’s required for your eVisa fee payment, application status tracking and inquiries.
After your eVisa is approved, you will receive an electronic visa to your email. You will have to print this and present it on your arrival in Colombia.
If you prefer to get a visa sticker in your passport, you can pay your eVisa fee at your nearest Colombian consulate and receive a visa sticker at no additional cost.
Documentation Required
The following documentation is required
- Digital passport photo (JPG)
- Passport data/ID page (PDF)
- Passport pages with previous Colombian visa/stamps (if you have traveled to Colombia previously) (PDF)
- Visa or residence permit (if living in a country other than the country of your passport) (PDF)
- Additional documentation (PDF)
- Round trip flight tickets
- Hotel bookings
- Bank statements for the last 3 months
Combine all additional documentation into one single PDF.
eVisa Fee
Colombia eVisa fee must be paid in two payments.
- First payment: $52 USD
- Second payment: $82 USD
First payment: First visa fee payment of $52 USD must be made after submitting your Colombia visa application. This fee is for “visa study”, which means to process your visa application.
Second payment: The second visa fee payment of $82 USD must be made after your visa is approved. This fee is for “visa issuance”, which means to receive your eVisa.
Though the eVisa fee is quite steep, you will only lose the first payment ($52) if your visa is denied.
Methods of payment
There are 3 ways to pay your Colombia eVisa fee
- Pay with a credit card (Visa or Master card only)
- Pay at any Colombian consulate
- Pay in Bogota
1. Pay with a credit card: Paying with a credit card is a new feature that was introduced recently. It’s not streamlined with the eVisa application process yet. Therefore, you must select the option to pay (a) at a consulate or (b) in Bogota while submitting your eVisa application. Otherwise, you cannot submit your eVisa application.
After you submit your eVisa application, you can make your first eVisa fee payment with a credit card on the payment portal, which is a separate website altogether.
Colombia Ministry of Foreign Affairs has made a nice step-by-step guide on how to use the credit card payment portal. Refer to this guide if you need any help. Unfortunately, the portal and this guide are only in Spanish.
It’s fine to pay the eVisa fee with a credit card even though you have selected the option to pay (a) at a consulate or (b) in Bogota as your payment options in your eVisa application. Hopefully, they will add CC payment as an option to the visa application itself in the future to avoid confusion. But for now, you will have to make the visa fee payment on the payment portal.
A service charge of 2,200 COP will be charged in addition to the eVisa fee.
2. Pay at any Colombian consulate: You can pay the eVisa fee at any Colombian consulate anywhere in the world. If there is one near you, that’s good. If not, you can have a friend or family member pay on your behalf if they have a Colombian consulate near them.
NOTE
If you go to the consulate to pay your first eVisa fee, you can request the consul to process your visa immediately. In most cases, you can pay the second eVisa fee and pick up your visa sticker affixed in your passport.
3. Pay in Bogota: You can pay the eVisa fee in Bogota. For this, you must have a local Colombian bank account or have a local Colombian friend/agent help you pay the fee. This option is particularly not useful unless you have a local Colombian friend/agent who can help you.
IMPORTANT
You are required to pay the first and second eVisa fees using the same method. For example, if you pay your first eVisa fee with a credit card, then you must pay your second eVisa fee also with a credit card. Similarly, If you make your first eVisa payment at a certain Colombia consulate, then you must make your second eVisa payment at the same Colombian consulate.
eVisa Processing Time
The current visa processing time is 5 business days.
If additional documentation or an interview is required, then it can take up to 30 calendar days.
eVisa Application Status
While your visa application is being processed, you will receive a few emails notifying the current status of your application. Alternatively, you can check your visa status online on the SITAC website.
Below are various statuses and their meaning.
Approved: This status indicates that your visa is approved. You have to make the second visa fee payment in order to receive your approved eVisa to your email.
Required: This status indicates that the Colombian consulate requires additional information or documentation. The procedure to provide additional information or documentation will be in the email.
Rejected: This status indicates that your visa is denied. You can reapply after 6 months of waiting period.
Inadmissible: Similar to the above “rejected” status but you are eligible to reapply immediately.
eVisa Approval
After your eVisa is approved, you will be notified to make your second eVisa fee payment. Once the payment is made, you will receive an electronic visa to your email. You will have to print this and present it on your arrival in Colombia.
If you prefer to get a visa sticker in your passport, you can visit your nearest Colombian consulate and receive a visa sticker at no additional cost.
eVisa Validity
Colombia tourist visa (Type-V) is usually issued for 6 months and multiple-entry. There were instances where visas were issued for 3 months to 2 years depending on your itinerary. You can stay up to 180 days in each visit.
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Pre-approved visa from the consulate
The procedure for a pre-approved visa from the consulate is the same as eVisa, except the fact that you would need to visit your nearest consulate to pay the visa issuance fee (second eVisa payment) and have the visa sticker affixed in your passport.
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ENTERING AND LEAVING COLOMBIA BY AIR
Entering Colombia by air
At your first port of entry in Colombia, you will pass through immigration and customs.
If holding an eVisa, make sure you present a print of your eVisa to the officer.
You will be asked about your purpose of travel and the number of days you plan to stay in Colombia. Your passport will be marked with an entry stamped.
The number of days you are allowed to stay may not always be marked on your entry stamp. It is assumed that you can stay up to 90 days. In doubt, ask to make sure you can stay 90 days.
As always, carry a copy of your return ticket and accommodation booking. If you are traveling on a one-way ticket, make sure to have proof of onward ticket.
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Leaving Colombia by air
On exit, you will go pass through the passport control. Your entry stamp will be verified and a new exit stamp will be issued in your passport.
You will not be asked any questions while exiting the country unless you overstayed your visa. Just account for some additional time for the exit process.
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SUMMARY
Colombia visa requirements are simple and easy to understand. Most nationalities are exempt from visas. Colombian visa application process is online and an eVisa is issued. Passport holders from a few countries with a valid visa from the US or Schengen can enter Colombia without a visa.
